As an appetizer for entertaining at Easter, I was planning to serve Lox and Caviar on Blini.  Now I wonder, "What is the difference between Lox and Gravlox?"  Which one was I thinking of?

--Ruth

Lox is salmon that has been brined and then cold smoked.  The brine contains salt and sometimes sugar.  Smoking is done at temperatures ranging from about 70°F to 90°F ( 21°C to 32°C).  Brining enhances the flavor and helps to preserve the fish, as does the smoking.

Gravlox (or gravlax) is a Scandinavian dish where salmon is liberally covered with a mixture of salt and sugar, and usually dill weed, and then left to cure for several days, during which time the salt cures the meat in that same way as corned beef, for instance.  Other ingredients such as sliced onions may also be included.  Supposedly the start of the word gravlox ("grav") refers to the original method being to bury the salmon ("lox") in the earth while it cured, that is in a grave.  Nowadays, gravlox is made in the refrigerator.

In either case, once cured the meat is sliced into thin strips which are then eaten raw.  Either lox and gravlox would be suitable to serve.  The choice is up to you, and depends on whether you would enjoy the smoky flavor of lox against the taste of the caviar or would prefer more of a sweet and salty combination, which you would get with gravlox.