Smoked Salmon Spread Remix
By Emma
Certified Culinary Professional
•
Recipe tested & approved
Cream cheese blended with smoked salmon, sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, dill, and garlic then folded with chopped chives, capers, and extra salmon bits. Chilling lets flavors marry. Serve cold on crackers, cucumbers, or bagel chips. Substitutions: Greek yogurt for sour cream; trout for salmon. Watch for over-processing or dip gets runny. Salt carefully, capers add bursts. Cold resting key to firm up and deepen taste.
Prep:
12 min
Cook:
0 min
Total:
32 min
Servings:
6 servings
#appetizer
#seafood
#spread
#easy recipes
#make ahead
Cold spreads are underrated in kitchen hustle yet game changers for last-minute guests or casual noshing. Blending smoked salmon with creamy base packs punch and takes minutes if prepped right. Texture’s key—past attempts flattened flavors or turned mushy. Learned to respect chopping steps: pulse enough to blend but hold some chunks. Smoked fish varies in salt and smokiness from brand to brand, which means tasting in process isn’t optional. Lemon juice and fresh dill cut richness but also lift aroma—ancient combo but I meddled toggling amounts to find balance. Capers bring salty bursts. Chives pop freshness between smoky bites. Resting time chills dip enough so it doesn’t slide off your cracker, yet invites silky mouthfeel. Serve with anything firm enough to scoop up or for a veggie twist cucumber slices work great. Opens snack possibilities beyond plain chips. Fresh, zingy, smoky. Learned to trust feel and sight more than set timers here.
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 3 ounces smoked salmon divided
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill chopped
- 1 small garlic clove minced
- 2 tablespoons chives sliced
- 1 tablespoon capers drained
- Salt to taste
- Fresh ground black pepper to taste
About the ingredients
Cream cheese must be softened but not melted—30 minutes on counter max usually perfect for me. Sour cream and mayo add lightness, you can swap sour cream with Greek yogurt if you want tang but keep mayo for fat richness; skipping mayo will make dip less cohesive. Smoked salmon quality matters. Cheap stuff can be overly salty or smoky, tough to mask. Use wild caught or boutique brands if possible. Fresh dill and chives add herbaceous lift; dried herbs won’t cut it here. Capers give pops of saltiness and briny crunch, drain well and chop if you don’t want big bites. Garlic is punchy raw; use sparingly and taste as you go or roast lightly if you want mellow garlic notes. Lemon juice juice brightens the mix but too much can make dip acidic and watery, add little by little and taste. Salt last—capers and salmon already salty. Pepper freshly ground, always.
Method
- Start cold. Into food processor plop softened cream cheese, about half the salmon chunked roughly, sour cream, mayo, lemon juice, dill, and garlic. Pulse. Stop. Scrape sides with rubber spatula—don’t skip or end with clumpy bits! Pulse again but watch—overdo and texture gets mushy. Want creamy but some bite.
- Transfer to bowl. Now fold gently the rest of smoked salmon chopped small, chives, dill, capers, salt, and pepper. Folding keeps texture distinguishable. Mixer can turn into puree. Salt cautiously—capers salty enough, can overpower.
- Pop bowl in fridge. Let it rest at least 30 minutes. Aromas will curl up, flavors meld. Texture firms. Check dip before serving—should hold shape when scooped, not slosh all over. If too loose, a bit more cream cheese or thicker sour cream next time.
- Serve chilled straight up. Bagel chips, cucumber slices, or sturdy crackers stand up well. Leftovers? Seal tight. Can last 3 days max before fresh salmon taste dulls.
- Troubleshooting: Salmon too smoky? Add more lemon juice or fresh dill to brighten. No smoked salmon? Use smoked trout or even smoked whitefish for different note. No cream cheese? Mix ricotta and mascarpone but don’t expect same punch.
- Pro tip—soften cream cheese on counter no more than 30 minutes or it gets goopy. Too cold slows chopping; too warm makes blending watery. Garlic intensity varies—start little, taste, then add.
- For extra flair, add tiny finely minced red onion or a drop of hot sauce. Crunch? Toasted walnuts crushed blends unexpectedly well.
Cooking tips
Food processor work crucial—don’t just blitz nonstop or you risk turning mix gluey and lose texture contrast. Pulse, scrape, pulse again. Visual clue: mixture should look uniform but with tiny pink bits still visible. Then fold everything else by hand to keep chunks intact. Folding not mixing means gentle movement with spatula, avoid full stirring or mechanical mixing which breaks delicate salmon flakes. Resting dip in fridge hardens texture and lets ingredients ‘get to know each other.’ Dip smells change once cold—smokiness turns subtle, fresh dill aroma pops up, lemon scent wakes palate. Serve when dip holds shape scooped, clings to crackers without sliding off or running. If too loose, a chill longer or add extra firm ingredient like more cream cheese or less sour cream next time. Can customize after resting—taste and tweak salt, lemon, dill freshness before serving. Good kitchen habit: cover tightly with plastic wrap to avoid fridge odors leeching into dip; smoked fish takes on strong fridge smells.
Chef's notes
- 💡 Start cold always. Softened cream cheese no warmer than 30 mins on counter. Too cold, won’t pulse smooth; too warm means watery, greasy mix. Pulse short bursts, scrape those sides well after each to keep chunks intact. Over-processing = mushy, flavor washed. Hold some bright salmon bits visible for good texture contrast.
- 💡 Fold not stir or beat when adding chopped salmon, chives, capers. Mechanical mixing ruins flaky texture. Use gentle spatula turns preserving shape; adds bite and depth. Salt late. Capers pack salt, some salmon too. Add tiny by tiny, taste often. Pepper freshly ground, not pre-ground dusty stuff. Lemon juice last note, little by little, acidity wakes flavors but too much can ruin dip, watery and sharp.
- 💡 Rest minimum 30 minutes refrigerated after mixing pasta. Texture firms, melds, aroma shifts—dill pops, lemon scent wakes your nose at first whiff. Cold snap helps spread hold on crackers and avoids runny slippery mess. If too loose after rest, add small spoon extra cream cheese or thicker sour cream blend, mix gently again. Chill tight covered to avoid fridge smells invading delicate salmon notes.
- 💡 Substitutions you need handy. Swap sour cream with Greek yogurt for tang but keep mayo for richness; no mayo makes dip less creamy, more crumbly. No smoked salmon? Try smoked trout or smoked whitefish, different punch but works. No cream cheese at hand, ricotta + mascarpone mix, less sharp but creamy. Garlic varies: fresh raw always punchy, roast if softer, add slow and taste–too much overpowering fast.
- 💡 Add some crunch if you want textural surprise. Finely minced red onion or drop hot sauce inside blends nicely. Toasted crushed walnuts surprisingly good—adds nutty note unexpected in fish spread. Keep ingredients balanced; too many sharp textures overwhelm. Keep pulse process short before folding in extras, dipping with warm spoon melts ingredients fast. Cold resting crucial final step for best hold and flavor marriage.
Common questions
Why pulse and fold not blitz all?
Pulsing keeps bits in mix. Blitz once, lose texture, dip mushy. Folding last chopped salmon and herbs keeps flake integrity, bites. Texture difference big. Mixing too much = paste. Hold chunks.
Can I swap sour cream?
Greek yogurt good, swaps easily. Taste brighter, tangier. Must keep mayo or mix turns crumbly, less cohesive. Mayo for fat, richness. No mayo = spread crumbles, doesn’t bind well. Experiment but expect texture change.
Spread too runny?
Chill longer, cold firms. Next try more cream cheese or less sour cream. Sometimes salmon oily or extra lemon juice breaks mix watery. Add careful little by little, test. Thickness before and after fridge varies.
How store leftovers?
Use airtight container sealed tight. Keep in fridge max 3 days. Fish freshness fades quickly. Avoid fridge smells transfer—cover tightly with plastic wrap or lid. Freeze not great; texture ruins. Day 4 smell changes, salty fish dulls.
