Just an FYI about storage, if you leave it covered in the fridge, the curing process isn't actually stopped, so if you aren't going to eat the whole thing within a day or two, I would freeze the rest. This stops the curing process.

If you like gravlax, you should try "sursild", pickled herring. Another nordic traditional dish, and can be varied indefinitely. It's a little more tricky to make than gravlax, but oh so tasty, especially around christmas when we Scandinavians need an injection of vitamin D, since we haven't seen the sun in so long.

Hmmm ... I like the sandwiching technique, and the lime and mincing the dill ... but I think when I try this I will stick with the recipes that completely coat the exposed flesh with the salt/sugar mixture, and weight it down. Maybe you have to be careful about overcuring ... but I love the uniform deep red looks of that technique.

Thanks for posting this recipe!!

Thanks for the recipe. I zested half a lime & mixed that with the dill (& added a bit of fresh parsley too). I think it worked out well, got some nice flavor without having to worry about the acid burns. You may want to give it a try. It eliminated having to spread the dill over both pieces, I just piled the dill/lime zest/parsley mix on one.

Before reading this recipe I made gravlax using the 50/50 salt/sugar recipe and was pretty liberal with the amounts. It turned out great but the surface was burnt by the salt, so looking forward to trying this. I fish for salmon in Scotland and many visiting anglers from Scandinavia gravlax their catch. The worm thing is a worry but it doesnt seem to stop folk gravlaxing fresh wild salmon. I read up on this and farmed salmon are not a risk in this regard according to government advice.
An earlier writer above tried to persuade people not to buy farmed salmon because its not as good as wild. I agree however farmed salmon plays an important role in taking pressure off wild salmon which itself is an unsustainable resource which should not be harvested for commercial reasons. For more info visit the North Atlantic Salmon Fund website.

Tried your recipe a couple of times. I like the sugar salt proportions very much. I also liked the time factor. Other recipes call for it to cure longer. I did substitute the limes with a spinkling of Absolute. Wraping it in plastic wrap and then Vacu sealing it in a food saver eliminates the turning and of course it doesn't leak. The cure is pressed in with a nice equal pressure. Next time I am going to try the limes.

A variation that I have used for several years, courtesy of New York Times Sunday Magazine, is to add about a tablespoon of ground dried juniper berries as well as ground black pepper corns. A splash of gin on the cut slices adds a bit of extra flavor. Always a hit at holiday parties.

I just tried your recipe using a 1 lb 1 oz size filet and follow your recipe. 51 hrs later I removed the various ingredients ( dill, lime zest, cracked pepper, salt sugar)--it was a disaster! The "gravlax" was only slightly less raw than before the curing. I had my doubts about curing with using only 2 1/2 tsp of salt but I decided to go along with your calibrations and followed everything else exactly as you recommended. I did mix the dill and lime zest together and mixed them into the dry mix (salt & sugar) even added about 1 TBS of vodka.

I have made gravlax many times before using 1/2 cup kosher salt; 1/4 cup sugar; lemon, lime and orange zests; 1/4 cup chopped dill; 3 TBS of vodka and wrapping in 2 layers of plastic wrap and topping with a plastic wrapped brick. I did not make a sandwich but rather wrapped the whole filet in plastic to ensure the liquid would drain out into a large sized baking tray (able to fit into refrigerator). No acid burning marks or other problems with the filet.

Am really disappointed and sorry this effort did not work out. Am going to try again later this week and will revert to my time tested recipe.

It is not my recipe so I must give credit to Emeril Lagasse when he hosted "Essence of Emeril"on the TV Food Network many years ago.

I was referring to my "original" recipe. I followed your recipe for the most part; wrapping the sandwich filet in three layers of plastic wrap as tightly as possible. I did, however, place a brick (in plastic wrap) on top and flipped the salmon every 12 hours. I used fine Kosher salt instead of sea salt.

I plan on doing another gravlax this coming weekend--using your recipe and another using my "original" and will compare the results. Will let you know. I am "psyched" to get your recipe to succeed for me!

JS, thanks for your feedback.