Smoked Salmon Tartare: an elegant appetizer that everyone loves, in ten minutes.

On Thursday my friend Carol invited a bunch of friends over to celebrate all the June birthdays - 4 of us out of 10. It was a beautiful evening and it felt so great to sit outside. I found myself easing into that relaxed feeling that comes with the long lazy days of summer. Each of us brought a little something to share. Call them what you will: small plates, meze, tapas, antipasti, hors d'oeuvres... That type of eating - a leisurely dinner, sipping wine, sampling scrumptious little delicacies, is my favorite way to dine. I made smoked salmon tartare for the occasion, and I was encouraged to get the recipe up on the blog. So here you go! It's one of my favorite appetizer recipes. In addition to being incredibly delicious and elegant, it takes just a few ingredients and very little time to make. Plus it's a huge crowd-pleaser.

All you need is an 8-ounce pack of smoked salmon, a lemon, a shallot or two, a bunch of chives, and some crackers and/or cucumbers to serve it on.

Sweet citrusy lemon zest and the fresh oniony shallots and chives are beautiful complements to the rich smokiness of the salmon.

To chop the smoked salmon, place the whole slab of pre-sliced smoked salmon on the cutting board and ignore the fact that it's pre-sliced. Just slice it very thinly in one direction. Then slice it very thinly cross-wise. That gives you a fine dice.

Add the zest of one lemon, a tablespoon of very finely minced shallot, and some pepper. That's it!

Scoop some salmon tartare onto crackers or cucumber rounds and top with sour cream and chives.

When I serve this appetizer, I usually only assemble about a dozen on a plate. I pile the rest of the salmon tartare in a small bowl, surrounded by crackers, cucumber rounds, and small bowls of chives and sour cream, so people can make their own.

If you're a fan of elegant smoked salmon appetizers, here's a delicious new one from Cooking Light for Smoked Salmon Deviled Eggs

HERE ARE MORE QUICK AND DELICIOUS APPETIZERS FROM PANNING THE GLOBE

Here's the smoked salmon tartare recipe. If you make this, I hope you'll come back and leave a star rating and a comment. I'd love to know what you think!

SMOKED SALMON TARTARE

★★★★★

5 from 6 reviews

Author: Lisa
Total Time: 10 mins
Yield: 10-12 1x

Print Recipe

Description

A simple and elegant appetizer that you can make in a flash.

Ingredients

Scale

8 ounces smoked salmon, finely chopped
1 tablespoon finely minced shallot
The zest of one lemon (about 1 teaspoon lemon zest)
1 pinch or two of white pepper (or substitute freshly ground black pepper)
For Serving:
1 pack of sesame rice crackers (40 or so)
1 hothouse cucumber cut into ¼-inch rounds
Toppings:
1 bunch of fresh chives, finely chopped
½ cup sour cream

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Instructions

In a small bowl, mix the chopped salmon, shallot, lemon zest and pepper.
To plate: scoop about 1 scant teaspoon of salmon tartare onto a cracker or cucumber round. Top with a dollop of sour cream and a pinch of fresh chives. Repeat with remaining salmon tartare.
For Self Serve: Put the tartare in a small bowl, surrounded with little bowls of crackers, cucumber rounds, sour cream, and chives.

Prep Time: 10 mins
Category: Appetizer
Method: no cook
Cuisine: American