Salmon ceviche with vanilla, pink peppercorns and dill crème fraîche

Feb 01 2023

Tom Aikens shares a beautiful salmon recipe fit to grace any dinner party. A dill creme fraiche, vanilla and pink peppercorns give the dish a wonderfully delicate flavour

Total: about 7 hours

Ingredients

½
side of salmon, skin on and pin boned
5
lemons, zested
100
g of dill, roughly chopped
150
g of caster sugar
300
g of coarse sea salt
20
g of black peppercorns, crushed
50
g of pink peppercorns, cracked
250
g of crème fraîche
1
lemon, zested
12
g of dill, chopped
2
g of salt
black pepper
75
g of shallots, finely chopped
50
ml of olive oil
5
g of salt
1
g of black pepper, milled
25
g of pink peppercorns, crushed
1
vanilla pod
25
g of caster sugar
25
g of honey
65
ml of white wine vinegar
1
lemon, juiced
150
ml of vegetable oil
100
ml of olive oil
12
ml of vanilla essence
sea salt
60
g of baby cress
15
g of shallots, finely chopped
10
g of chives, chopped
10
g of dill
5
pink peppercorns, crushed

Instructions

Step 1
Trim the salmon by removing the tail and belly strip so you are left with an oblong piece. This will be cut into 3 after marinating
Step 2
Mix the lemon zest, chopped dill, sugar, salt and peppers together. Sprinkle half the mixture onto a tray, making a bed the width and length of the salmon. Lay the salmon skin side down
Step 3
Sprinkle the rest of the mixture on top of the fish and then cover with another flat tray. Place a weight onto the tray and leave the salmon in the fridge for 6 hours
Step 4
Remove the salmon from the marinade and lightly wash. Pat dry. Cut into 3 pieces, and thinly slice 400g in total. Arrange on squares of greaseproof paper, cover tightly with cling film and chill
Step 5
To make the dressing, first split the vanilla pod in half, scrape the seeds out and cut into 1cm pieces. Sweat the shallots in the olive oil until they are soft but not coloured
Step 6
Add the salt, pepper and pink peppercorns, vanilla pieces and vanilla seeds, and cook for 3-4 mins until just soft
Step 7
Add the sugar, honey and white wine vinegar and reduce the mix by half until it is syrupy
Step 8
Add the lemon juice, vegetable oil, olive oil and vanilla essence Bring to a simmer then take off the heat and cool as quickly as possible. Store in a jar
Step 9
To make the dill crème fraiche, simply mix all of the ingredients together. If you have any left over after use, it makes a great addition to soups, sandwiches, savoury crepes and salads
Step 10
To serve, spread some crème fraiche on the centre of each plate in a circle. Layer the 100g salmon slices on each, making sure it doesn’t look too flat
Step 11
Stir the vinaigrette well, drizzle over the salmon, and season with a small amount of Maldon sea salt, and fresh milled pepper
Step 12
Scatter over the crushed pink peppercorns, mixed baby cress, chopped shallots, chives, and sprigs of dill. Finish with some more dressing and a little lemon juice