Cured Salmon - cooking recipe

Ingredients

35 g fennel seeds
2 teaspoons anise seed
330 g caster sugar
125 g sea salt
1 tablespoon white peppercorns
1 orange
60 ml pastis
2 baby fennel bulbs
1 kg salmon fillet, pin boned

Preparation

Lightly toast fennel seeds and aniseed, set aside to cool.
Add to mortar and pestle, and pepper and coarsely crush. Turn into a bowl then add sugar, salt and orange zest, mix well. Stir in juice from orange the Pastis. Set aside.
Place a large piece of cling film on work bench, scatter 1/2 the sliced fennel bulb and then 1/2 the sugar/salt mix. Lie the fish skin side down then sprinkle remaining sugar/salt mix then fennel.
Wrap in cling film and place on dish and weigh down. Leave in fridge for 3 days turning once a day.
When ready to serve unwrap and brush off the sugar/salt and fennel.
Use a sharp knife and slice at an angle in long swipping slices.