Clementine and Gin-Cured Salmon Recipe for Bright, Citrus-Flavored Fish

Ingredients

For the pickling liquor

• 200ml/7fl oz Chardonnay white wine vinegar
• 200g/7oz caster sugar
• 1 red chilli
• 1 tsp coriander seeds

For the vegetables

• 8 baby carrots, peeled and halved lengthways
• 8 radishes, thinly sliced
• ½ cucumber, roughly chopped
• 1 small red onion, halved and separated into petals
• 1 pomegranate, seeds removed

For the salmon

• 125g/4½oz smoked flaked sea salt
• 125g/4½oz flaked sea salt
• 250g/9oz soft brown sugar
• 70ml/2½fl oz gin
• 3 clementines, juice and zest
• 10 black peppercorns, crushed
• 1kg/2lb 4oz salmon fillet

To serve

• 200g/7oz crème fraîche
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• Lovage oil

Method

1. Make the pickling liquor by combining the vinegar, caster sugar, red chilli, coriander seeds and 200ml/7fl oz water in a saucepan. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat and let the mixture cool completely.

2. Place the prepared vegetables in a non-reactive tray and pour the cooled pickling liquor over them. Cover and leave at room temperature for 24 hours, then transfer to the refrigerator. The pickled vegetables will keep for about a month in the fridge.

3. For the salmon cure, mix the smoked flaked sea salt, flaked sea salt, soft brown sugar, gin, clementine juice and zest together in a bowl, then add the crushed black peppercorns.

4. Using a sharp knife, make four shallow scores along the salmon to help the cure penetrate the flesh evenly.

5. Spread a third of the cure mixture on a tray, place the salmon on top and cover with the remaining cure. Cover the fish and refrigerate. After 24 hours, turn the salmon over and leave it for a further 24 hours to finish curing.

6. When curing is complete, rinse the salmon under cold running water to remove excess cure, then pat dry with paper towels. Chill in the refrigerator for an hour before slicing. Cut the salmon into 5mm (¼in) slices on a ‘D cut’—from the back toward the belly—so the slices can be layered to resemble an uncut side of salmon.

7. To serve, drain some of the pickled vegetables and arrange them alongside the salmon slices. Spoon dollops of crème fraîche onto the plate and create a small well in each. Drizzle a little lovage oil and a touch of olive oil into the wells, then finish the plate with a few pickled vegetables and a light scatter of pomegranate seeds for color and brightness.