Pomegranate-cured gravlax

The Scandi recipe for gravlax is often eaten at Christmas. Our version, using fresh pomegranate and rich molasses, makes a lovely holiday brunch with bagels or scrambled eggs. It’s also great thinly sliced and piled onto blinis as a party canapé. It’s much easier than you think to cure salmon – just make sure it’s fresh and high-quality, and the two days it spends in the fridge will do the rest.

SERVES 8-10 PREP 30 mins plus at least 2 days curing NO COOK EASY

800g-1kg skin-on side of salmon

(the freshest you can buy)

1 tbsp coriander seeds, crushed 50g muscovado sugar

100g sea salt

4 tbsp pomegranate molasses

½ small bunch of dill, roughly chopped 150g pomegranate seeds, plus extra

to serve cream cheese, blinis, crispbreads,

sliced rye bread or bagels, to serve

1 Check the salmon to make sure it’s pin-boned – if you feel any bones on the fish, use a pair of tweezers to pull them out. Pat the flesh dry with kitchen paper. Around 2-3 days before you want to serve, mix the coriander, sugar, salt, molasses, most of the dill and pomegranate seeds together. Lay the salmon in a dish, skin-side down, and rub the mixture all over the flesh. Cover and put in the fridge, then leave for at least two days or up to three, turning the fillet once during the curing process.

2 Lift the salmon out of the curing mixture and wipe off any excess seasoning using kitchen paper. Put the fish on a large serving board and thinly slice with a sharp knife. Scatter with the extra pomegranate seeds and dill to serve, alongside your choice of accompaniments.

GOOD TO KNOW omega-3 • gluten free

PER SERVING (10) 256 kcals • fat 15g • saturates 3g • carbs 8g • sugars 8g • fibre 1g • protein 21g • salt 4.7g