Thought your smoked salmon days were over? Fear not, the hardy carrot has proven itself a worthy contender!
What is lox?
‘Lox’ refers to the curing and smoking of a salmon fillet, which is usually piled on top of a cream cheese bagel. The salty smokiness pairs perfectly with the creaminess of the cheese.
How do you make vegan lox?
You’re right, this does not sound at all vegan, but I fully believe that vegans shouldn’t have to forgo taste. It is possible to recreate the smoky, soft, flakey salmon-style fillet using a simple CARROT.
Not only does the carrot lox provide a suitable alternative for a salmon bagel, but it also works just as well on a blini and would be great as a fish substitute in many of your old favourite recipes – think paella or fish pie.
Curing can be a long process, so I have developed a quick and simple method to produce similar results by first steaming the carrots before marinating and then baking. The thickness of the carrot is up to you and can vary depending on what it is you are using it for – just as long as you adjust the cooking time to suit. I prefer grating the carrot in long slices to use on the blinis as this creates a much more delicate product. For a more substantial ‘fish’ substitute, I like to use a mandolin with the 3mm setting on.
Just like curing fish, it will get tastier and flakier the longer you leave it after cooking!
Flavouring your carrot lox
In this recipe I highlight the possibility of using either of these products to create a smoked flavour in the carrots. The smoked paprika I feel is best for salmon lox bagels and the liquid smoke is better at creating a fishier product, e.g. smoked haddock alternative.
If you do make a smoked fish alternative, you should try out cooking it in my vegan kedgeree recipe.
Carrot Lox
Ingredients
- 400 g Carrots
- 2 tsp Smoked Paprika or Liquid Smoke - see above
- 2 tsp Salt
- 2 tbsp Lemon juice - approx. 1 Lemon
- 1 Sheet Sushi nori - crumbled
- 4 tsp Agave
- sprig Dill
- Black Pepper
Instructions
- Heat up your oven to 180 °C
- Grate/slice the carrots to your desired thickness.
- Coat the carrot slices in the salt (use your hands here) and then steam for about 10 minutes, or roughly 5 minutes if grated finely. They should be soft, but still retain a little bite.
- Let the carrots cool before adding it to an oven dish with the rest of the ingredients (except the sushi nori). Rub the ingredients in and then bake for about 15 minutes. A few minutes before you take the carrots out from the oven, stir in the crumbled sushi nori.
- Leave to cool and then put into the fridge until required (it should last for a week in the fridge). The flavours develop over time, so the longer you keep it, the better it gets!
Notes
Serve on top of a freshly toasted bagel with vegan cream cheese. Garnish with a few capers and a fresh sprig of dill.
3 Responses
I enjoyed this SO much at the plant box solutions supper club 🙂 I was wondering where I can get such tasty capers in the UK, though? I don?t like a lot of the ones I?ve had here as they?re over salty, but the ones used were just perfect!
Hi Krysia, thank you for your comment. I’m so glad you enjoyed it! I’ve had a lot of fun developing this recipe and eaten a lot of carrots along the way… They were particularly tasty capers, I found them in one of the international shops down the road from The Hornbeam. Probably best looking in shops like these than the main supermarkets!
Thanks 🙂
Lucy