What to Make: Cured Salmon with Avocado Salsa

Sophie Michell’s Mezcal-Cured Salmon with Avocado Salsa
It’s amazing how much I seem to sneak alcohol into my food! Ha ha ha. Sometimes it can be really interesting, though – the smokiness of the Mezcal in the salmon cure here really works. Curing fish is a really interesting yet simple way to prepare it, and you can use all sorts of flavours.

Serves 4

Ingredients
200g brown caster sugar
200g salt
zest of 1 lime
50ml Mezcal
500g salmon fillet

For the avocado salsa
2 avocados, cubed into 1cm dice
1 mango, cubed into 1cm dice
? red onion, finely diced
? tsp chipotle paste
juice of 1 lime
salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve
6 breakfast radishes, finely sliced
1 handful fresh coriander leaves?

Method
Start at least 24 hours before you want to eat the salmon. Mix the sugar, salt, lime zest and Mezcal together. Cut the salmon into two pieces. Place one piece on a plate, skin side down, then spread the salty mix on top. Cover with the other piece of salmon, flesh side down (so skin side out). Cover and leave in the fridge for 24-48 hours to cure.

When you are ready to plate and eat, make the avocado salsa by mixing together all the ingredients in a bowl.

Remove the salmon from the fridge and wash off the salt mix. Finely slice the salmon and lay the slices on four plates. Top with the salsa and decorate with the radishes and the coriander leaves.

Extracted from Chef on a Diet by Sophie Michell (Kyle Books, approx €19), out now. Photography by David Loftus.