This smoked salmon mousse is an excellent and affordable way to turn smoked salmon into a lush, elegant, flavor-packed appetizer that can feed a whole crowd! Serve it as a filling, spread, or dip, or even adapt it with other protein options.
With a consistency between savory cheesecake and fluffy mousse, this salmon mousse is lighter than other recipes because I add cream, yet it’s just as creamy and buttery!
I LOVE seafood appetizers. Growing up in an island, seafood was a staple for us, and very much a part of entertaining guests as well.
I’ve mentioned before how this chili garlic squid (hot butter cuttlefish) is such a legendary party starter in Sri Lanka. I also love smoked salmon, but as we all know, that stuff is also quite pricey.
While smoked salmon canapés are a great way to elevate and highlight smoked salmon as an appetizer, they are not always the most affordable option. That’s where this salmon mousse comes in handy! It’s an excellent way to turn smoked salmon into a deliciously lush dip or spread or filling that can feed a whole crowd!
Or not. You can also just make it for yourself and dive in with a spoon. No wrong choices here.
Why this recipe works
- Very easy recipe.
- This is not the gelatin-packed retro salmon mousse version, but a modern variation that’s between a savory cheesecake and a fluffy mousse!
- Great way to utilize smoked salmon to feed a crowd in an affordable way.
- Versatile recipe, and you can serve it in many different ways!
- Adaptable recipe that you make with chicken, ham, shrimp, or other protein swaps.
- Creamy, light, packed with tons of flavor.
- The cream cheese and butter help to keep the mousse firm, while the cream adds lightness to the salmon mousse.
Ingredients you’ll need
- Smoked salmon – I use gravlax in these pictures from my gravlax recipe. But I usually make this with smoked salmon.
- Cream cheese – Block cream cheese (not the spreadable tub cream cheese).
- Heavy cream – 35 % whipping cream
- Butter (salted or unsalted)
- Lemon juice and zest
- Mustard – Wholegrain or dijon mustard
- Baby pickles / cornichons or pickled onions
- Chives
- Fresh dill
How to make smoked salmon mousse
Step 1 – Prep the ingredients
Make sure to roughly chop the smoked salmon so that it’ll mince faster in the processor. The cream cheese and butter will also mix in better if they’re at room temperature. If you’re using large pickles, make sure to cut them into smaller pieces as well.
The heavy cream should be nice and chilled.
Step 2 – Make the mixture
Place the ingredients that need the most time to finely chop, first in your food processor. I put the butter and salmon in my small food processor and process until mixed through and the salmon is minced well (images 1 – 2).
Next, add the herbs, zest, and cornichons (image 3), and process until these ingredients are finely chopped and mixed through with the salmon-butter mixture.
Finally, add the cream cheese (image 4) and process until the cream cheese is mixed in well. Make sure to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl a few times throughout the whole process to ensure you’re mixing everything uniformly.
Step 3 – Add the cream
You can either whip the cream separately and fold it in for a lighter mixture, or you can add the cream to the food processor and whip it with the salmon mixture.
The latter won’t make the mousse as light as it would if you were to whip it separately and mix in, but it’ll still give the mousse a light, creamy texture.
Add the heavy cream and process until the cream has properly mixed in (images 5 – 6). Process for another minute or two to aerate the mixture.
Now the salmon mousse is done!
Step 4 – Chill
We’ll have to chill the salmon mousse before serving. Since I’m usually piping it, I transfer the mousse into a piping bag and twist the end to keep the filling sealed in (image 7).
Alternatively, cover the container with the salmon mousse, OR transfer the mix into an air-tight container and then chill it in the fridge.
Step 5 – Get the components ready
Here, I’m serving the smoked salmon mousse as bite-sized party appetizers on top of cucumber slices and rye bread rounds.
For this, I cut slices of English cucumber and placed them on a serving platter (images 8). I also cut similar-sized rye bread slices with a cookie cutter and placed them along with the cucumber.
OPTIONAL – Fit a piping tip on the pastry bag with the salmon mousse. I used a French star tip in the photos here.
Then pipe small mounds of the salmon mousse on top of the cucumber slices and rye bread rounds (images 9 – 10).
The colder the mousse is, the more stiff it becomes and slightly harder to pipe, but it’ll soften slightly as you pipe the mixture.
Decorate each portion with chopped herbs, chopped / sliced cornichons, or capers.
Step 6 – Serve
You can store these appetizers in the fridge until you’re ready to serve! Using cucumber and bread slices means that the base doesn’t get “soggy”, so you can store them in the fridge for a couple days.
However, sometimes I pipe these into homemade phyllo cups or puff pastry shells or crackers, and if you do that, you’ll have to serve these within 12 hours to retain the crispness.
Storage tips
You can store the salmon mousse in the fridge for about 5 days. However, for the mousse to have the best flavor, I would serve it within 48 hours, and leftovers can be stored for up to 3 days.
I prefer not to store the mousse in the freezer, because it can change the texture of the mousse when thawed out. It’s possible to get a similar texture if the thawed mixture is re-whipped at room temperature again, but I haven’t tried this myself.
However, because it’s so simple to make AND you can keep it in the fridge for a few days, I never bother freezing it.
Recipe variations
Instead of cold smoked salmon, you can also use,
- Gravlax (as I’ve done here in these pictures)
- Smoked trout
- Crab meat
- Imitation crab meet
- Hot smoked salmon (chilled)
- Chicken (chicken breast or mince – cooked)
- Ham
Instead chives and dill, you can swap the herbs to give it a different flavor profile.
Some flavor combinations that work,
- Any seafood option with parsley and chives
- Chicken with thyme and rosemary (or just one of the two)
- Chicken or ham with sage
- You can also substitute the chives with spring onions or sauteed / caramelized shallots or onions
Adding additional herbs or spices,
- To add some heat to the appetizers, you can add fresh red chili to the mixture, or dried chili flakes.
- Another option is to add a touch of horseradish for a hint of heat! It’ll also go really well with chicken.
- You can also add a little sweet chili sauce or honey dill mustard sauce to add some extra flavor to the salmon mousse!
Other ways to serve this salmon mousse
- This salmon mousse is super versatile! While you can use it as a filling for appetizers, you can also use it as a dip (like this sumac smoked salmon dip), and serve it with crostini, crackers, and cut fresh vegetables.
- Or serve it as a spread with toast or bagels for breakfast.
- Serve this salmon mousse piped onto vegetables such as cucumber or roast potato or sweet potato slices. This is a great gluten free option!
- For an even fancier appetizer option, then you can use mini phyllo tart shells or puff pastry shells. Similar to how I serve these smoked salmon canapes.
- You can also use this as a filling for choux pastry cases to make savory puffs, similar to my chicken bouchees.
Recipe
Smoked Salmon Mousse
US based cup, teaspoon, tablespoon measurements. Weight measurements are recommended for accurate results whenever available.
Common Measurement ConversionsIngredients:
- 226 g smoked salmon or gravlax or smoked trout
- 45 g unsalted butter softened
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp lemon zest
- 25 g cornichons (i.e. pickles or gherkins)
- 1 – 2 tbsp chives
- 1 tbsp dill
- 2 tsp whole grain mustard or dijon mustard
- 115 g cream cheese softened (use block cream cheese, not spreadable)
- 180 g heavy cream 35% fat
- Salt to taste
- Pepper to taste
Instructions:
- Roughly chop the smoked salmon slices and place them in a food processor. Make sure the food processor is the correct size for the amount of ingredients, so it can properly process the food.226 g smoked salmon
- Place the butter with the salmon and process until the salmon is finely chopped / minced.45 g unsalted butter
- Next, add the lemon zest, lemon juice, cornichons, chives, dill, and mustard. Process the mixture until the herbs have mixed in well with the salmon. They don’t have to be finely chopped yet, as we will be adding the final ingredients next. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the container from time to time to make sure everything is getting mixed evenly.1 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tsp lemon zest, 25 g cornichons, 1 – 2 tbsp chives, 1 tbsp dill, 2 tsp whole grain mustard
- Next, add the cream cheese and process until the cream cheese mix is smooth and has no lumps.115 g cream cheese
- Finally, you can add the heavy cream to the mix and whip until everything is mixed together evenly. Alternatively, you can whip the heavy cream separately and fold it in, but mixing it inside the food processor will be easier.180 g heavy cream
- Taste and season with salt and pepper. Make sure to mix the salt and pepper evenly in the mixture.Salt, Pepper
- Once your mixture has become a smooth creamy paste (with the herbs chopped finely – like green confetti in the mixture), scrape it into a bowl or into a piping bag. Let it chill, covered, for at least 1 hour, or up to 24 hours.
Serving suggestions
- The salmon mousse can be piped into mini tart shells, or on top of cucumber slices, bread slices, or crackers to make mini appetizers. You can also serve it as a spread or a dip with crostini, vegetables, and breadsticks.
- Garnish with extra chopped herbs, cornichons, or capers.
Nutrition Information:
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
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