Gravlax And Mustard Sauce

Ingredients

• Servings: 10
• 5 -6 lbs boneless salmon fillets, skin left on
• 2 red onions, sliced wafer thin
• 1 bunch fresh dill, leaves pulled off the stem, chopped
• 1/4 cup salt
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup green peppercorn, coarsely chopped
• 1 tablespoon juniper berries, lightly crushed
• 2 lemons, juice of, mixed with the vanilla below
• teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup dark prepared mustard
• 2 teaspoons dry mustard
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup vinegar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/3 cup fresh dill, chopped

Recipe

• 1 with tweezers or pliers, pull out the intermuscular bones of salmon.
• 2 in a non-reactive dish (glass, porcelain, enamel or stainless) large enough to accommodate the salmon without crowding, scatter half of the sliced onions and sprinkle half of the dill on the onions.
• 3 in a small mixing bowl combine the salt, sugar, peppercorns and juniper berries and mix them well.
• 4 rub half of this mixture into the flesh side of the salmon and spoon rub half the juice and vanilla on the flesh; set the salmon, flesh side down on the dill and onions.
• 5 rub remaining salt mixture into skin side of salmon and remaining lemon juice mixture over that. lay remaining dill on salmon, then cover with last of onion slices.
• 6 cover with plastic wrap, then weigh the salmon down with bricks, small iron skillets or canned goods.
• 7 cover the dish and weights with aluminum and refrigerate for 2 to 3 days.
• 8 during the marination time, spoon the juices the salmon give off and marinade back over the salmon.
• 9 after 2 to 3 days, or when ready to serve, remove salmon from the marinade and scrape off dill and onions from skin side, but leave it on for garnish from flesh side.
• 10 slice salmon as thinly as possible on diagonal toward tail and serve with mustard sauce. or set slices of salmon with a dab of mustard sauce on black bread for hors d'oeuvres.
• 11 to make sauce, mix two mustards, sugar and vinegar until pasty. with a wire whisk, slowly beat in oil until it forms a thick mayonnaise like mixture. stir in chopped dill.