Simple, Homemade Salmon Gravlax

• Gather the ingredients.
• Rinse the salmon fillets and pat them dry thoroughly.
• Use tweezers or pliers to pull out any pin bones, if necessary.
• Drizzle the aquavit or vodka evenly over the flesh of each fillet.
• In a small bowl, combine the salt, sugar, and pepper.
• Divide the mixture into 3 even piles within the bowl.
• Divide one of the thirds of curing mix in half and place on a rimmed baking sheet or baking pan in the shape of one of the fillets.
• Lay a fillet skin-side down on the mixture. Spread a third of the curing mixture on the flesh of that fillet.
• Spread the remaining third of the curing mixture on the flesh side of the other fillet. Sprinkle the dill, if using, over both fillets.
• Lay the second fillet flesh to flesh on the first fillet. Sprinkle the remaining curing mixture over the skin of the top fillet.
• Cover the fillets and baking sheet or pan with foil or plastic wrap. Place a cutting board or second baking sheet on top of the covered fish and top it with something heavy (cans, pots, or pans) to weigh the fish down. Place it all in the fridge and let chill for about 12 hours or overnight.
• Remove from the fridge, unwrap, and discard the accumulated liquid in the pan. Turn over the fillets so the bottom one is on top.
• Cover the pan, weigh down the fish again, and return to the refrigerator. Let chill another 12 hours.
• The fish is now cured and ready to serve, but it will continue to benefit from another 12 to 24 hours of being weighed down and chilled, so feel free to repeat these steps a second time around.

  (When we made Gravlax a few years ago, we repeated the weighing down, chilling, and rotating/rewrapping for several days. It worked out well.)
• When ready to eat, pat dry, and thinly slice the gravlax against the grain using a very sharp knife. Serve and enjoy.

How to Serve Gravlax

• Gravlax is traditionally served with a drizzle of mustard sauce and some fresh dill, and it's often served with thinly sliced hearty rye bread or crisp rye crackers.

  It's also good anywhere you would use lox—with cream cheese on bagels or bialys, as well as with sour cream and latkes or blinis.

Recipe Variations

• This recipe makes enough gravlax for a large gathering but is easy to cut in half if you want to make a smaller amount.

  For a bit of a kick, try adding 2 tablespoons of freshly grated horseradish to the curing mix.

  With its juniper, citrus, and botanical notes, gin would also work well in place of aquavit or vodka.

How to Store

• Gravlax will keep, covered and chilled, for up to a week.

  It also freezes very nicely, wrapped well in plastic wrap, for about a month; let defrost in the refrigerator.