Swedish Fish ~ cured and pickled.

I just made some Gravlax with Hovmästarsås, cured salmon with mustard-dill sauce and Glasmästarsill, pickled herring with carrots, leeks and red onion. Both are now curing and pickling in the refrigerator for a couple of days, to be served on the 24th of December. Christmas Eve is the day Swedes celebrate Christmas with a fantastic food buffet, a true Swedish Smörgåsbord, with different kinds of herring and salmon, meatballs, beet-sallad, sausages, ribs, Jansons Frestelse-a potato gratin dish with anchovy (creamy and delicious), among other things, and of course a ham.

I make gravlax every Christmas and Midsummer. It's easy to make ahead of time and always a crowd pleaser. I love to serve the gravlax with the mustard-dill sauce on a slice of gluten-free pumpernickel bread or on a crackers, along with a glass of Champagne!

I haven't made the pickled herring in years. Instead I've bought a jar of herring at IKEA or at the food market. Not the same, not by a long shot! This year, I knew it was time to revive my mother's old recipe. I have really missed the authentic flavor of the fish, carrot and onions cured in a spicy and sweet brine. The herring fillets need 2 days to pickle and will then lasts up to a month in the refrigerator. Delicious on crackers or served with steamed potatoes.

Gravad Lax ~ Swedish Style Cured Salmon

with Mustard-Dill Sauce

Ingredients

2 pounds fresh salmon, center cut*

1 large bunch of dill, coarsely shopped

4 tbsp kosher salt

4 tbsp sugar

2 tsp whole white peppercorns, crushed

Mustard-Dill Sauce, recipe follows

Directions

Cut the salmon in half crosswise and place half the fish skin side down in a deep dish. Wash and towel dry the dill. Combine the salt, sugar, and crushed peppercorns in a small bowl and rub a third of the mixture over one piece of fish. Rub another third on top of the second piece of fish.

Put the dill on the bottom piece of fish and place the other half of salmon over the dill, skin side up. Match thick end of top salmon piece with thin end of the bottom piece. Rub the skin of both fish halves with the last third of the mixture.

Place the salmon in a large plastic bag, ziploc bag works well, and seal. Move to a dish. Put a weight on top of the fish, a heavy can or platter works fine. Refrigerate the salmon for at least 1 1/2 and up to 2 1/2 days, turning it every 8-12 hours. After 1 1/2 days, remove and taste the gravlax to see if it's done. You want a smooth, silky salmon, but not too salty. If the salmon is not finished curing, reseal bag and return to fridge.

To serve: Lay each piece of salmon flat on a cutting board, remove the dill, and salt-sugar mixture. With a long thin slicing knife, slice the salmon in thin slices as you would for smoked salmon. Serve with gluten-free crispbread and mustard-dill sauce. Sprinkle som fresh dill on top. Enjoy!

Mustard-Dill Sauce:

3 tbsp mustard

3 tbsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp sugar

2 tbsp apple cider vinegar

3/4 cup canola oil

3/4 cup fresh dill, shopped

1/8 tsp ground white pepper

1/8 - 1/4 tsp Kosher salt, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a food processor, except the oil. While blending, slowly add the oil through the upper opening of the food processor. Blend until you have a smooth and creamy sauce. Or blend together in a medium-sized bowl. Slowly adding the oil to all the other ingredients, while whisking vigorously. Serve with the gravlax.

*Freeze the fresh salmon for at least 2 days before defrosting and curing. This kills of any potential parasites.

Mamma's Glasmästarsill ~ Swedish Pickled Herring

1 lb natural herring/Matjes fillets*

3 cups white vinegar

3 cups sugar

1 1/2 tsp whole white peppercorns, crushed

3 bay leaves

15 whole cloves

6 tsp whole allspice, crushed

1 bunch or fresh dill, coarsely chopped

2 carrots, peeled and sliced

1 large red onion, sliced

1 leek, sliced

Rinse the herring fillets under cold water. Place the fillets in a container of cold water and chill in the refrigerator for one hour.

Heat up the vinegar with the sugar and all the spices. Bring to a boil. Remove from heat and let the brine cool to room temperature.

Remove the herring from fridge and drain out the water. Cut the fillets in 1" pieces. Layer the herring in a large glass jar with the sliced onion, leeks, carrots and dill.

Pour the brine into the glass jar, making sure to cover the top layer with the liquid. Seal the jar and place in the refrigerator. Wait at least 2 days before eating.

*You can find whole or sliced Matjes fillets in jars, in the refrigerated section of most grocery stores.

Photos by Anna Simon unless otherwise specified; www.cookcheif.com, recipe.openoutcome.org.

A fish with history

Dinner was a snatch last night ~ Tilapia with Citrus Bagna Cauda~ thanks to a great recipe by Giada De Laurentiis. I have several of her cookbooks and enjoy her cooking shows. The recipes are always solid; easy to follow and the results are delicious. I found this dish on the Food Networks website.

Yesterday, when I went to the grocery store to get the usual stuff; milk, butter, eggs, I passed the fish counter. I knew I wanted to make Gravlax for the holidays, so I stopped to get some fresh salmon. But should I get farm-raised or wild? Wild, which by the way, I know I 'should' get for various reasons, but hardly ever do. I like the extra fat in the farm raised fish, and truthfully, I love it. It's much more flavorful and it makes an amazing tasting Gravlax. The salmon is cured Swedish style with tons of dill, white pepper, sugar and kosher salt, and served with a dill-mustard sauce. It's a staple on any self-respecting Swede's Smörgåsbord. And so delicious on some crispbread. But since the fish is cured while raw it must be placed in the freezer, either before or after curing, for at least 2 days. The freezing process kills any existing parasites. The fishmonger wrapped up the salmon and asked if I wanted anything else? I looked around to see what else looked good.

Tilapia ~ goes by many names; "St. Peter's fish," from the story in the Gospel of Matthew, where the apostle Peter catches a fish that carries a coin in its mouth, and also "Zeus faber." According to Wikipedia, these species are found in the Sea of Galilee and some Asian countries. Tilapia is the common name for nearly a hundred species of cichlid fish and they inhabit a variety of fresh waters, including streams, ponds, and lakes. Some other interesting facts: Historically, they have been of major importance in fishing in Africa and have become of increasing importance in aquaculture. But this fish can become problematic. It's an invasive species in new warm-water habitats, whether deliberately or accidentally introduced. Yet, it's now the fifth most important fish in fish farming, because of its large size, rapid growth, and palatability. China and Egypt are the largest producers in the world. Commercially grown tilapia are almost exclusively male. Who knew??

Well, I got me some of St.Peter's fish for dinner. Went home. Placed salmon in freezer, then searched the web for tilapia recipes. And this is what caught my eye ~ Tilapia with Citrus Bagna Cauda Sauce. Sounded intriguing, but what the heck was bagna cauda? Searched the internet again...found out that it's a rustic butter sauce. Yes, butter! Melted butter sautéed with garlic and anchovy. Add some fresh orange and lemon juice along with the zest and you're done. I gave the recipe a try since I happen to like anchovies, tweaked it a bit. Added some shallots and replaced the basil with thyme. The dish turned out great! I served the fish over wild rice, roasted cherry tomatoes and broccoli. Healthy and delicious. Note: I didn't tell my husband about the anchovy.

Tilapia with Citrus Bagna Cauda

Roasted Broccoli and Cherry Tomatoes over Wild Rice

Recipe curtesy of Giada De Laurentiis

Serves 4

Ingredients

3 tbsp butter, unsalted

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 tbsp

4 anchovy fillets, minced

4 tbsp minced shallots

1 1/2 tsp minced garlic

2 tbsp orange juice, fresh or store-bought

2 tbsp thinly sliced fresh thyme

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp orange zest

4 skinless tilapia fillets

1 1/2 cups broccoli, cut into 2" flowerets

1 1/2 cups cherry tomatoes, assorted colors

Ground paprika

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Wild rice, cooked according to package

Directions

Preheat oven to 225 degrees F. Prepare wild rice according to instructions on package. Cook the butter and 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a heavy medium saucepan over low to medium heat just until the butter is melted, stirring frequently. Add the anchovies and stir until the anchovies dissolve, about 2 minutes. Add the shallots and garlic, and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Remove from the heat. Stir in the orange juice, thyme, and lemon and orange zests. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt and freshly ground pepper. The sauce can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm before using.

Rub fish with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper and paprika. Place broccoli and tomatoes in a roasting pan big enough to hold the vegetables and fish fillets. Drizzle the broccoli and tomatoes with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in the oven for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and add fish. Return to oven and roast for another 6-8 minutes until fish is just opaque in center.

Serve the tilapia with wild rice and the roasted vegetables. Drizzle the sauce over and serve.

Fish photos from Wikipedia and www.overtonfisheries.com. Cooking photos by Anna Simon.