I got mine from Costco. It doesn’t say frozen or previously frozen anywhere on the package. It says fresh, farm-raised salmon. But it’s from Norway. Wouldn’t it have to be frozen to be shipped from Norway?
I’d assume it was previously frozen, but if it says ‘fresh’ maybe it wasn’t.
Personally, I avoid farm-raised salmon. Generally it’s not as tasty as wild-caught, it often contains dye, and the pens are not the best environment for them. Having said that, I’ve had farmed salmon from Norway that I bought at Trader Joes and it wasn’t pretty good. I’ve heard that Norway’s the best place to get farm-raised. If CostCo’s fish is as good as their beef, it should be good eatin’.
Let’s see… I have sugar, brown and white; I have kosher salt. I need the dill. I should get that first thing in the morning.
I used a whole package of fresh organic dill and a 60-40 mix of brown sugar and kosher salt, sandwiched between two filets. The gravlax-to-be is in the fridge.
And I’ve got a kipper cooking.
Mmm. I haven’t made gravlax in a while, and you’re making me crave it. I’ve used gin like Hello Again did; it was good. Also, in my experience, turning/checking is important so you can check to make sure that none of it is drying out and it all remains coated as more liquid is present; I messed up part of one by forgetting a skipping a turn or two, once.
If you’re going that route, I would definitely add chopped red onion and a few drops of lemon juice.
I plan to turn it at 2330 tonight, and at 1130 tomorrow. Since Monday is a commuting day, I’ll turn it a couple of hours early Sunday night, and turn it again before I leave for work. I’ll get home about 13 hours later and give it a try for dinner. I’ve got some dark rye and some butter waiting, as well as some spring greens. I just have to make the hovmästarsås. (Only I’ve used all of the dill in the gravlax. cactus waltz’s recipe calls for white or red vinegar, and I have red wine vinegar.)
If you’re looking to add juniper flavoring, could you just add some Gin to the marinade? The alcohol content should also enhance the dill and any other herbs you’re using.
Did you make it?
I’m as eager to hear of your results as I am to taste mine!
WAS pretty good! :smack:
First, I made the “was” assumption. 
My salmon is still in the freezer, hopefully eliminating any parasites along with the paranoia in my brain. Tomorrow morning I will begin thawing, with preparation taking place hopefully tomorrow evening.
I’m curious about adding gin to the recipe. How is that done? Do you muddle it with the salt and sugar, making a paste?
Here’s an interesting how-to video. (His constant ‘tsk-ing’ is a little annoying, but maybe it’s just me.) He doesn’t wrap the fish, but isolates it from the pan with a layer of dill. (‘You can’t get too much dil.’) He also seasons the skin, which I didn’t do. I like the paving stone he uses for a weight. It’s heavier and more elegant than my half-gallon of water in a zip-top bag.
I wonder if he’s expecting Ceiling Cat? I noticed a portal in his overhead.
And here’s a video of a guy making ‘instant’ gravlax.
.
It occurred to me that I have something a little more handy than a bag of water for weight. My mom gave me a cast-iron bacon press, for which I’ve never found a use. An old g/f gave me a small anvil that weighs about two kilos. Conveniently, the anvil fits onto the bacon press if I turn it on its side to get under the handle.
There was liquid in the bottom of the pan. I thought it was either a small leak from the (new) zip-top bag, or else condensation. But it was brown. I did double-wrap the fish, but it’s leaking anyway. I’ve poured off the liquid. (Still a couple of hours until I turn the packet.)
Here’s how I make it.
Chop your dill and rub the chopped dill into the salmon, which should still have its skin.
Mix 6 parts sugar to 6 parts salt to 1 part coarsely ground pepper. Coat the fillet with the mixture and add more dill. Put the remainder of the mixture in the dish and put the fillet flesh-side down in the dish.
Wrap the dish in a clean supermarket bag and put a weight on top. I use another dish with a plastic top filled with water. Call it 500g tops.
Wait 2-3 days.
Scrape the mixture off the fillet, slice it and enjoy.
So I checked and my Norwegian salmon was never frozen, so it’ll have to stay in the freezer for a few more days. I’ll make my preparations Thursday night.
Very little liquid last night and this morning. I turned it again when I got home from work, and there was no liquid in the pan. But my fingers were wet, and it wasn’t brown sugar-tinted. It was the oil from the fish. I think it’s about done. (But I’m going to wait until lunchtime tomorrow before I try it.)
Coming to this late, but it actually takes a lot less salt than one might think. There used to be a recipe on the back of the Diamond Kosher Salt box with a perfect ratio. I just did a search and Joyce Goldstein (famous chef and author) sez 3T to 2# fish.
I (former pro cook) made it a buncha times. The first time I made it i went freehand and poured a shitload of salt all over the damn thing. Using too much salt results in an “overcooked” product that does not have that silky glossy almost translucent feel and taste to it.
I used to use tarragon instead of dill cuz I lurves me some tarragon. Fuckin’ A good stuff.
Success.
Delicious success.
Slicing on the bias… not so easy. Made a bit of a mess of it. But it tastes just as good.
I’ll recap what I did:
1 pound (500 g) Trader Joe’s frozen wild-caught salmon filets, skin on.
3 Tablespoons brown sugar
2 Tablespoons kosher salt
1 three-quarter ounce (21.3 g) package fresh organic dill
Mix the salt and sugar, and coat the meat side of both salmon filets completely. Arrange all of the dill on one filet. Place the other filet meat-side-down on top of the dill. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap. Wrap tightly again. Place the packet in a non-reactive pan. (I used a Teflon-coated loaf pan.) Put a flat weight on top of the packet. (I used a bacon press with a small anvil in it.) Put the pan into the coldest part of the refrigerator. Drain any liquid and turn the packet every 12 hours (and replace the weight) for three days. At the end of three days, remove the dill and rinse the filets in cold water. Pat dry with paper towels. Slice as thinly as possible on the bias.
I’ve made two smörgås on dark rye bread with butter, lettuce, and hovmästarsås. I’ve eaten one of them, and will have the other one as soon as I post. 
Congrats! I can’t wait to try mine.
I brought some into the office, just enough to make two smörgås (which I made into four portions). My officemate ‘doesn’t like to eat food that looks like what it is’, but she tried it and said it was good. Another coworker, the 75-year-old newlywed, had two half-smörgås. They both liked the hovmästarsås, even though I didn’t have any dill to put in it.
Southern Yankee: I can’t wait to hear how it comes out!
Soul Brother Number Two: I like tarragon with fish; usually tuna. I used 3 Tbsp brown sugar to 2 Tbsp kosher salt for 1 pound of fish, so I used twice as much salt as Ms. Goldstein recommends. The textrure did come out silky and glossy. I loves me some oily salmon!
Johnny, I would have used a lot more dill, more like 6 or 7 bunches. Enough to completely cover the fish an inch deep or so. When I was looking for the Diamond saltbox recipe, I saw plenty of recipes that called for the amount of salt you used. I also saw recipes that called for much much more, which would have resulted in overcured fish.
I am glad your salmon turned out so well. It sounds perfect. Yum.
The dill is not overpowering. It tastes good, but as has been said: You can’t have too much dill! Two bunches would not have I really need to look into growing my own. Maybe I’ll look for some seeds and a pot this weekend. It will have to grow in a windowsill, since it gets a little chilly here in the Winter.