Salmon Crudo with Lemon Caper Sauce
This salmon crudo has lightly cured sushi-grade salmon served over sliced cucumbers and finished with a lemon caper sauce, herbs, and crispy shallots. It’s a fresh raw salmon appetizer that is so pretty and easy to make.
Equipment
- Small skillet
- slotted spoon
- paper towels
- Mixing bowl
- microplane or fine grater
- parchment paper
- meat mallet
- serving plate
Ingredients
Crispy Shallots
- 2 shallots, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup olive oil
The Salmon Cure
- 8 oz sushi-grade salmon
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
Lemon Caper Sauce
- 3 tablespoons capers
- 2 teaspoons caper brine
- ¼ cup finely chopped chives
- 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 small lemon, zest and juice
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt and black pepper, to taste
For Assembly
- 1 cucumber, thinly sliced
- Japanese mayo
- jalapeno slices
- olive oil, for drizzling
Instructions
- Fry the Shallots: Heat the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add the sliced shallots and fry, stirring occasionally, until lightly golden and crisp, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to paper towels with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool.2 shallots, ¼ cup olive oil
- Cure the Salmon: Mix the kosher salt and sugar in a small bowl. Coat the salmon evenly with the mixture and place in the refrigerator to cure for 15 to 30 minutes.8 oz sushi-grade salmon, 2 tablespoons kosher salt, 1 tablespoon sugar
- Make the Sauce: Finely chop the capers until they form a coarse paste. Transfer to a mixing bowl and stir in the caper brine, chives, dill, Dijon mustard, honey, lemon zest, lemon juice. Slowly add the olive oil while whisking to emulsify. Taste and adjust with salt and black pepper.3 tablespoons capers, 2 teaspoons caper brine, ¼ cup finely chopped chives, 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard, 1 teaspoon honey, 1 small lemon, 1 tablespoon olive oil, salt and black pepper
- Rinse and Slice: Rinse the salmon thoroughly under cold water to remove the cure, then pat completely dry. Using a sharp knife, slice the salmon thinly against the grain into 10 slices. Place them on a piece of parchment paper and add another parchment paper on top. With the flat side of a mallet, lightly pound them until they are about ⅛ inch thick.
- Assemble: Arrange the cucumber slices in overlapping rings on a large plate. Drizzle ½ of the sauce over it. Arrange the salmon slices in a fanned ring on top of the cucumbers and then spoon the rest of the sauce over the salmon. Add a small dollop of Japanese mayo on top of each salmon slice, a bit of the crispy shallots, a jalapeno slice. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil all over and that is it.1 cucumber, Japanese mayo, jalapeno slices, olive oil
Notes
Use sushi grade salmon from a trusted source and keep it well chilled until slicing. For the cleanest slices, briefly chill the salmon in the freezer for 10 minutes before cutting.
Nutrition
Calories: 302kcal, Carbohydrates: 11g, Protein: 12g, Fat: 24g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 15g, Trans Fat: 0.01g, Cholesterol: 33mg, Sodium: 3747mg, Potassium: 425mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 7g, Vitamin A: 276IU, Vitamin C: 41mg, Calcium: 30mg, Iron: 1mg
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.