Smoked Salmon Board. This seacuterie board features thinly sliced smoked salmon, cream cheese, capers, red onion, cucumbers, bagel chips, pistachios, and more. This platter is perfect as an appetizer or makes a great addition to any brunch spread.

As the weather cools and the leaves start to turn, fall is the perfect time to entertain guests with a seasonal charcuterie, or in this case, seacuterie board. Smoked salmon, with its rich, savory flavor and delicate texture, makes a great centerpiece for an autumn-themed board. It pairs beautifully with fresh produce, hearty crackers, and other accompaniments like cream cheese and capers. We’ve outlined what we put on our salmon seacuterie board, but feel free to use this as a general guide and come up with your favorite combinations.

Here’s how to make this smoked salmon charcuterie board:

1. Choosing the Smoked Salmon

Smoked salmon adds a luxurious touch to any charcuterie board and serves as the focus on this board. There are a few varieties to to choose from:

• Cold-Smoked Salmon: Thinly sliced, with a silky texture and mild smoky flavor. Cold smoked salmon is cured and then smoked at a lower temperature after being cured. Cold smoked salmon is not fully cooked. We love the Blue Circle Foods cold smoked salmon which is sustainably raised and ASC certified.
• Hot-Smoked Salmon: Thicker, firmer and flakier (typically in fillet form versus thinly sliced), with a more robust, cooked taste. Hot smoked salmon is fully cooked. FishWife also has some incredible tinned smoked salmon that we love.
• Flavored Varieties: Key your eye out for smoked salmon infused with maple, honey, or even bourbon flavors.
• Other Fish Varieties: in addition to (or instead of) smoked salmon, consider adding some of your favorite tinned fish – such a sardines in extra virgin olive oil, mussels in tomato sauce, smoked rainbow trout, tuna in extra virgin olive oil – and beyond.

2. Selecting Cheeses

To complement the smoked salmon, choose a cheese or cheeses with a balance of creamy, tangy, and sharp flavors. These pairings will enhance the salmon without overpowering it:

• Creamy Cheeses: On this board, we’ve used plain whipped cream cheese, but a garlic herb cream cheese, Boursin or Alouette spread would be perfect and adds a beautiful richness. A savory goat cheese would be great too, as would Brie.
• Tangy Cheeses: Nutty manchego, sharp cheddar, or aged gouda provide complexity. The caramel notes of gouda, especially aged varieties, work wonderfully with smoked salmon.

3. Incorporating Seasonal Fruits & Vegetables

Incorporating fall produce brings a fresh, vibrant element to the board, and the colors of seasonal fruits add visual appeal.

• Vegetables: We love including veggies that add great color and crunch like cucumber slices, carrot sticks, radishes, fennel, celery and red onion. Pickled vegetables such as red onion, beets, artichoke hearts, and other canned vegetables add a tangy contrast.
• Fruits: Pears, apples, figs, dried cranberries, prunes, and dried apricots balance the savory richness of the salmon with their natural sweetness. We ran out of room on this board for fruit, but feel free to add your favorites!

4. Adding Bread and Crackers

The right bread and crackers provide a base for building the perfect bite:

• Whole Grain Crackers: Choose sturdy, whole grain crackers with seeds or oats to complement the rustic feel of the season.
• Bagel Chips: For a nod to the classic smoked salmon and bagel combo, we love adding crispy bagel chips, which are ideal for spreading soft cheeses and topping with salmon.
• Seasonal Crackers: We picked up some cranberry pumpkin seed crackers at Trader Joe’s this week, which work perfectly on this board. There are so many great fall cracker flavor combinations to try.

5. Accompaniments and Toppings

These final touches enhance the flavor profile of the board and provide additional textures:

• Nuts: Roasted almonds, pistachios, toasted walnuts, or spiced pecans add crunch and warmth, making the board feel extra cozy.
• Condiments: Capers, lemon wedges, and a bit of mustard or horseradish cream provide sharp and tangy notes that balance the richness of the salmon. Pickles, olives, seaweed salad, kimchi, and other condiments add a briny touch to charcuterie boards.
• Honey or Fig Jam: For a touch of sweetness, you could add a small bowl of honey, pumpkin butter (or this INCREDIBLE cranberry pumpkin butter) or fig jam, which pairs well with the smoky fish and creamy cheeses.

6. Garnishing with Fall Touches

To enhance the visual appeal and embrace the season, add decorative garnishes like:

• Fresh Herbs: Dill and parsley are classic garnishes for smoked salmon, while rosemary sprigs evoke the feel of fall, moving into winter.
• Edible Flowers: Marigolds, nasturtiums (ours are still growing in the garden, even in October) or pansies bring a pop of autumnal color.
• Seasonal Touches: Small pumpkins, gourds, or scattered nuts add a festive autumn feel to the board.

7. Beverage Pairings

Round out your fall charcuterie board with beverages that highlight the flavors of the season. Light, citrus-forward drinks like a crisp white wine (such as a Sauvignon Blanc) or sparkling water with lemon complement the salmon’s richness. For those who prefer something warmer, consider serving a hot spiced cider (or a hot spiked cider!) or a light-bodied red wine like Pinot Noir, which complements the smoky notes of the salmon and autumn flavors.

How do you assemble this smoked salmon board?

First, pull out your favorite charcuterie board, large platter or large cutting board. Any food safe surface will work. Typically the larger, the better, as you can always fill up empty space with fresh herbs, more crackers or simple fall decor. Then, I typically place the star in the center, in this case that would be our smoked salmon. Then surround the salmon with all the accoutrements – cream cheese, cucumbers, crackers, pistachios, etc. Things like capers, red onion and lemons can be placed in smaller bowls, if you’d like, then placed on the platter. Fill in any of the holes on the board with additional crackers, nuts, herbs and other fall decor (I used a little brass pumpkin). Make sure you place utensils on the board, if needed, like cheese knives, a small fork (for the salmon), a discard bowl (for pistachio shells – and anything else that cannot be eaten), small tongs, etc.

For more tips on assembling seafood platters, check out this post on How to Make a Seacuterie Board.

Below are some images of the salmon board in progress.

Looking for more seacuterie boards? Try these:

• Fall Seacuterie Board
• Christmas Seafood Platter
• Cranberry Seacuterie

 

Here are the full details for making this smoked salmon board:

Creating a fall-inspired charcuterie (seacuterie!) board with smoked salmon is the perfect way to celebrate autumn. With a thoughtful balance of rich, savory, sweet, and tangy elements, this spread is not only beautiful but a delicious celebration of the season’s bounty. Don’t forget to make this board your own by choosing all your favorite accompaniements. I hope you enjoy!

PIN this Smoked Salmon Board for later: