Cured fish

Cured fish is fish preserved by salt, drying, smoke, fermentation, or combinations of these methods. Curing slows spoilage by reducing moisture, inhibiting microbes, or changing the fish’s chemistry.

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Salt curing: A preservation method that uses salt to draw moisture from food and inhibit microbial growth. Salt draws water from fish tissue and creates conditions less favorable to spoilage organisms.
Bacalhau: Salted and dried cod, especially associated with Portuguese cuisine. It exemplifies how heavy salting and drying make fish transportable and versatile.
Water activity: A measure of the water available for microbial growth and chemical reactions in a material. It explains why drying and salting can restrict microbial growth.
Refrigeration: The removal of heat from food or its surroundings to slow deterioration and microbial growth. It slows spoilage through low temperature rather than the main barriers used in curing.
Drying: The removal of water from food to slow chemical and microbial deterioration. Reducing fish’s available water is a central preservation effect of drying.
Gravlax: A Scandinavian dish of raw salmon cured with salt, sugar, and dill. Its cure draws moisture and seasons the fish without smoking or cooking it.
Osmosis: The movement of water across a selectively permeable membrane toward a region of higher solute concentration. Salt gradients help move water out of fish tissue during curing.
Freezing: The preservation of food by lowering its temperature below the freezing point of water. It preserves fish by immobilizing water as ice instead of drying or salting it.
Smoking: A food-preservation and flavoring process that exposes food to smoke, often alongside heat or drying. Smoke deposits antimicrobial compounds and commonly adds heat and surface drying.
Lox: A salt-cured salmon product traditionally associated with Jewish cuisine. It illustrates salt curing as a distinct preparation from smoked salmon.