Gravlax means buried salmon. Medieval Scandinavian fishermen salted their catch and buried it in the sand above the tide line to ferment; the modern version has kept the name and dropped the burial in favor of a refrigerator. Fresh salmon is pressed under a blanket of sugar, salt, pepper and an extravagant amount of dill, and two days later it has become firm, glossy and delicately sweet, with a flavor somewhere between smoked salmon and sashimi.

It is one of the stars of the Swedish smörgåsbord and the Christmas julbord, and a show of hospitality all year round. It requires no cooking at all, only planning, which makes it the perfect make ahead centerpiece for a Swedish Grand Prix party. The sauce, hovmästarsås, the butler's sauce, is sweet, sharp and green with dill, and essential.

The cured salmon

Ingredients

• 2 lb (900 g) skin on salmon fillet
• 1/2 cup (100 g) sugar
• 1/4 cup (75 g) coarse sea salt or kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon white or black peppercorns
• 2 large bunches (about 2 oz / 60 g) fresh dill

The hovmästarsås

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons (45 g) Swedish mustard
• 1 tablespoon (15 g) Dijon mustard
• 2 tablespoons (25 g) sugar
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) white wine vinegar
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) neutral oil
• 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh dill
• 1 pinch fine salt and white pepper

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