Gravlax (), gravlaks or graved salmon is a
Nordic dish consisting of
salmon
Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...
that is
cured using a mix of
salt
In common usage, salt is a mineral composed primarily of sodium chloride (NaCl). When used in food, especially in granulated form, it is more formally called table salt. In the form of a natural crystalline mineral, salt is also known as r ...
,
sugar
Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose
Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...
and
dill. It is garnished with
fresh dill or
spruce
A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' ( ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal (taiga) regions of the Northern hemisphere. ''Picea'' ...
twigs and may occasionally be cold-
smoked afterwards. Gravlax is usually served as an
appetizer, sliced thinly and accompanied by a dill and mustard sauce known as (Also known in Sweden as , in Norway as , literally 'mustard sauce', in Denmark as , literally 'fox sauce', in Iceland as , and in Finland as , literally 'butler's sauce'), either on bread or with boiled potatoes.
Etymology
The word comes from the
Northern Germanic word ('to dig'; modern sense 'to cure (fish)') which goes back to the
Proto-Germanic
Proto-Germanic (abbreviated PGmc; also called Common Germanic) is the linguistic reconstruction, reconstructed proto-language of the Germanic languages, Germanic branch of the Indo-European languages.
Proto-Germanic eventually developed from ...
, ('hole in the ground; ditch, trench; grave') and the
Indo-European
The Indo-European languages are a language family native to the northern Indian subcontinent, most of Europe, and the Iranian plateau with additional native branches found in regions such as Sri Lanka, the Maldives, parts of Central Asia (e. ...
root 'to dig, to scratch, to scrape', and ''/'', 'salmon'.
History
During the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
, gravlax was made by fishermen, who salted the salmon and lightly
fermented it by burying it in the sand above the high-tide line. Perhaps the oldest reference is found in 1348 in ''Diplomatarium Norvegicum'' as the nickname of a man named Óláfr, who was a delegate in a salmon fishery.
Fermentation is no longer used in the production process. Instead the salmon is "buried" in a dry marinade of salt, sugar, and dill, and cured for between twelve hours and a few days. As the salmon cures,
osmosis
Osmosis (, ) is the spontaneous net movement or diffusion of solvent molecules through a selectively permeable membrane, selectively-permeable membrane from a region of high water potential (region of lower solute concentration) to a region of ...
moves moisture out of the fish and into the salt and sugar, turning the dry mixture into a highly concentrated
brine, which can be used in Scandinavian cooking as part of a
sauce
In cooking, a sauce is a liquid, cream, or semi- solid food, served on or used in preparing other foods. Most sauces are not normally consumed by themselves; they add flavour, texture, and visual appeal to a dish. ''Sauce'' is a French wor ...
.
This same method of curing can be employed for any fatty fish, but salmon is the most commonly used.
See also
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References
External links
{{seafood
Danish cuisine
Finnish cuisine
Icelandic cuisine
Norwegian cuisine
Salmon dishes
Swedish cuisine
Swedish words and phrases
Appetizers