This is a herb that, much like coriander, some people love and some people hate - its aniseed flavour the point of angst. It certainly couldn't be its appearance - its lush green colouring combined with its delicate feathery fronds are certainly attractive.
Of all the foods I think dill combines best with fish so I really couldn't go past making Gravlax.
In this case I'll be using a local product, Tasmanian Ocean Trout instead of the usual Atlantic Salmon.
Appearance wise it is hard to tell them apart.
The cure I'm using is based on a beetroot cure I made a while back and although you won't get any dramatic colour shift with this, what you will get is a wonderfully flavoured and textured piece of ocean trout.
Gravlax
1 piece Tasmanian ocean trout tail (about 250 grams)
25 grams salt flakes
25 grams sugar
1 tablespoon lemon vodka
lemon verbena leaves
25 grams finely chopped dill
finely chopped dill, extra
1 piece Tasmanian ocean trout tail (about 250 grams)
25 grams salt flakes
25 grams sugar
1 tablespoon lemon vodka
lemon verbena leaves
25 grams finely chopped dill
finely chopped dill, extra
Place the salt, sugar and dill into a bowl and stir well - stir in the vodka to create a sticky paste.
Place a large sheet of plastic wrap onto a board and place some of the cure onto the centre of the wrap, shape it roughly into the size of the fillet. Place the fillet, skin side down onto the cure and then top with the remaning mixture - make sure it is totally covered.
Arrange the verbena leaves along the top of the fillet and then seal well with the excess wrap.
Place this parcel into a container that is just large enough to hold the fillet and then top this with weights - I just used milk cartons.
Let this cure in the fridge for 24 hours.
After 24 hours, remove the fish from the cure - wash it in cold water and then dry on paper towels.
Sprinkle the fillet with chopped dill - it is now ready to be finely sliced.
Weekend Herb Blogging
Just gorgeous. I've already made a mental note to myself to be sure to plant some dill this year!
ReplyDeleteThanks Kalyn - I'm sure it will come up a treat
ReplyDeleteI LOVE dill - and I don't find it aniseedy at all (unlike its lookalike fennel fronds - these are overpoweringly aniseedy). Dill is very popular here in Estonia, alongside parsley and chives, so we use it liberally and everywhere..
ReplyDeleteFantastic dish Haalo! I love Gravlax! In Greece, where I come from, dill is very popular in vegetable dishes served in avgolemono (egg and lemon sauce, a bit like a hollandaise), such as artichokes, courgettes, lettuce, peas and potatoes, in dolmadakia (vine leaf rice parcels) and in tzatziki (yoghurt-cucumber-garlic dip), as you might already know, since Melbourne has a big greek population:)
ReplyDeleteHi Pille - I really like Dill it just adds something special to dishes but I have relatives that can't stomach that aniseed taste, be it liquorice or dill.
ReplyDeleteThanks Heart - Melbourne does love its Greek food. I remember they used to say Melbourne was Greece's third largest city!
I love dill! I've planted it for three years and gotten very little - then last year I had so much I was using it in everything... It was wonderful. I must make the gravlax next summer...yum!
ReplyDeleteHi Haalo
ReplyDeleteGonna try this one this summer using my catch. Anyway, what about trout? Graflax is well known up here in Iceland, but trout doesn't get the same treat! Have you come across some exciting dishes with trout as a main subject?