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and, if you further season them with the spicy mixture in this recipe, are very difficult to stop eating. In fact, these are delicious even if you omit the smoking step and simply toss them with the oil and spices and roast them. Alternatively, you could grill these in a steamer basket, metal colander, or in aluminum foil over charcoal. The spices can burn easily, so be careful not to let them go too long in the oven. Combine the salt and spices in a coffee or spice mill and grind so that the salt is fine enough to adhere to the nuts.

1 pound/450 grams unblanched raw almonds

2 tablespoons/30 milliliters vegetable oil

1⁄4 teaspoon/0.5 gram cayenne pepper

1⁄2 teaspoon/1 gram garlic powder

1 tablespoon/15 grams finely ground kosher salt or fine sea salt, or more to taste

2 teaspoons/6 grams chile powder

1 teaspoon/3 grams freshly ground black pepper

1. Lay the almonds on a rack, such as a mesh cooling rack: if the slats are too wide, cover the rack with foil and poke a lot of holes in it (or use a metal colander instead).

2. Cold-smoke the almonds (see page 77) for 2 to 3 hours.

3. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F./190 degrees C.

4. Combine the oil and spices in a bowl and toss with the almonds to coat. Spread them on a baking sheet and roast for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring several times. Remove from oven, taste, and toss with more salt if needed.

5. The nuts can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Yield: About 4 cups/450 grams

SMOKED SALMON

This is cold-smoked salmon, which means it’s first cured (see illustrations on page 53) like gravlax but has the additional flavors of smoke and sweet spices. It’s important that the temperature in the smoker never become hot enough to cook the fish, or it will change the texture and flavor of the salmon completely—you’ll have hot-smoked rather than smoked salmon, big difference. The salmon is particularly fine when smoked over cherry or another fruit wood, such as apple or pear. Once it’s smoked and chilled, slice it thin and serve it as you wish, with bagels and cream cheese, or on toast points with the traditional garnishes of chopped hard-boiled egg white and yolk, diced red onion, capers, and crème fraîche. Or mince it to make smoked salmon tartare.

THE DRY CURE

1⁄2 cup/125 grams kosher salt

1⁄4 cup/50 grams dark brown sugar

1⁄4 cup/100 grams sugar

1 teaspoon/6 grams pink salt

1 teaspoon/3 grams ground white pepper

1 teaspoon/3 grams ground allspice

1 teaspoon/3 grams ground bay leaf

1⁄2 teaspoon/2 grams ground cloves

1⁄2 teaspoon/2 grams ground mace

11⁄2 pounds/675 grams salmon fillet in one piece, skin on, pinbones removed

11⁄2 tablespoons/22 milliliters dark rum

1. Mix all the dry cure ingredients together. Choose a dish or pan in which the salmon will fit snugly; it will release copious liquid and form a brine that should remain in contact with the fish. Spread half of the dry cure in an even layer the width and length of the salmon in your container, then place salmon skin side down on the cure. Sprinkle the rum over the fillet, then coat the fish with the rest of the dry cure, coating the thick parts heavily with the mixture and the tapered belly with less.

2. Cover the salmon with plastic wrap, set another pan on top, and place about 8 pounds/4 kilograms of weights on it to help extract the moisture (cans or a few bricks will suffice). Refrigerate for 36 hours, or until the thickest part of the salmon feels dense and stiff to the touch.

3. Remove the salmon from the cure and rinse thoroughly under cool water. Pat dry. Place on a rack set over a tray, and refrigerate, uncovered, for 4 to 24 hours.

4. Cold-smoke the salmon (see page 77) at 54 degrees F./12 degrees C. for about 6 hours, or to taste. Remember that the temperature of the smoker and the salmon should never go above 90 degrees F./32 degrees C.

5. Store the salmon wrapped in butcher’s or parchment paper in the refrigerator. It will keep for up to 3 weeks (change the paper if it become too