Smoked Salmon Pâté with Dill and Lemon

Name: Smoked Salmon Pâté with Dill and Lemon
Prep time: 5 min
Total time: 5 min
Ingredients: 150g smoked salmon; 200g cream cheese; juice of 1/2 lemon, plus wedges to serve; handful of fresh dill, plus extra to serve; crostini, to serve

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This simple Smoked Salmon Pâté with Dill and Lemon is the perfect cream cheese fish pâté for parties, entertaining, or just to make for lunch. All whizzed up in a blender and ready in just 5 minutes, this is the best salmon pâté recipe to make this Christmas!

Plate of smoked salmon pate topped with fresh dill and mini crostini.

Smoked Salmon Pâté is one of our favourite easy starters or serve-yourself canapés to serve to guests because it seems so special and fancy, while being so simple to make.

Serve it already spread onto little crostini and topped with a tiny sprig of fresh dill, in individual portions, or as we have, on a big sharing platter for maximum impact!

Why you will love this cream cheese salmon pâté recipe:

It can be made ahead, letting you get on with other things or leaving you free to spend time with your guests.
This pâté recipe only takes 5 minutes to blitz together in a high powered blender.
There are so many different ways to serve it, see above!
You can easily add other flavours such as horseradish and spring onion to this simple salmon pâté recipe.

Ingredients:

Smoked salmon - quality will impact taste here, but don't go for the super expensive fancy kind as obviously you're blending this into a pâté. If you're scaling up and trying to keep costs down smoked salmon scraps would be a good option.

Cream cheese - use full fat for the best flavour and texture.

Fresh lemon

Fresh dill

Crostini - to serve, you can use shop brought or make your own!

Full recipe can be found in the printable recipe card at the bottom of the post, just scroll down!

Substitutions and Variations:

Use smoked trout - for a more luxurious (and sustainable) option, choose smoked trout instead of the salmon.

Add spring onions - for an extra hit of flavour and to add a little more texture you can stir finely chopped spring onions in at the end.

Add horseradish - a small spoonful of prepared or creamed horseradish will give the pâté an extra kick.

Bowl of salmon pate topped with fresh dill and crostini.

Directions:

Here's a step by step guide for what you need to do, but you can find the full recipe below for detailed instructions.

Cream cheese and lemon juice blitzed in the bottom of a blender.

ONE: Place the cream cheese and lemon in a blender and blend until smooth.

Smoked salmon, dill, black pepper and cream cheese in the bottom of a blender.

TWO: Add the smoked salmon, dill and lots of black pepper and pulse until just combined.

Oval bowl of smoked salmon pate with fresh dill, crostini and a lemon wedge on a wooden serving board.

THREE: Slather the pâté on a plate and top with some more dill leaves, a wedge of lemon and serve with crostini.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I make this smoked salmon pâté ahead? How long should salmon pâté last in the fridge?

Yes! You can make it up to 3 days ahead, making sure to take it out of the fridge about half an hour before you want to serve it to soften a little. Give it a taste before serving to see if you want to brighten it up with a spritz of fresh lemon juice.

Can I use hot smoked salmon for this recipe instead?

It will create a totally different salmon pâté with a chunkier texture, but it will still make something delicious.

Can I make this pâté lighter with lower fat cream cheese?

Lower fat cream cheese will work, but won't have the same luxurious mouthfeel. If you want to lighten things up, we'd recommend replacing about ¼ of it with thick Greek yogurt instead.

Smoked salmon pate being spooned onto crostini.

Other recipes you might enjoy:

If you're looking for more easy ways with smoked salmon, our Smoked Salmon Omelette is a great brunch idea, as is this Easy Giant Skillet Latke with Smoked Salmon (and individual slices make great party food too!) If you're looking for more simple starters this Chicken Liver Paté Recipe with Brandy is perfect for making ahead, or you could wow your guests with this Easy Salmon Crudo with Miso and Soy, or this Easy Duck Bao Buns Recipe.

Made this recipe and loved it?

I would love love LOVE if you could leave a review in the comments… I love hearing what you thought, any changes you made, the stories behind what made you try my recipes. Also, if you share a photo on Instagram, please tag me @desertislanddishes, it makes my day to see you making my creations!