Belly Lox

also called lox · salt lox · salt-cured lox · belly lox · cured salmon · old-fashioned lox

The table

2 lb(900 g; belly end of a side, skin on, pin bones pulled)salmon filletpack the salmon in saltcure 3 days, pour off the brinerinse, soak 2 hrpat dry, leave uncovered 12 hrslice paper-thin off the skin
500 g(about 2 1/2 cups)kosher salt
2 qt(changed once)cold water
1(in wedges)lemon
1/2(sliced paper-thin)red onion
1 Tbscapers
Tap anything to cross it off.

What to lay out

Everything the recipe asks for, sitting under the step that eats it. Tick each one as you measure it.6 things to get out.

1pack the salmon in salt

3rinse, soak 2 hr

goes in with what step 2 made

5slice paper-thin off the skin

goes in with what step 4 made

Cooking it

Tap a step when it is done; the next one lights up.

The clock

Start to finish
at least 3 days 14 hrtwo waits that overlap count once
Needs you
none givenof the steps that give a time

2 of the 5 steps never say how long they take, so both numbers are floors. The recipe itself says 3 days 14 hr.

  1. pack the salmon in salt

    not timedfrom the start

  2. cure 3 days, pour off the brine

    3 dayswalk awayfrom the start

  3. rinse, soak 2 hr

    2 hrwalk away3 days in

  4. pat dry, leave uncovered 12 hr

    12 hrwalk away3 days 2 hr in

  5. slice paper-thin off the skin

    not timed3 days 14 hr in

Drawn to scale, so a long wait really does take up the room it takes. The shortest stretches keep a sliver so they stay visible; their times are printed beside them.

Goes with

See how it is written
>> title: Belly Lox
>> category: Cured Fish
>> tags: salmon, salt-cured, no-cook, appetizing, deli
>> counters: Deli
>> aka: lox, salt lox, salt-cured lox, belly lox, cured salmon, old-fashioned lox
>> pairs-with: bagels, cream-cheese, scallion-schmear
>> servings: 10
>> time: 3 days 14 hr
>> step.1: pack the salmon in salt
>> step.2: cure 3 days, pour off the brine
>> step.3: rinse, soak 2 hr
>> step.4: pat dry, leave uncovered 12 hr
>> step.5: slice paper-thin off the skin

Pack @salmon fillet{2%lb}(900 g; belly end of a side, skin on, pin bones pulled) in @kosher salt{500%g}(about 2 1/2 cups) in a non-reactive dish, salt underneath and salt heaped over, so no flesh is showing. Salt and nothing else — no sugar, no dill, no juniper. Sugar in the cure makes gravlax, which is a fine thing and a different one; this is the plain old cure the word lox originally meant.

Cover @&(~1)salted salmon{} and ~cure{3%days} in the fridge, pouring off the brine that collects each day and heaping the salt back over. The flesh goes from soft to firm to sliceable; press it on the third day and it should feel like the fleshy part of your palm.

Rinse @&(~1)cured salmon{} under cold running water until no loose salt is left, then ~soak{2%hr} in @cold water{2%qt}(changed once). Belly lox is meant to be salty, and this soak is the dial: two hours is deli-salty, four is closer to nova, and none at all is a cure you can only eat in slivers.

Pat @&(~1)soaked salmon{} dry and ~dry{12%hr} uncovered on a rack in the fridge, until the surface is tacky rather than wet. That skin is what lets a knife take a whole slice off in one pass instead of tearing it.

Slice @&(~1)dried lox{} on a long shallow angle down to the skin, as thin as your knife allows, and lay the slices flat rather than folded. Serve with @lemon{1}(in wedges), @red onion{1/2}(sliced paper-thin) and @capers{1%Tbs} on a bagel with cream cheese. What this is not is nova: nova is brined lighter and then cold-smoked below 30°C for hours, and a home oven or a hot smoker makes kippered salmon instead — good, flaky, and not this. It keeps a week wrapped tight, and freezes well sliced.