This easy 20-minute smoked salmon mousse is made with cream cheese and served on cucumber slices. It's a simple recipe that produces impressive results! I like to serve it as an appetizer when I host, but I also make it often for my family.
This smoked salmon mousse is an easy appetizer and one of those dishes your guests will admire, not realizing how easy it is to make. It's also great that you can make it ahead of time. Smoked salmon is a delicacy, and when mixed with cream cheese, it's even better. The cream cheese mitigates the saltiness of the smoked fish and adds creaminess.
Ingredients
Here's a look at the ingredients needed to make this mousse. The exact measurements are included in the recipe card below.
- Smoked salmon: I try to use wild-caught or responsibly farmed salmon.
- Cream cheese: I use full-fat cream cheese. Reduced-fat cream cheese works, too.
- Fresh lemon juice: Freshly squeezed has the best flavor.
- Black pepper: Freshly ground is best.
- Cucumber: Sliced and used as a vehicle for serving the mousse.
- Chives: Used as garnish. They are optional, but I do like the flavor they add, and they also look pretty.
Variations
Sometimes, I add a pinch of garlic powder to the mixture. A pinch of cayenne is interesting if you like spicy food.
As for the garnish, you can use chopped dill instead of chives. And again, if you like spicy food, try sprinkling the mousse with some red pepper flakes in addition to chives. My husband loves this version!
Instructions
Scroll down to the recipe card for detailed instructions. Here are the basic steps for making this recipe:
Place the smoked salmon, cream cheese, lemon juice, and black pepper in your food processor bowl.
Process these ingredients until smooth. This should take about 5 minutes, and you'll need to stop the food processor twice to scrape the sides with a spatula.
Transfer the mousse to a pretty serving bowl and serve it with cut-up veggies, or transfer the mixture to a pastry bag and pipe it onto cucumber slices.
Serve immediately, or chill for a few hours before serving.
Expert Tip
I don't add any salt to the mousse. Smoked salmon is very salty, so there's no need for added salt.
Recipe FAQs
Yes. You can use smoked mackerel, herring, or whitefish, for example. Make sure you thoroughly remove the skin and bones, and keep in mind that the color won't be as pretty if using pale-colored fish.
You can try. However, I only tested this recipe with real cream cheese.
Yes. It brightens the dish and adds slight acidity to cut through the richness of the mousse. However, it can be successfully omitted.
Serving Suggestions
As explained above, if you want to get fancy, you can use a pastry bag to pipe the mousse on cucumber slices. If you don't have a pastry bag, you can use kitchen scissors to cut the corner of a Ziploc bag and use that to pipe the mousse.
But you can also simply spoon the mousse on top of cucumber slices or serve it in a pretty bowl, surrounded by cut-up vegetables, almond flour crackers, and cheese crackers. It's very good with pork rinds, too!
For special occasions, I like to serve it alongside this creamy lobster salad.
Storing Leftovers
You can keep this mousse in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Remove it from the fridge 20 minutes or so before you plan on enjoying it. While you can technically freeze this mousse for up to three months, its texture won't be as light after it's been thawed.
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Recipe Card
Easy Smoked Salmon Mousse
Video
Ingredients
- 4 ounces smoked salmon
- 8 ounces cream cheese - softened
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
Optional:
- 20 cucumber slices
- 2 tablespoons chives - chopped, for garnish
Instructions
- Place the salmon, cream cheese, lemon juice, and black pepper in your food processor bowl.
- Process until smooth, about 5 minutes, stopping twice to scrape the sides with a spatula.
- Transfer the mousse to a pretty serving bowl and serve it with cut-up veggies. Alternatively, transfer the mousse to a pastry bag and pipe it onto cucumber slices.
- Garnish with chopped chives and serve.
Notes
- The nutrition info includes cucumber and chives.
- I don't add any salt to the mousse. Smoked salmon is very salty, so there's no need for added salt.
- You can keep this mousse in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Remove it from the fridge 20 minutes or so before you plan on enjoying it. While you can technically freeze this mousse for up to three months, its texture won't be as light after it's been thawed.
Nutrition per Serving
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Most recipes are low-carb and gluten-free, but some are not. Recommended and linked products are not guaranteed to be gluten-free. Nutrition info is approximate. Please verify it independently. The carb count excludes non-nutritive sweeteners. Please read these Terms of Use before using any of my recipes.
Glenyse says
would this be suitable for finger afternoon tea sandwiches pleas
Vered DeLeeuw says
Yes! Absolutely.