Lox not smoked

[chef jimmyj]

I have had great success using 3 : 2 parts Sugar to Salt. While rinsing the finished Gravlax is ok, do not soak the the salmon. The whole point of the Cure is to remove moisture. The suggestion to let the liquid drain is important, so is pressing. I also like to use the Dill. If you can find it, Scandinavian Akavit, made with Caraway Seed, is a good addition although any spirit will work, Whiskey, Grappa, Vodka, etc. One ounce rubbed over each fillet is good.The use of Vodka and sprinkling with a bit of Caraway Seed is a good substitute for Akavit...JJ

 

[graywolf1936]

Thanks Chef, I used 2T salt and 1/4 cup sugar, nice big sprig fresh dill, If I have a shot of Vodka when I eating it would that be the same? I will rinse a taste.

 

[ctonello]

Ive been interested in making this for a while now, just havent pulled the trigger. Make sure to post some pictures at the end, Im really curious as to how this will turn out for you compared to the different ones youve tried.

 

[atomicsmoke]

If I have a shot of Vodka when I eating it would that be the same? I will rinse a taste.

Lol.

I am sure that would work too.

 

[atomicsmoke]

Oh yes, From N.Y. to California. Some outstanding and some not so good. Being in the military for 20+ year I was able to sample food from a lot of different cultures.

Then you are all set - with references to compare with. Friday can't arrive fast enough.

P.s. I will take a package out the freezer too. It's probably the last one.

 

[wade]

 
I have had great success using 3 : 2 parts Sugar to Salt. While rinsing the finished Gravlax is ok, do not soak the the salmon. The whole point of the Cure is to remove moisture. The suggestion to let the liquid drain is important, so is pressing. I also like to use the Dill. If you can find it, Scandinavian Akavit, made with Caraway Seed, is a good addition although any spirit will work, Whiskey, Grappa, Vodka, etc. One ounce rubbed over each fillet is good.The use of Vodka and sprinkling with a bit of Caraway Seed is a good substitute for Akavit...JJ

 I also use either 3:2 or 1:1 Sugar:Salt depending on the type of salt and how I am finishing the salmon. When I cold smoke salmon I know when it is ready because of the moisture loss (weight loss) and as JJ says rinsing after curing does not result in measurable moisture re-absorbtion - soaking on the other hand does.

For gravadlax both dill and fresh fennel work well (especially fresh fennel seeds if you can get them). I am not keen on the Akavit though (I am just not that keen on caraway favour) but I find that Vodka or a good Gin do work very well.

 

[venture]

That salmon on the bottom looks real thick.

I have never had a problem with liquid accumulating, but......

Can't wait for the finished pics!

Thanks for posting this up!

Good luck and good smoking.

 

[ssorllih]

For salmon maple is my first choice and pear or apple is second and third.

 

[graywolf1936]

Venture, the salmon is the white package between the two foil wrap dishes and brick. It is 2 pieces, salted and placed face to face, that's what I read to do. Right now there maybe a 1/16 in of water accumulation in the green dish. Going to get my bagles and cream cheese tomarrow. We shall see. Thank for looking.

 

[graywolf1936]

Well after about 3 1/2 days of curing I was able to enjoy my Gravlax. They really turned out good. I think that next time I want two even thickness pieces and for color I think wild caught would be nice.

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• graywolf1936
• Oct 30, 2014

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• graywolf1936
• Oct 30, 2014

That was lunch, maybe another one for dinner. It will be on our Christmas eve buffet table for sure.

 

[cmayna]

The tail end of wild caught is for me the perfect piece for lox.  I'm actually collecting tail pieces from all the King Salmon we caught this year to do a major smoked lox batch.  Belch!

 

[rgautheir20420]

These look great. I really love lox, so I'm thinking I'm gonna pick up a couple lbs of salmon from the store and give this a go. They've only got farm raised Scotland salmon though, but it'll have to do.

 

[graywolf1936]

 
The tail end of wild caught is for me the perfect piece for lox.  I'm actually collecting tail pieces from all the King Salmon we caught this year to do a major smoked lox batch.  Belch!

Cmayna, I am just learning, why is the tail piece best? is it the thickness? Thanks Joe.

 

[cmayna]

Besides the belly pieces, the tail pieces have some of the finest flavors.   Yes the overall thickness of a tail piece is pretty uniform. I'll see if I can find some pics on my phone.

 

[cmayna]

Here's some pics of some lox tail pieces that I smoked afterwards.

 

[rgautheir20420]

It looks to me like the skin is on in this picture. Is that right? If it is, do you remove the skin after curing or after smoking?

 

[cmayna]

Not sure as to which pic you are referring to but all my lox pics above still have the skin on, even the bottom one.   When you slice thinly like the bottom pic, you go down to the skin but not thru it.  Keep repeating until you think you have enough.   Then you skin the piece by running your knife flat along the bottom of the meat and on top of the inside of the skin. 

 

[rgautheir20420]

 
Not sure as to which pic you are referring to but all my lox pics still have the skin on, even the bottom one.   When you slice thinly like the bottom pic, you go down to the skin.  Keep repeating until you think you have enough.   Then you skin the piece by running your knife flat along the bottom of the meat and on top of the inside of the skin. 

cmayna, very helpful. That's exactly what I was looking at. The last couple pics you just posted. For some reason I was thinking this process is undergone with skinned salmon, but if I don't have to skin in prior to curing and smoking, then that just makes the process even easier and now I really have no excuses not to do it. Thanks!

 

[cmayna]

Couple pics of the finish products

 

[atomicsmoke]

Cmayna,
Very nice smoked fish you got in the picture.

Those are tail pieces? LOL. I have whole filets that big (or small???).