Loimulohi means blazed salmon, and the method is as elemental as the name. A side of salmon, or sometimes rainbow trout, is salted, fixed skin side down to a board with wooden pegs, and stood almost upright at the edge of an open fire. It does not touch the flames. Instead it cooks slowly in the heat radiating from the embers, picking up a little woodsmoke as it goes, until the flesh turns opaque and the skin peels away at a touch. Wooden pegs are used rather than nails, which would heat up and sear the fish around them.

For Finns it is a social way to cook: people gather round the fire and talk while they wait, and it is just as much at home at a summer cottage by a lake as at a festival stand selling it as street food. Served with new potatoes, dill and a cool sauce, it is the Finnish summer on a plate, from a nation of under six million people that has nonetheless produced more Formula 1 world champions than Italy.

You need a fire pit, a campfire or a large charcoal grill with the lid off, a plank and an hour. If the weather or the neighbors object, there is an oven method in the variations.

Salting and pinning the salmon

Ingredients

• 1 side (about 2 1/2 lb / 1.1 kg) salmon fillet, skin on
• 2 1/2 teaspoons (15 g) coarse sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white or black pepper
• 1 lemon

Method

1. Lay the salmon skin side down on a board. Run your fingertips along the thick part of the fillet from head end to tail; if you feel any small bones, pull them out with clean tweezers or small pliers, tugging in the direction they point.
2. Pat the fish dry with paper towels. Sprinkle the salt and pepper evenly over the flesh side, a little more on the thick end and less on the thin tail. Cover and refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours.
3. Lift the plank from the water. Lay the fish on it, skin side down, with the thick head end toward what will be the bottom of the plank, as that end will be nearest the fire. Mark where the pegs will go: 3 or 4 down each side of the fillet, about 1/2 inch (1 cm) in from the edge of the flesh.
4. Push a skewer through the fish at each mark to make a hole, then lift the fish off and drill shallow holes into the plank at the same points, about 3/4 inch (2 cm) deep. Put the fish back and tap a wooden peg through each hole in the fish into the hole in the plank with the hammer, just firmly enough to hold. If using string instead, wrap it round the plank and fish in 3 or 4 places and tie it firmly.

Blazing by the fire

Ingredients

Method

1. Rake the fire into a compact bed of glowing embers with a few small logs keeping low, steady flames. Set the bricks or stones on the ground beside the fire to prop the plank.
2. Wearing gloves, stand the plank almost upright, fish side facing the fire, about 10 to 12 inches (25 to 30 cm) from the edge of the embers, propped against the bricks. Set it downwind if you can so the smoke drifts over the fish. Hold your hand where the fish is: you should only be able to keep it there for a slow count of eight.
3. Cook for 45 to 60 minutes. Every 10 to 15 minutes, turn the plank upside down, so the thin tail end and the thick end take turns nearest the heat, and add a small log to keep the heat steady. If the board starts to smoke heavily or char at the edges, move it a little farther away; if nothing seems to be happening after 15 minutes, move it closer.
4. Push the thermometer into the thickest part of the fillet. For moist, just set salmon as Finns like it, take it away from the fire at 125°F to 130°F (52°C to 54°C); for fully firm fish, wait until 145°F (63°C). The skin should come away from the flesh easily when you lift the edge with a fork.
5. Lay the plank flat on a heatproof surface, ease out the pegs with the tongs or your gloved fingers, and either serve the salmon straight from the board or slide it onto the platter with a wide spatula, leaving the skin behind. Squeeze over a little lemon.

Dill new potatoes and cold sauce

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 lb (1.1 kg) new potatoes
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 3 tablespoons (45 g) butter
• 4 tablespoons fresh dill
• 1 cup (240 g) sour cream or crème fraîche
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons fresh chives
• 1 pinch fine salt

Method

1. In the small bowl, stir together the sour cream, lemon juice, chives, half the dill and the pinch of salt. Cover and chill until serving.
2. About 25 minutes before the fish will be ready, cover the potatoes with cold water in the saucepan, add the salt and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes, then drain and toss with the butter and the rest of the dill.

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