Supermarket SalmonDon't Just Eat Plain. Practical Know-How Tips from a 20-Year Salmon Expert!

Ingredients−2servings+

• Supermarket salmon fillet (sashimi-grade)appropriate amount (approx. 500g~1kg)
• Coarse salt (flower salt or roasted salt)generously (enough to cover the salmon surface)
• Brewed vinegar1:1 or 1:2 ratio with water
• Cold water (or ice water)appropriate amount

Directions▶ Start cooking

1. Neatly trim any impurities or excessive fatty parts from the supermarket-bought sashimi-grade salmon fillet, then cut it in half or into 3 pieces for easier handling.
2. To draw out moisture from the salmon flesh and firm up its texture, generously and evenly apply coarse salt to all surfaces of the salmon – front, back, and sides – without leaving any gaps.
3. Leave the salted salmon at room temperature for about 30 minutes to 1 hour to cure, allowing moisture to be drawn out by osmosis.⏱ 1h 30m
4. After curing, when a significant amount of moisture appears on the salmon surface, gently rinse it under running cold water to completely remove the salt from the surface.
5. In a bowl, mix regular brewed vinegar and cold water in a 1:1 ratio (or 1:2 ratio if you dislike a strong vinegar aroma) to create enough vinegar water to submerge the salmon.
6. Submerge the salmon rinsed of salt in the prepared vinegar water and marinate for about 20-30 minutes to remove the fishy smell from the surface and add acidity and umami.⏱ 30m
7. Do not rinse the salmon removed from the vinegar water with water again; instead, gently press with thawing paper or a kitchen towel to completely wipe off the vinegar water and any remaining moisture from the surface.
8. Carefully slice the salmon with all moisture completely removed into bite-sized pieces of desired thickness and arrange on a plate to serve.

Tips

• Adjust the marinating time according to the salmon's thickness and the season (temperature). In summer, room temperature is higher, causing salt to dissolve faster, so the salt curing time should be shortened.
• The phenomenon of the salmon's surface turning white during vinegar curing is a natural reaction caused by acidic components. Once it starts turning white overall, remove it immediately to prevent the vinegar flavor from becoming too strong.
• After removing from the vinegar water, rinsing with water will cause the flavor and aroma to dissipate, so you must only wipe off the moisture with thawing paper or a kitchen towel.

🧑‍🍳 Recipe analysis notes

Supplementary notes from the video analysis. Please check the original video before cooking.

⚠️ Where this goes wrong

• When salt curing salmon, if the amount of salt or curing time is excessive, the salmon can become too salty or its texture excessively firm, so be careful.
• If you leave the salmon in the vinegar water for too long, the acidity can become excessive and harm the salmon's original flavor, so you must adhere to the suggested times and tips.
• If you rinse the salmon removed from the vinegar water with water again, the flavor and aroma will disappear, so you must completely remove only the moisture with a kitchen towel or similar.

🔄 Substitutions

• If using fine salt instead of coarse salt, use only about 2/3 of the amount instead of the same quantity to avoid excessive salting.
• You can use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar instead of brewed vinegar, but their aroma might be strong, so adjust the ratio with water to 1:2 or more.

🎚️ Adjusting the taste

• To reduce the saltiness of the salmon, shorten the salt curing time by about 10-20 minutes or use slightly less salt.
• If you dislike a strong vinegar aroma, adjust the vinegar water ratio to water 1: vinegar 0.5~1 or reduce the marinating time to about 15 minutes.

✔️ Verification notes

• During vinegar water marination, if the salmon surface starts turning white overall, remove it immediately to prevent an overly strong vinegar flavor.
• After salt curing, to ensure the salt is completely removed from the salmon surface, you must rinse thoroughly under running water.

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