Making Lox

I made lox. It is expensive when you buy it but can be made at a fraction of the cost. And it is quite easy to make.

You will need two small salmon fillets.

Ingredients for the rub:

1/4 cup coarse salt

1/4 cup white sugar

fresh dill weed (washed dill from our freezer)

Note: There was too much rub. I put 1/2 of it into a jar for next time.

 We bought a whole sockeye salmon and cut off a piece to make lox, which we kept in the freezer.

I took the piece of salmon out of the freezer and thawed it during the day. Then I left it in the refrigerator over night.

Day 1: This morning I rinsed off the piece of salmon and filleted it to get 2 fillets.

 After pulling out the pin bones with tweezers I laid the two fillets skin-side-down onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Then I piled the mixture onto the fillets and added some dill on top of the mixture. After sandwiching the two fillets I wrapped the whole package tightly with the plastic wrap and put it into a zip-lock bag. Then I placed the bag with the wrapped fillet into a flat dish, which I put into the fridge to cure for 3 days. To keep the fillets pressed together I put a stone on top of the package.

Day 3: I took the package out of the fridge, unwrapped it and rinsed off the 2 fillets. Then I sliced them lengthwise into thin slices with a flat knife.

We laid the thin slices on crackers and hard rye bread and ate them with a glass of white wine for lunch.Next time we'll try to eat them on bagels.

They tasted delicious. Of course, they were salty, but that is the nature of lox.

I shall make it again.

April 11, 2013: This is what I had for lunch today. Homemade lox on rye, Camembert on dark rye, homemade smoked salmon, peppers, carrots, and a glass of homemade Sauvignon Blanc. Plus the glass of Vegetable juice and as appetizers chips with homemade salsa.