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This smoked salmon appetizer is easy and perfect for parties! Cucumber, cream cheese and dill make a crowd-pleasing snack.
Here’s an easy appetizer that looks stunning and relies on simple, spot-on flavors: smoked salmon appetizer bites! The classic combination of smoked salmon, dill, cucumber and cream cheese is a hit every time.
As cookbook authors and recipe experts, Alex and I love working with smoked salmon because it brings an instant intense savory, smoky flavor with no cooking whatsoever! Mix the cream cheese with fresh dill, green onion and Dijon for a rich, zingy pop. Make up this platter for a party, and people won’t be able to tear themselves away!
Ingredients for this smoked salmon appetizer
Smoked salmon is ideal for appetizer spreads: its bold, smoky and salty flavor and 0-minute prep time make it a favorite around here. The basic idea: mix the cream cheese with mayo, Dijon, fresh dill and green onion. Dollop onto the cucumber slices and top with smoked salmon and a sprig of fresh dill. Here’s what you’ll need (or go to the recipe):
- Smoked salmon: We prefer cold-smoked salmon here which has a soft texture (the type used in lox). However, hot-smoked salmon also works: it has a flaky texture.
- English cucumber: English cucumber is longer and thinner than a standard cucumber, and you don’t need to peel it! See below for more.
- Cream cheese
- Mayonnaise (or substitute plain or Greek yogurt)
- Dijon mustard
- Fresh dill
- Green onion
Why to use English cucumber
This smoked salmon appetizer is great no matter what cucumber you find, but we highly recommend looking for an English cucumber. Why use it here?
- English cucumbers are long and straight, and have a thin skin with ridges. The seeds are almost imperceptible and the flavor is sweeter than a standard cucumber, so it doesn’t need to be peeled or seeded before eating! Because the thin skin is so fragile, it’s sold with a plastic covering in the grocery store. No only does it taste better, it has a brighter green color.
- Standard slicing cucumbers are shorter, with thick, dark green skin and large seeds. The thick skin and seeds can be bitter, so they’re often removed when cooking. You can substitute a standard cucumber here, but you may want to peel it.
Tips for serving for a party
This smoked salmon appetizer recipe makes about 20 slices. Depending on the party you’re making them for, this might be enough: it fills a large circular plate. But if you’re serving a big party, make a double recipe! You’ll need only one English cucumber for an entire recipe.
If making for a party, you can make the smoked salmon appetizer bites in advance and refrigerate until serving. Refrigerate up to 1 day prior to serving. Anything beyond that and the cucumber slices can become dried out or mushy.
Other ways to serve it
You can serve these smoked salmon appetizer bites as a lunch idea! Make them up and use them for a healthy gluten-free lunch option, along with some additional vegetables and fruits. Try more of our healthy lunch ideas or gluten free lunch ideas for more.
Dietary notes
This smoked salmon appetizer recipe is gluten free and pescatarian.
Smoked Salmon Appetizer Bites
This smoked salmon appetizer is easy and perfect for parties! Cucumber, cream cheese and dill make a crowd-pleasing snack.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 20 bites 1x
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: No Cook
- Cuisine: Appetizer
- Diet: Gluten Free
Ingredients
- 1/2 English cucumber (20 slices)*
- 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
- 1 tablespoon mayonnaise (or Greek or plain yogurt)
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill, plus dill sprigs to top
- 1 green onion, very finely chopped
- 3 ounces smoked salmon
Instructions
- Slice the cucumber into 1/4-inch slices. (If you like, sprinkle a tiny bit of kosher salt onto the slices.)
- In a bowl, mix the soften cream cheese with the mayo, Dijon, chopped fresh dill, and chopped green onion.
- Place a dollop of cream cheese on each cucumber slice, then top with a small piece of smoked salmon. Top with dill sprigs and serve immediately or refrigerate until serving (up to 1 day in advance).
Notes
*Double for a large party to make 40 bites. Try to find an English cucumber if you can: they’re long and thin, and have no seeds and a milder flavor than standard cucumber. You can substitute standard cucumber, but make sure to peel it.
More easy appetizer recipes
These smoked salmon bites are the perfect easy appetizer for parties! Here are a few more of our party food favorites:
- More fun smoked salmon recipes: smoked salmon toast, smoked salmon bagel, smoked salmon dip or smoked salmon spread.
- Go for veggie cream cheese, cottage cheese dip, or ranch dip with veggies.
- Grab black bean hummus or spicy hummus.
- Try our top cold appetizers for a party.
Um…salmon is a fish so… not vegetarian.
Very tasty and easy to prepare appetizer. It is definitely now part of my appetizer repertoire. I’ve found affordable smoked salmon at Trader Joe’s and Grocery Outlet. I used fresh dill, but wonder if dried dill is an option when fresh dill is not available.
Would shrimp work too? Which would be best…1 med-lg roasted shrimp or 2-3 mini salad-type shrimp? I think the office staff I want to take them to would prefer shrimp. Would multi-flavored goat cheese work if just topped with dill? Thanks so much for your help!
I would do it with the salad shrimp! And, yes any goat cheese would be nice.
I made these for the first time as a potluck appetizer and they were a hit. I thought they were geared a little more towards the adults in the crowd, but the teenagers grabbed them up too. These were the only apps that were completely gone by dinner – a true sign of success. Thanks for putting together such lovely recipes; I cannot wait to try more of them.
So glad you all enjoyed them!
Can you use goat cheese instead of cream cheese (lactose intolerant guests)?
Yes! Would be great.
I made these a few years ago with fresh caught and smoked stealhead. I brought them to a party. Everyone loved them.
In fact they want me to bring th
What kind of smoked salmon did u use
We used a cold smoked salmon for this recipe.
This looks very good. Bought some Smoked salmon, thin sliced, and then realized that I didn’t exactly know what to do with it. I was used to heat smoked, thick salmon. A totally different taste. Will try this, as it looks yummy and perfect for my thin sliced Salmon.
Let us know if you have any questions!