This easy salmon lox recipe is the classic cured salmon recipe. Homemade salmon lox takes 6 simple ingredients and tastes better than any store-bought cured salmon lox! Bagels and lox are a brunch favorite in my house and with this recipe, they will be popular in your home too.
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Ingredients needed to make salmon lox:
- salmon filet, bones removed and skin on
- peppercorns (whole) – crushed with a mallet – I use a mix of different peppercorns for layers of different peppercorn flavor but if black peppercorns is all you have, that will work.
- dill – fresh dill is best, roughly chopped. Look in the produce section of your grocery store.
- vodka – this is used in the traditional Scandinavian recipe so we are going to use it.
- salt – I use coarse kosher salt but other flake salts will work as well.
- brown sugar – adds just a hint of sweetness to balance out all the salt.
Cured Salmon Ingredient Substitutions:
- Substitute gin for vodka
- Add juniper berries, lemon zest, orange zest for another layer of flavor.
What kind of salmon is used to make lox?
To make salmon lox choose a filet piece of salmon that comes from the belly or the salty, fatty middle section of the fish. Atlantic salmon, sockeye salmon or king salmon are all great to use when you want to make your own homemade lox. I look for salmon that is wild and sustainably caught and I avoid fish that is marked as ‘colors added’.
Is lox raw or cooked?
Lox, or cured salmon, also known as gravlax, is not cooked in the traditional oven method sense but more of a curing or chemical reaction of cooking. Salmon has been preserved by using the salt cure method for centuries and it is a delicious way to enjoy one of my favorite fish. The salt and sugar mixture, along with any other flavors, will penetrate through the fish infusing the fish with flavors and cooking the salmon through an osmosis process.
Is lox, smoked salmon, nova, and gravlax all the same?
Lox, gravlax, smoked salmon, and nova are all recipes that call for fresh salmon but each recipe is just a little bit different. Lox come from the Yiddish word for salmon, laks, and is salt-cured. Before there was refrigeration, salt curing was the method used to preserve the salmon. Gravlax is lox but it has added sugar and lots of fresh dill.
Gravlax comes from the Scandinavian word gräva/grave “to dig” and after the salmon has cured you ‘dig’ it out of the salt crust. Smoked salmon is a side of salmon that has been cured and then cold smoked. Nova is smoked salmon that has a more intense salmon flavor and has a deeper coloring, almost orange.
How to make salmon lox
- First, crush the peppercorns with a mallet or by hitting them with the back of a skillet.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the peppercorns, salt, brown sugar, and the vodka, stirring to combine and the mixture is of wet sand consistency.
- Place a cooling rack on a rimmed cookie sheet.
- Then place the raw salmon, skin side down, on the rack.
- Start by pressing 1/2 the salt cure mixture on the meat of the salmon.
- Add 1/2 the fresh dill, followed by the second 1/2 of the salt cure mixture and finishing with the last of the fresh dill.
- Tightly wrap the entire tray, pan, rack, and salmon in several layers of food wrap. (make it as tight as possible.
- Allow the salmon to cure, in the refrigerator with something pressing down on it for 2-3 days. (yes DAYS) I will place a second baking sheet on top of the wrapped salmon and something heavy like a couple of jars of diced tomatoes or even a brick.
- Once the days of curing is complete, unwrap the tray of lox, remove all of the dill and sugar/salt cure by running it under cool running water.
- Slice the lox with a long sharp knife and serve with your favorite accompaniments.
Cured Salmon Tips:
- By curing your lox on a cooling rack on top of a rimed baking sheet, the excess moisture from the salmon will have a place to collect without making a mess in the refrigerator. The raised surface of the cooling rack will allow the liquids to easily drain off.
- Collect the liquid that collected in the pan and use it in seafood sauces or add to seafood stock.
- Try and choose a piece of salmon that is the same thickness from edge to edge for a more consistent brine flavor.
How to serve lox:
- Lox, bagel and cream cheese – toast the bagel spread on softened cream cheese and add garnishes such as capers, shaved red onion, more chopped dill, chopped boiled egg or cucumbers.
- Chaffle – substitute out a bagel and use a gluten-free, low carb, keto-friendly waffle.
- Lox deviled eggs
- Lox salmon spread
More seafood recipes: Mexican Shrimp Cocktail | Maryland Crab Soup | Sous Vide Sea Bass
Salmon Lox
Ingredients
- 1 lb salmon sashimi-grade, bones removed and skin on
- 2 tablespoons mixed peppercorns whole, crushed with a mallet
- 1 cup fresh dill roughly chopped
- 3 tablespoons vodka
- 4 oz. rock salt coarse and flakes work too
- 4 oz. brown sugar
Instructions
- First, crush the peppercorns with a mallet or by hitting them with the back of a skillet.
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine the peppercorns, salt, brown sugar, and the vodka, stirring to combine and the mixture is of wet sand consistency.
- Place a cooling rack on a rimmed cookie sheet.
- Then place the raw salmon, skin side down, on the rack.
- Start by pressing 1/2 the salt cure mixture on the meat of the salmon.
- Add 1/2 the fresh dill, followed by the second 1/2 of the salt cure mixture and finishing with the last of the fresh dill.
- Tightly wrap the entire tray, pan, rack, and salmon in several layers of food wrap. (make it as tight as possible.
- Allow the salmon to cure, in the refrigerator with something pressing down on it for 2-3 days. (yes DAYS) I will place a second baking sheet on top of the wrapped salmon and something heavy like a couple of jars of diced tomatoes or even a brick.
- Once the days of curing is complete, unwrap the tray of lox, remove all of the dill and sugar/salt cure by running it under cool running water.
- Slice the lox with a long sharp knife and serve with your favorite accompaniments.
Notes
- By curing your lox on a cooling rack on top of a rimmed baking sheet, the excess moisture from the salmon will have a place to collect without making a mess in the refrigerator. The raised surface of the cooling rack will allow the liquids to easily drain off.
- Collect the liquid that collected in the pan and use it in seafood sauces or add to seafood stock.
- Try and choose a piece of salmon that is the same thickness from edge to edge for a more consistent brine flavor.
Nutrition
Sarah Mock
CEO/Owner/Founder/Culinary Blogger
Sarah Mock is a classically trained Chef and graduate of Johnson & Wales University. A culinary blogger for 12 years Sarah helps the home cook prepare her recipes with professional results.