Gravadlax with Beetroot and Ginger – Truly a Christmas Miracle.

A Christmas Miracle, I hear you say. To answer your unasked, and possibly even unthought, question. No, I haven’t found religion. Though, there seems to be more of it about at this time of year. I will enter into the festive spirit and avoid going off on a rant about the damage organised religion seems to do to our world. Instead, I will get back in the kitchen and prepare a true miracle of flavour, texture and colour. That miracle is Gravadlax with Beetroot and Ginger.

A big part of the miracle is in how easy this is to prepare. The ingredients list is shorter than midnight mass on Christmas Eve.

It’s hard to believe that so little could go such a way down the flavour road.

Ingredients

• 1 piece of organic (or wild if you can get it) salmon about 600 grams weight (20 ozs)
• 120 grams (5 oz) sea salt
• 120 grams (5 oz) granulated sugar
• 2 beetroot (or is that beetroots or beetsroot?)
• 5cm (2 inches) of ginger

You will also need some cling film, two shallow dishes of slightly differing size and some weights.

The process takes four days and is worth the wait. First, if needed, pin-bone the salmon. You do this by running your hand from the tail end towards the thick end. You will feel any bones. Remove these with a tweezers.

Mix together the salt and sugar. Then grate in the ginger, using a fine grater. Peel and grate the beetroot.

This has to be the ‘Greatest Story Ever Told’ about food preparation.

Mix the lot together.

How could such a mess of stuff produce such a fine end result? It’s a miracle I tell you!

Place a layer or two of cling film in the bottom of the larger of the dishes. Place the salmon in, skin side down. Pack the salmon with the mixture.

Lay it in like Moses was placed in the basket (not that Moses got covered in beetroot).

Wrap it tightly in cling film. Place the smaller dish on top of the salmon and place the weights on top.

4 tins of tomatoes helped convert this salmon to gravadlax.

Put this in the refrigerator and leave there for three days and nights (the “and nights” is a vaguely biblical reference to add weight to my claim for miracle status). Turn the salmon nightly. 

On the fourth day (see, vaguely biblical again), un-swaddle (biblical reference number three) the salmon. Rinse off the mixture.

The salmon takes on an angelic beetroot hue.

Pat dry with paper towels and carve some very thin slices.

It’s a miracle I didn’t eat it all there and then!

Next comes the truly miraculous bit. The colour, texture and taste of this is otherworldly. The flavour is a heavenly chorus (another pro-miracle reference) of salmon and beetroot followed up by a cherubic ginger glow. Serve this whatever way you want. We had it with some nice brown bread.

If you are looking for a festive food idea. Take this as your divine inspiration.

You will be elevated to status akin to saintly by those around you. Who knows, they may all get religion and begin the process of beatification on your behalf. Now that would be a miracle.

Happy Christmas.