Salmon Belly Lox and Neufchâtel Terrine

(Chef's note: This is a multi-step, multi-day recipe. It can be amended to meet your needs. The wrap can be different; the garnishes can be changed to meet your needs as well.)

Procedure for the Cure:

1. In cheesecloth, spread half of curing salt and sugar mix.
2. Lay the salmon bellies on top of the curing salt.
3. Cover the salmon belly with lemon and fennel slices. Season with Pernod, white pepper, and fennel seed.
4. Cover the seasoned salmon with the remaining curing salt and wrap the salmon tightly in the cheesecloth. The idea is to “bury” the fish in the curing mix and hold it all together with the cheesecloth.
5. Wrap this cheesecloth package in plastic film and refrigerate for 4 days, flipping the package over every 12 hours to allow the salmon to cure evenly in its own brine.

To Finish:

1. Set up three bowls of ice water, each one large enough to hold all of the fish.
2. Unwrap the gravlax and remove as much of the curing mix and aromatics as you can, being careful not to tear or damage the fish. Add it to the first bowl of ice water.
3. Spend 2-3 minutes gently agitating the fish to clean it well, then move to the next bowl. Repeat until you’ve used all three bowls. Discard the water.
4. On a sheet pan with a raised rack, place the salmon belly and dust it evenly on all sides with the fennel pollen.
5. Place the salmon on the sheet pan in the refrigerator, unwrapped for 12 hours.
6. After the curing, seasoning and 12 hours in the refrigerator, the gravlax is ready to use. Reserve.

Procedure for the Neufchatel Mousse:

1. Prepare the “mold, terrine, pave,” etc. that you wish to create your terrine in. I used a 10” x 3” pate en croute mold so that I could pull the pins and easily “unmold” my terrine.
2. Line it with a large sheet of plastic film, leaving it to overhang so that you can completely cover the product.
3. Cut your salmon bellies to fit the mold of choice. I cut mine so that it ran down the center of the mold and could be completely surrounded by the mousse.
4. Place the room-temperature Neufchatel in the bottom of a high-speed blender.
5. Combine water, cream, agar agar, and kosher salt in a saucepan and prepare to bring to a boil.
6. Combine dill, fennel frond, capers, and fennel pollen and reserve.
7. Bring the liquid mixture to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer lightly for 2 minutes, stirring frequently.
8. Add the mixture to the blender with the softened Neufchatel. Blend, gradually increasing speed until the cheese is very smooth and well-combined.
9. Add the aromatics and pulse-blend to evenly incorporated. You must move swiftly; the agar will begin to set and the mousse will begin to set as it cools.
10. Pour enough of the mousse into the lined mold to cover the entire bottom of the pan, 1-inch deep.
11. Press the gravlax into the center until the mousse level around it reaches the top of the fish.
12. Pour more of the mousse into the mold to cover the fish by ½ - ¾ of an inch.
13. Place the mold in the refrigerator to cool, at least 6 hours.
14. Once cooled, wrap the piece with overhanging plastic to keep the air off of the cheese.
15. Use any remaining mousse from the blender how you wish. Before it set, I scooped some quenelles and placed them on a sheet pan wrapped in plastic film. Refrigerate until cool and firm. Cover loosely with plastic film to keep the air off of the cheese.

Procedure for the Cold-Smoked Salmon Wrap:

(Chef's note: You can choose to wrap in anything you wish, or nothing at all. To keep with the theme, I chose cold-smoked salmon. This process takes a few days as well to create a beautiful, flat sheet, so I started it when I started the gravlax curing process.)

1. Wrap a very flat cutting board with plastic film. Make it very tight and smooth.
2. Shingle the salmon slices so that the sheet you are creating will easily wrap around the entire terrine.
3. Cover the salmon in a sheet of very smooth plastic film and place another very flat cutting board on top.
4. Place it in the refrigerator and cover this with a lot of weight. I used two 5-gallon buckets filled with water and allowed them to sit on top for 4 days. This should press the shingled salmon sandwiched between the cutting boards into one smooth, decorative sheet.

To Assemble:

1. On a deep table, pull out a long sheet of plastic film, leaving it attached to the box, however, smoothed over the table’s surface in front of you.
2. Unwrap the smoked salmon sheet and lay it out on the plastic film.
3. Unmold and unwrap the terrine and place it in the center of the sheet of smoked salmon.
4. Using the plastic film, begin wrapping the terrine, pulling back to keep the wrap tight against the piece as it rolls over each turn.
5. Once covered, cut the plastic from the box and wrap the piece tightly.
6. Slice to the desired thickness while still wrapped in plastic.
7. Remove the plastic from each piece prior to plating for service.
8. Garnish with the quenelle and any other garnishes of your choosing.

(Chef’s note: For the piece I created and served, pictured, I garnished with pickled mustard seed, pickled shallot rings, Hackleback caviar, fennel frond, “everything” bagel chips, and carrot top vinaigrette.)