Arthurs Nosh Bar Smoked Salmon And Gravlax
2
- Prep Time10 min
- Total Time10 min
- MakesMakes 1 8-lb fillet
Build a perfect Hannukah brunch plate with latkes, scrambled eggs, cucumber salad and this smoked salmon recipe—which can also be modified to make gravlax—from Arthurs Nosh Bar in Montreal.
Smoked Salmon
8 lb skin-on salmon fillet (3.5 kg)
4 1/3 cups coarse salt
3 1/3 cups granulated sugar
3 cups + 2 tbsp packed light brown sugar
2 tsp juniper berries
1 1/2 tsp black peppercorns
Whole or chipped cherry, maple and apple wood, for smoking
Gravlax
3 1/3 cups peeled, shredded red beets
1/2 ruby red grapefruit, cut into 1-in. pieces
1/3 cup London dry gin
1/2 bunch fresh dill
Instructions
Smoked Salmon: Trim off any fatty, white pieces around the sides and surface of the fillet. On the wide end of the fillet, cut a small slit in the skin so the cure can penetrate through.
In a bowl, mix together all remaining ingredients, minus the wood; this mixture is the cure. Lay a generous piece of plastic wrap in the bottom of a large, shallow pan. Coat the plastic with a thin layer of the cure.
Lay the fillet on top, skin side down. Blanket the flesh with the remaining cure so that none peeps through. Wrap the fillet with the plastic wrap. Cover the pan and leave it in the fridge for about 36 hrs, depending on the thickness of the salmon—if you are using a very thick fillet, leave for 48 hrs; for a very thin fillet, such as the tail end, leave for only 12 hrs (we don’t recommend curing the tail, as it doesn’t contain much fat).
Rinse off the cure with water, then pat dry. Place the fillet, skin side down, in a smoker. Cold-smoke for 2 to 3 hrs with the mix of cherry, maple and apple wood.
Transfer the salmon to a tray and let air-dry in the fridge for a few days before consuming (this is optional, but it intensifies the flavour and makes slicing easier).
Gravlax: Complete the Smoked Salmon recipe up until the fish has been blanketed with the cure. Before wrapping with the plastic, blend the beets, grapefruit, gin and dill in a blender until a smooth puree forms. Coat the cure-covered salmon flesh with the mixture. Wrap the fillet with plastic wrap. Cover the pan and leave it in the fridge for 48 hrs. If you prefer a well-cured salmon, press it with something heavy as it cures.
Rinse off the cure with water, then pat dry. Transfer the salmon to a tray and let air-dry in the fridge for a few days.
To serve, position a long and sharp knife at about a 45-degree angle from the fish. Using the whole length of the blade, slice the salmon crosswise as thinly as possible, transferring the slices to a plate as you go, and stopping when you hit the skin.
Put together a classic Hanukkah brunch plate with recipes from the owners of the always-bustling Arthurs Nosh Bar in Montreal.
Check out Amy Rosen’s delicious menu for an epic Hanukkah dinner.
Excerpted from Arthurs: Home of the Nosh by Raegan Steinberg, Alexander Cohen and Evelyne Eng. Copyright © 2025 Raegan Steinberg, Alexandre Cohen and Evelyne Eng. Photographs by Karolina Jez. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.
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