Spicy Gravlaks with Aquavit

Name: Spicy Gravlaks with Aquavit
Yield: Serves 6 to 8
Cuisine: Norway
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons aquavit, brandy, eau-de-vie, or Scotch; ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes or 1 small dried hot red chile pepper, seeded and chopped; ½ teaspoon black peppercorns; 2 teaspoons aniseed; 3 tablespoons salt; 1½ tablespoons sugar; 5 juniper berries; Two 1-pound salmon fillets, skin on, any pinbones removed; 1 tablespoon caraway seeds; 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh dill

Preparation info

Serves
6 to 8

Difficulty
Easy

Appears in

Kitchen of Light

By Andreas Viestad

Published 2003

About

A FEW DROPS OF AQUAVIT, THE SCANDINAVIAN LIQUOR MADE FROM POTATOES AND FLAVORED WITH CARAWAY, LEMON PEEL, ANISEED, AND FENNEL, WILL GIVE GRAVLAKS A RICH, SPICY TASTE (SCOTCH OR AN EAU-DE-VIE ARE ACCEPTABLE SUBSTITUTES).

Ingredients

Two 1-pound salmon fillets, skin on, any pinbones removed
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
2 teaspoons

Europe
Norway
Scandinavian
Starter
Pescatarian
Spicy
Nordic
Scandinavia
Gluten-free

Method

Rinse the fillets in cold water and pat them dry with paper towels. Crush the caraway seeds, aniseed, juniper berries, red pepper flakes, and black peppercorns using a mortar and pestle. Or place the spices on a cutting board or other hard surface and crush them with the underside of a heavy skillet. Combine with the salt, sugar, and dill.

Place one of the fillets skin side down in a de