When my wife and I get to decompress after putting the kids to sleep for the night, we have the ritual of making a big bowl of buttery, salty popcorn. Gravlax is a cured fish that requires salt and sugar to draw out moisture. As a fun twist, I decided to make some salty popcorn and add brown sugar and spices for this cure. In keeping with the popcorn theme, I made cornmeal waffle cones as a fun delivery “vehicle.”
FOR THE GRAVLAX:
Serves 4
¼ cup popcorn kernels
1 tablespoon cooking oil
2 tablespoons butter, melted
¼ cup brown sugar
2½ tablespoons salt
2 teaspoons toasted coriander, ground
¼ teaspoon cayenne
8 ounces fresh salmon fillet, bones removed
1 tablespoon juniper berries, crushed
Optional: garnish with popped corn, radish, beet powder, kumquat slices (fresh or dehydrated at 170°F for 2 hours), and/or popped amaranth
Pop the popcorn kernels in a pan on stove using the cooking oil. When finished popping, transfer to a large bowl, dress with melted butter, then toss with brown sugar, salt, coriander, and cayenne. Finely crush the popcorn and cover the salmon completely with the mixture. Set the fish in a rimmed dish and pack the cure around the fillet. Top with crushed juniper berries. Cover and refrigerate to cure for 24 hours.
The next day, rinse off the popcorn cure, dry completely with paper towels, and transfer to an airtight bag for another 12 hours in the refrigerator. Cut into small dices or slice thinly to serve.
FOR THE CORNMEAL WAFFLE CONE:
Makes 8 large cones or 16 minis
¼ cup butter
¼ cup sugar
2 egg whites, at room temperature
4 tablespoons flour
2 scant tablespoons finely ground cornmeal
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon freshly
ground black pepper
Pinch of salt
Melt the butter and let cool to room temperature. Whip the sugar and whites until a nice foamy consistency. Add in half the flour, whisk until evenly incorporated, add cooled butter then the other half of the flour, cornmeal, lemon juice, black pepper, and salt. For the large cones, put 2 tablespoons of batter on your hot waffle cone maker. For the minis use 1 tablespoon. Cook for 3 minutes; once done, roll quickly into a cone shape.
