Smoked Salmon Pate with Melba Toast

February 13, 2001

During one of my excursions to pick up some fresh fruit and vegetables I remembered someone telling me there was a salmon farm on the outskirts of the city. I headed out along the road in search of the evening meal.

Several large trucks heading towards me convinced me I was on the right trail - it seems a local quarry has been turned into a wildlife park and salmon farm (see accompanying picture). The Isaac Salmon Market is open to the public.

If you're looking for a reasonable price for produce such as this, there's nothing quite like buying it on the farm doorstep. When I shop I like to see exactly what I am buying and at the salmon farm the fresh salmon cuts were clearly visible in pre-priced plastic bags. There's nothing worse than getting tray packed meat or fish home and finding scraggy little bits tucked in underneath.

One of my favourite salmon recipes comes from the Naked Chef, Jamie Oliver. I met him last year at a Literary Liaisons evening organised by our Christchurch newspaper, The Press. It was a sellout affair with dozens of women and chefs crowded into a hotel ballroom to sip bubbly and hear the young English lad chat about his career and his approach to food. He sold plenty of books that night and cheerfully autographed the lot.

His recipe for tray-baked salmon with green beans, tomatoes, anchovies and olives has to be one of the easiest and tastiest way to serve salmon. Definitely worth trying. I've made it half a dozen times and it still delights us. And that was the fate of the salmon I brought home from the market.

I also got some packs of their smoked salmon - both the cold smoked and the hot smoked variety. What's the difference? It depends on the temperature of the smoking chamber. The texture and flavour of the finished product are quite different. The thinly sliced smoked salmon familiar to most people is cold smoked. Excess heat is removed from the smoking chamber so the fish doesn't actually "cook" but just dries out a little. With hot smoking the fish is firmer and flakier.

If you are interested in reading more about the smoking process, visit http://www.sallys-place.com/food/columns/harlow/smoked_fish.htm where you will find an informative article.

I like hot smoked salmon served simply on a chunk of chewy ciabatta bread, perhaps with a dollop of lemon mayonnaise.

Cold smoked salmon makes an excellent pate. It is simplicity itself to make.

Smoked Salmon Pate

150g smoked salmon
120g cream cheese
2 tablespoons lemon juice
grated zest of 1 lemon
1/4 teaspoon dried dill tips

Place all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Spoon into a serving bowl and garnish with a few capers. Serve with Melba toast.

Melba toast (right) is easy to make and worth the effort. Remove the crusts and toast several slices of white bread. Place flat on your breadboard and slide a knife through the middle, horizontally, to cut each slice in half. Cut into triangles and bake in a pre-heated oven at 170C for 5-10 minutes until crisp and golden.