Jack Burke

Module 6: Week of September 21-27, 2025

Introductions

This week we are getting introduced further into fish and its butchery. Our method of cooking for the week is gravlax, a Nordic sugar-salt cured salmon. Gravlax will be a great turning point as we have been discussing food preservation and curing, and this is a very interesting and, in our area, un-common dish. Our ingredient for the week is halibut, which we will be poaching and serving with a beurre blanc and a parmesan & spinach soufflé.

Background Information

I am really excited about this lab because I love fish and I love cooking with fish. While pan-searing and poaching fish are both methods I have used before when preparing fish, I do not recall ever using halibut or branzino. I have never heard of, tried, or made gravlax, so I am most intrigued to see what the taste and texture is of this cured salmon dish.

When making gravlax, it is important of three things: the curing salts and sugars, the curing time, and the pressure while curing. It is crucial to cover the entire piece of salmon in salt and sugar so as to preserve and cure the salmon, rather than letting it go bad. Time is key in this dish, particularly a long curing time of around 5 days to get a deep flavor and intriguing texture. Lastly, putting pressure on the salmon while curing is crucial to ensure all moisture is being derived from the salmon. This will help so that the salt and sugar are not the only things draining moisture out of the salmon (Hamilton 2024).

Poaching fish in a “brothy sauce” (Roman 2025) is a foolproof method to prepare fish, especially when using mild-flavor varieties like we are doing with halibut. Letting the fish cook in the sauce for not too long (5-10 minutes depending on the cut) is key while ensuring vegetables, seasonings, and other accompaniments pair nicely with the halibut (Roman 2025).

Recipe Research & Development

This week, we are given recipes for each dish so as to follow a format of following a recipe and taking our own spin on those recipes. For the gravlax, I plan on staying mostly on the same track as the recipe. For the halibut and soufflé, I’d love to play around with the idea of simplicity in each, while each being rooted in local herbs and vegetables. For the branzino, I’d love to keep it simple, while grounding the potatoes and cauliflower in herb-based, creamy bases.

Plating Inspiration

Plan of Work & Recipes

Works Cited

New York Times Cooking. (n.d.-a). Gravlax with herb butter. The New York Times. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020876-gravlax-with-herb-butter

New York Times Cooking. (n.d.-b). Tomato-poached fish with chile oil and herbs. The New York Times. https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1020279-tomato-poached-fish-with-chile-oil-and-herbs