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Vicky, my sister was and is still the keeper of many of my belongings such as family photo albums and boxes filled with books, school memories and kitchen supplies. Essentially, she has my past life all in tattered brown boxes while I took the leap to New York. I bestowed this responsibility on her or a better saying would be I “politely asked” her to store my stuff with the promise that I will return to claim my belongings once settled in New York.

Well, that hasn’t really happened.

Her patience, understanding and willingness to care for my stuff is just too kind and this is one of the many examples of how lucky I am to have a sister who supports and understands my adventurous and risk taking ways – for that I am grateful. Everything she has of mine – there were two main items I had to have with me once I got my act together 1) Recipe Box and 2) Kitchen Aid Mixer. She sent me the recipe box that is filled with so many recipes from the past years and I continue to add to it.

The recipe box holds so many memories and lately, I have been rummaging through it to find different things to make. One recipe I did find was the Swedish Gravlax recipe that I got from a Swedish friend’s family. I have seen it made but never attempted it because of my lack of knowledge of the curing process and the fear that I would give others food poisoning. Then, I started researching online and saw that my friend, Jane Lerner, a food writer made it for the Brooklyn Swap event. Jane made it sound so easy and built up my confidence to attempt to make it for a Sunday brunch.

I took the plunge! I rummaged through my recipe box and found the hand written recipe that was verbally given to me on a cold winter evening in Goteborg, Sweden. I have had this recipe for at least eight years now! If I did my math correctly – then it has been that long since this little hand-written treasure has been living in my recipe box waiting to be made.

This recipe holds a special place in my heart.

And, I have finally made it! What the hell took me so long because I will never go back to buying pre-packaged cured salmon again when I can make it fresh for friends and nibble on it during the week when I’m too lazy too cook.

What’s special and distinct about Swedish Gravlax is the hint of sweetness that is absorbed in the fish with fresh dill laced throughout each slice. Dill is a staple herb in the Swedish culture. For me it’s a love hate relationship with Dill but on salmon – it’s the perfect marriage. The gravlax is normally served as part of a smorgasbord within a Swedish home where there are plenty of cured meats, cheeses, spreads, crackers and breads to choose from. It’s an incredible spread especially during the holidays when you just snack everything all day until midnight while you are downing a few schnapps and sing a few traditional songs to accompany the late night feast.

One of my favorite ways to eat gravlax is on a toasted poppy seed bagel smeared with cream cheese, topped with the thinly sliced gravlax and then pile on the red onions and capers. That is heaven on my palate for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I literally inhale the gravlax bagel sandwich with no cares in the world and the joy knowing that my love and friends are enjoying it with me.

I hope you will find the sweet joy in making this incredible treat. It takes time, a little bit of prepping and patience but the 48 hours is so worth the wait. It’s rewarding and the curing process is quite magical with a delicious and mouth watering, melt in your mouth end result.

This is one example of my happiness and the sweet memories that are in the recipe box. Thank you, to my Swedish friend for sharing this family recipe. It will be treasured.

Now, I get to spread the love with you, my fellow readers.

Swedish Gravlax
from the Janson Family

1.5 lbs. fresh salmon
½ cup kosher salt
¾ cup sugar
1 tbs. black peppercorns
1 cup fresh dill, chopped

  1. Cut the salmon evenly in half with skin on. Make sure all the bones have been removed and you can do this by sliding your fingers along the fish and using tweezers to pull out any remaining bones.
  2. Mix the salt and sugar in a small bowl and evenly pour onto the fish using your hands to neatly spread the salt and sugar mixture.
  3. Spread the black peppercorns on top of the salt/sugar mixture
  4. Top with dill
  5. Take the remaining half of the salmon and create a sandwich with skin side up.
  6. Tightly wrap with saran wrap and place into a glass bowl or tupperware.
  7. Cover the container loosely with saran wrap and place some weights on top to create weight pressure for the curing process. I used bottles of beers or you can use canned goods or even a brick. The extra layer of saran wrap will ensure to keep the salmon clean.
  8. Every 12 hours, flip the salmon. There will be a sort of slimy liquid that oozes out from the fish. Don’t be alarmed. This is part of the curing process as the fish becomes firmer because the sugar and salt removes any liquid from the fish.
  9. At 48 hours, your Swedish Gravlax is ready. Some recommend just scraping off the remaining sugar, salt and leaving some of the dill but I highly recommend scrapping it off and then quickly running it under cold water to was off all liquid, salt, sugar and dill. I prefer to top it off with fresh dill.
  10. Your fish should be dense and slightly soft to the touch. Slice at an angle and serve on a bagel or make an open face sandwich with rye bread, mustard and a squeeze of lemon.