Treacle-cured Salmon with a Cucumber and Herb Salsa

Treacle-cured Salmon with a Cucumber and Herb Salsa

It's easy enough to buy gravadlax, the lightly cured salmon topped with dill but I cure my own in a mix of treacle and mustard. As an elegant starter it needs a bracing salsa to go with it, so I use salmon's best friend cucumber, lightly bruised with some herbs and sharpened with red wine vinegar

Pin-boning involves a clean pair of pliers or tweezers and running your fingers down the centre line of the salmon fillet, feeling for the small pin bones. Pinch the exposed end of the bone with the pliers and gently tug the bone away from the skin.

Inspired by a recipe from English chef Mark HIx.

Serves 4

Ingredients

700g salmon fillet, skin on, pin boned

80g treacle (not golden syrup)

1 tbsp smooth Dijon mustard

50g sea salt

2 tsp black peppercorns

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 lemon, for the zest

 For the salsa:

A handful of mint leaves

A handful of coriander leaves

1 small shallot

1 Lebanese cucumber

4 spring onions, white part only

1 tbsp red wine vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp sugar

Method

1. Place the salmon skin side down on a sheet of clingfilm. Pour the treacle into a bowl along with the mustard, salt, pepper, fennel and lemon zest. Place the bowl over a pot of simmering water to loosen the treacle. Stir everything together then spread the mixture all over the salmon flesh. Wrap in the clingfilm, place on a tray and refrigerate the salmon for 48 hours.

 2. To make the dressing, place the mint, coriander, chopped shallot and a pinch of salt into a bowl. Peel and seed the cucumber and slice thinly. Add to the herbs and mix together, crushing the cucumber lightly. Finely slice the spring onions and toss into the bowl. Add the red wine vinegar, olive oil, sugar and a few turns of the pepper mill.

 3. Remove the salmon from the fridge unwrap the clingfilm. Scrape away any liquid and marinade and dry the fish with absorbent kitchen paper. Slice into thin slices, cutting the salmon at a 45˚ angle and arrange on a serving platter, spooning the cucumber dressing over the top.

Photo: Supplied