Fresh & Smoked Salmon Pate
Submitted by caterlink
Salmon pate made with poached fresh salmon and smoked salmon, blended with butter, dill, and sour cream. Sealed with clarified butter for an elegant make-ahead appetizer.
YIELD
12 appetizer servingsPREP
40 minCOOK
20 minREADY
5 hrsThis salmon pate hits from two directions: gently poached fresh fillets for body and smoky cured salmon for intensity. Blended together with butter, cream, and a hit of fresh dill, you get a spread that’s silky, rich, and deeply savory.
Poaching the fresh salmon in an aromatic court bouillon with carrot, onion, bay leaf, and chili pepper builds flavor before it even reaches the food processor. The key is a bare simmer, not a rolling boil. You want the fish just cooked through, still moist and flaky.
Sauteed shallots add a mellow sweetness that rounds out the smokiness. The room-temperature butter gets blended in gradually to emulsify the pate into something creamy and spreadable rather than chunky.
The clarified butter seal on top isn’t just for looks. It locks out air and keeps the pate fresh in the fridge for days, making this a superb make-ahead dish for holiday entertaining or dinner parties.
Chef Tips
- Don’t overcook the fresh salmon. Pull it the moment it flakes easily. Overcooked fish makes grainy pate.
- Let the poached salmon cool completely before processing, or the butter will melt and the texture goes greasy.
- Fold the dill in by hand after processing so it stays in visible flecks rather than disappearing.
- Serve with thin toast points, crackers, or cucumber rounds.
Variations
- Swap dill for chives and a squeeze of lime for a brighter, more modern flavor.
- Use trout instead of fresh salmon for a milder, slightly sweeter pate.
- Skip the clarified butter seal and pipe the pate into endive leaves for individual appetizer bites.
Ingredients
Directions
Whish together heavy cream and sour cream in small bowl.
Refrigerate.
Combine cold water, carrot, onion, bay leaf, lemon slices and chili pepper in skillet large enough to hold the salmon fillets in one layer.
Bring to boiling; continue to boil 10 minutes. Lower to simmer.
Add salmon, skin side up. Simmer very gently over medium low heat until salmon is just cooked, about 10 minutes.
Do not overcook.
Remove salmon from poaching liquid; remove and discard skin.
Cool completely.
Sauté shallots in the 1½ tablespoon butter in small skillet over medium heat, stirring, until golden, about 5 minutes.
Transfer to bowl of food processor.
Add salmon, smoked salmon and cream mixture to food processor.
Purée until smooth.
With processor running, add remaining ½ cup butter, bit by bit, until smooth.
Add lemon juice, salt and pepper.
Fold in dill.
Spoon mixture into 4 cup souffle dish or decorative serving dish.
Smooth top with rubber spatula.
Garnish with a few fresh dill sprigs, and a whole bay leaf and small sweet red pepper strips, if you wish.
Pour clarified butter over top of pate to cover completely.
Refrigerate 4 hours to set pate.
NOTE: To clarify butter, melt 6 tablespoon butter in saucepan over medium heat.
Remove from heat; skim off foam from top.
With small ladle, spoon clear liquid butter into a dish, leaving milky solids behind.
Discard milky solids. Use clear butter.
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