With Pesach just around the corner, many students and friends ask me for advice on how to organize and streamline holiday cooking and kitchen preparations at this time of year.  Finding versatile recipes which yield a large quantity and can be made in advance easily becomes number one in the pecking order for holiday cooking.  Throw in the economics of large food bills and it is understandable why many a home cook can get stressed!

Photography by Baila Gluck

The ancient, simple process of brining has become a secret weapon of mine in the days leading up the Pesach.    Also called “curing,” — that transformative art of preserving food with salt – is what changes the cellular structure of foods to give us many beloved delicacies and to preserve them for an extended period of time by inhibiting the development of bacteria.  Think about the unmistakable flavor that curing produces, whether in your first bite of a corned beef sandwich or of its briny sidekick, the pickle.  I’m a believer that anything homemade tastes better (you’ve probably guessed that I am by this point), but especially when a minimal effort will yield extraordinary results for a fraction of the price.

A classic example and an easy place to start is salmon.  Cured salmon is very similar to lox in texture and flavor, except that it is not smoked.  Home-curing salmon is a very simple thing to do and has the added bonus of introducing your own pick of flavors in the process.  Traditional gravlax is famous for its dill flavor, but there are many other choices as well: citrus, anise, horseradish, etc.  Once cured, you have a delicacy on hand that can be a bold embellishment, gussying up your plainest appetizer, or a subtle accent, incorporated into main dishes and salads for more complex dimensions of flavor… or at the very least, the fanciest cured salmon matzoh sandwiches at the park for half the price!  I will typically cure a whole side of salmon in the days leading up to Pesach and then I’m set for the whole holiday.

Cured salmon tastes best when sliced translucently thin, but it can also be diced up for tartare (normally prepared with raw salmon) without the worry of attaining super fresh salmon that day.  Depending on its thickness, it can take anywhere from one to three days to cure, packed in a large amount of a salt-sugar mix.  As it cures, the salt-sugar mix will draw out the moisture from the salmon producing a fair amount of brining liquid. The key is to give enough time to cure the thickest part of the salmon – a thinner, smaller piece will require less curing time so you might need to remove thin pieces (like salmon tail) from the cure at an earlier point in the process to prevent the fish from becoming too salty.  Since timing can be a crucial factor, plan ahead and leave a little bit of wiggle room. Here are some more tips to ensure home-curing success:

• Fresh is best. Look for salmon with a bright color, moist and firm in texture, with a clean smell – no fishy odor (if possible, wild salmon is the best!).
• Pan size matters. The fish will release a large amount of liquid, which when mixed with the salt will form the brine that cures the salmon. That’s a good thing!  You want the brine to cover as much of the fish as possible, so choose a pan just large enough to hold the salmon with some extra space for the brine.
• Under a brick. Placing weight on the salmon will press out water and speed up water loss (ideally 4-8 lbs. of even weight to 2-3 lbs. salmon). Try to weight and press the salmon as evenly as possible. A heavy pan, brick or some unopened cans of tomato sauce work just fine.
• “Paper thin.”  A good, sharp, non-serrated slicing knife and a bit of practice is very helpful in yielding paper thin slices, the tastiest way to serve it.  A little can stretch far…

Citrus-Cured Salmon

This is what’s known as a “moist” cure as it uses a high ratio of sugar to salt, producing a fresh and bright taste that will enhance a wide array of dishes and hors d’oeuvres. Slice paper thin for the best taste and flavor, and enjoy for up to 3 weeks if wrapped well in dry parchment paper in the refrigerator.