Smoked Salmon Tartare with Crispy Fried Capers
This Smoked Salmon Tartare is the perfect prep ahead appetizer. It's elegant, refined, easy to make in 20 minutes and perfectly seasoned with Dijon mustard and a hint of rum. And the finishing touch? Crispy fried capers that you'll want to serve with everything.
Servings 4
Calories 251kcal
Equipment
- Measuring cups (metric or US)*
Ingredients
- ½ lb sashimi/sushi-grade salmon previously frozen, chopped
- ½ lb cold smoked salmon chopped; or swap for same amount of regular salmon
- 6 teaspoon dijon mustard divided
- 4 teaspoon rum or cognac
- 4 teaspoon lemon juice about half a lemon
- 4 tablespoon dill finely chopped; can be swapped for chives
- 4 tablespoon parsley finely chopped; can be swapped for chives
- ½ teaspoon white pepper or swap for black pepper
Fried capers (makes 2 Tbsp)
- 4 tablespoon small capers
- 2 tablespoon olive oil amount depending on size of pan
To Serve
- 1 red onion finely chopped
- ½ lemon washed and finely chopped; organic is best since we're keeping the peel on
- 4 handfuls arugula or other leafy greens
- 4 sprigs of dill optional
Instructions
Salmon Tartare - Prep (10-15 minutes)
- Place both types of chopped salmon in a bowl together with ⅓ of the Dijon mustard, all the rum, lemon juice, dill, parsley and white pepper. Mix well, taste test and adjust seasoning according to taste.½ lb sashimi/sushi-grade salmon, ½ lb cold smoked salmon, 6 teaspoon dijon mustard, 4 teaspoon rum, 4 teaspoon lemon juice, 4 tablespoon dill, 4 tablespoon parsley, ½ teaspoon white pepper
- Pack the tartare into portion-sized cups or bowls and place covered in the refrigerator for 30 minutes, or up to 24 hours, until you're ready to plate.
Fried capers (5-10 minutes)
- Drain the capers and place on a kitchen towel to dry for a few minutes.4 tablespoon small capers
- Pour ⅛ of an inch (a few millimeters) of olive oil in a frying pan and place over medium-high heat.2 tablespoon olive oil
- Test the heat of the oil by dropping in a few capers. If it instantly starts to bubble, add in the rest of the capers. Otherwise, wait for another minute and try again.
- Fry the capers for 5 minutes and then remove a few and place them on a paper towel. If they quickly become crisp, they're done. In that case, remove the pan from the heat and place all capers on the paper towel. Otherwise, let fry another minute and test again.
- Let the paper towel absorb the oil for a few minutes, or leave them there until it's time to plate.
Plating (5 min)
- Bring out the salmon tartare from the fridge. On individual serving plates, spread out the arugula or other leafy greens.4 handfuls arugula
- Loosen the salmon tartare from the container by placing it upside down on top of the greens, and tapping on the bottom. It should then slide out when you lift the container. If this doesn't work, shake it gently up and down until the tartare slides out.
- Place chopped lemon and chopped red onion to each plate as well as about 1 teaspoon of dijon mustard. Top with fried capers and a sprig of dill. Serve!1 red onion, ½ lemon, 4 sprigs of dill
Video
Notes
Keep in mind that this is a raw dish and eating raw food is always a risk, even when freezing the salmon first.
Use the right cups or bowls. The wall should be straight and the opening needs to be the widest part for the tartare to slide out easily.
You can also make it in one big bowl. Then plate from this using a spoon to form a nice looking tartare.
Chop the onion and lemon as small as possible. This helps them mix in well with the tartare. We want the flavor, not necessarily the chunks.
Soak the onion to make it less sharp. Soaking onion in ice water makes the flavor smoother.
Serve extra seasonings on the side. Let your guests make it their own and season it as they like.
Prep ahead! You can make the tartare and the capers the day before and just plate right before serving. It's almost better this way, when the flavors have had time to deepen.
Storing: Store leftovers in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 2 days.
Freezing: I do not recommend freezing leftovers.
Nutrition
Calories: 251kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 23g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 44mg | Sodium: 786mg | Potassium: 541mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 975IU | Vitamin C: 21mg | Calcium: 68mg | Iron: 2mg