Beetroot-cured salmon with horseradish and tarragon cream

SERVES 10

Ask your fishmonger for the tail end of the fish – this makes slicing far easier – and make sure that the skin has been left on.

2 x 500g salmon fillets

100g sea salt flakes

100g unrefined sugar zest 1 lemon

1tbsp vodka

1 small raw beetroot (about 150g), peeled and finely grated

250g crème fraîche

2tbsp freshly grated horseradish or creamed horseradish sauce

2tbsp fresh tarragon, chopped rye or soda bread, to serve Place a fillet of fish skin side down in a plastic container.

Mix the salt, sugar, lemon zest, vodka, grated beetroot and

2tsp of ground pepper together. Spread over the salmon, then place the other fillet skin side up over the top.

Wrap the fish in cling film and using a small board weighed down with a heavy weight (such as a pestle and mortar), place in the fridge. After 12 hours, pour away the liquid and turn the fish over. Return it to the fridge and replace the weight.

After a further 24 hours, pour away any more liquid, and scrape off the beetroot. Sandwich together, wrap and return to fridge, again weighed down, for a final 24 hours.

Before serving, combine the crème fraîche, horseradish, tarragon and a little salt and pepper in a bowl. Very thinly slice the salmon with the knife slanting across the fish, down towards the tail. Serve on slices of rye bread with some of the crème fraîche and a few extra sprigs of tarragon.