Cured Salmon
By: Mimi Cooks
Published: Wednesday, December 21, 2011 - 2:57pm

Ingredients




1 to 1 1/2 pounds fillet of skinless salmon
1 cup salt
1 cup sugar
2 TBS Dill seeds
2 TBS dry or fresh Dill
Coarse Black Pepper
Zest of one Lemon, Zest of one Grapefruit, Zest of one Orange
Chopped top of a fennel bulb
2 T. cracked black pepper
Slices of a Lemon, Slices of a Grapefruit, Slices of an Orange

Preparation

1 - Place the Salmon fillet in a nonreactive container such as Pyrex. You need plastic wrap to  to wrap the salmon with and you may use a heavy object such as a foiled brick to weigh the Salmon down, 2 this helps in drawing more liquid from the fillet. 3 - Pour the salt, sugar, black pepper and Dill seeds in the pan, make sure you have equal amounts to cover the Salmon fillet from the bottom and top. 4 - Add the zest of the Lemons, Grapefruits and Orange and place under and on top of the fillet. 5 - Slice the Fennel and place it under and on top of the fillet. 6 Wrap the Salmon filet with the plastic wrap. Make sure it is wrapped from all sides tightly. Place the heavy object on top of it to weigh it down. 7 - Place in the fridge for 3 days. 8 - On the third day, take it out of the fridge, discard of the citrus fruits slices and fennel slices. Rinse the Salmon fillet under cold water thoroughly from both sides and pat dry with paper towels. The filet should feel firm but not hard. Slice thin and serve in a platter. Garnish with fresh dill and lemon zest. I served mine with pumpernickel bread, cream cheese and capers. Keep it refrigerated well-wrapped or in an airtight tupperware. the Salmon will last 3 weeks or so. Once you try this recipe, you will never buy cured Salmon from the store.

About

Cured Salmon makes a great appetizer or sandwich filler. The recipe I am posting here is usually served as an appetizer and can be used for sandwiches with the addition of few other simple condiments.
If you like smoked Salmon then you will love this recipe for "Cured Salmon" . In my opinion, cured Salmon tastes better than store bought smoked Salmon. It is so easy to prepare, all you need to consider when preparing it is the time, since this recipe takes 10 minutes to prepare but you have to wait three days before you can eat it!  
The process of curing meats and fish has been around for ages as a way to preserve meats and fish from spoiling before refrigeration was invented.
Curing meats and fish is found in almost every culture, extending from East Asia , Middle East to Scandinavian Europe and the Americas including Native Americans.
For this recipe, salt and sugar are used in generous quantities as preserving agents. The salt and sugar "cook" the meat by drawing the liquid out and replacing it with salt and sugar mixture. Don't worry about the Salmon being too salty or too sweet, the Salmon fillet is rinsed thoroughly before serving and the flavor of the rest of the ingredients used will remain and enhance the taste of the fish.