Shiozake is a staple of the Japanese breakfast table, made by salt-curing salmon fillets overnight to produce a characteristically salty, firm-textured fish with beautifully rendered, crispy skin. This Serious Eats recipe by Sho Spaeth approximates the flavor and texture of the salted salmon found in Japanese supermarkets using just three simple ingredients and an overnight cure.

• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) sake (optional)
• 2 x 4-ounce skin-on fillets of salmon, preferably cut from the belly
• 2 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt (about 1/4 ounce; 7 g); see note

1. Sprinkle sake, if using, all over salmon fillets. Pat dry with paper towels. Sprinkle salt evenly all over both fillets. Press salt into the flesh and skin to ensure it adheres well.
2. Place salted salmon fillets in a glass container, such as a small glass baking dish, lined with paper towels. Cover container and refrigerate overnight, or up to 36 hours. Every 12 hours, replace paper towels and flip fillets over.
3. When ready to cook, place oven rack in top position and preheat broiler. Place salmon fillets on a foil-lined rimmed baking sheet. Broil salmon until it has exuded some fat and started to brown, about 3 minutes. (The timing will vary depending on broiler strength and distance from the broiler element.)
4. Turn salmon fillets over and cook until salmon is nicely colored and fat is spitting, about 3 minutes longer (see note). Serve immediately.

• Salt: Using sake lends some flavor benefits, but is entirely optional.
• Salt Amount: The amount of salt recommended in this recipe is about 3% of the weight of the salmon fillets. You can use more or less salt to your taste, but keep in mind that the salmon is meant to be very salty.
• Others: Cured Japanese salmon is meant to be cooked thoroughly (well done); it is more important to get color on the fillets than to worry about overcooking them.

Sho Spaeth, Serious Eats

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