A creamy hot smoked salmon and asparagus pasta recipe, flavoured with lemon and dill.
On the table in just 20 minutes, making it the perfect low-prep easy pasta dish for busy weeknights!
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The creamy sauce in this delicious hot smoked salmon pasta is made with creme fraiche rather than double cream, meaning it's lighter and lower in calories, but still just as tasty!
👩🍳 Love creamy pasta recipes? Try my easy creamy boursin pasta too!
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✔️ Why should you try it?
- Quick and easy pasta recipe
- Low prep
- Creamy and indulgent
- Bold flavours
- Easily customisable
🛒 Ingredients
- Hot Smoked Salmon - 2 hot smoked salmon fillets which have been flaked with a fork into large chunks. I used honey roast flavoured salmon.
- Asparagus - both the stalks and spears are needed for this recipe.
- Pasta - rigatoni or other short pasta shapes are best e.g. penne.
- Peas - straight out of the freezer. Substitute with petit pois if you prefer.
- Garlic - 2 peeled and finely chopped garlic cloves. Add another if you love garlic!
- Lemon - the juice of 1 lemon helps cut through the richness of the salmon and creamy sauce.
- Creme Fraiche - use either full-fat or half fat creme fraiche for the sauce.
- Grama Padano - finely grated, or substitute for grated Parmesan.
- Dill - a herb that goes so well with fish and lemon, but swap for parsley if you like.
🔪 Instructions
The recipe card with ingredient quantities and detailed instructions can be found at the bottom of the post
- Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the asparagus for 2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the asparagus onto a chopping board. Leave to cool slightly.
- Bring the water back to the boil and cook the pasta according to instructions.
- Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan or casserole and cook the chopped garlic for 2-3 minutes over a medium heat.
- Add the creme fraiche, peas, lemon juice, Grana padano, chopped dill, salt and pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Using a sharp knife cut up the apsaragus stalks into small pieces but leave the spears whole.
- Add the chopped asparagus stalks and flaked hot smoked salmon to the creamy sauce and stir to combine.
- Drain the pasta (reserving 1 cup of pasta cooking water), then add the pasta to the sauce, along with as much pasta cooking water as you need to make the sauce glossy and smooth.
- Serve with the reserved asparagus spears, more chopped dill and an extra grating of grana padano.
💭 Top tip
Hot smoked salmon has a high salt content, so less salt is needed to season the dish.
🍴 Serving suggestions
Serve the hot smoked salmon pasta just as it is, with a crisp dry white wine for the adults.
To make the dish stretch a bit further you could serve a simple green salad and pesto focaccia alongside it!
📖 Variations
- Add a handful of pitted olives or capers to the dish for a flavour boost.
- A sprinkling of toasted pine nuts would give the dish a lovely crunch and texture.
- Make it even more lemony by adding 1 teaspoon of finely grated lemon zest to the sauce.
- Up the veggies and stir in 100g of baby spinach.
- I used honey roast hot smoked salmon fillets, but feel free to use a different flavour such as lemon pepper or chilli.
🥡 Storage
The pasta is best eaten fresh, as soon as it is made. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 days and reheated in the microwave. The great thing about using hot smoked salmon as opposed to smoked salmon is that it reheats much better.
The hot smoked salmon pasta can be frozen for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge before reheating in the microwave.
❓ FAQs
Hot-smoked salmon is cured in salty water or wet brine before being smoked. Cold-smoked salmon is smoked at a very low temperature of roughly 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Hot-smoked salmon is smoked at a higher temperature around 120 degrees Fahrenheit, resulting in a smokier richer flavour. The texture is different too. Hot smoked salmon can be flaked easily with a fork, whereas cold smoked salmon cannot.
Smoked salmon is packed with nutrients, vitamins, and omega-3 fatty acids so is considered a healthy food.
😋Related recipes
More easy pasta recipes to try!
- Halloumi Pasta with Chorizo
- Salmon and Prawn Pasta
- Creamy Sweet Potato Pasta
- Creamy Chorizo and Prawn Pasta
- Baked Feta Pasta
- Creamy Paprika Chicken Pasta
- BBQ Chicken Pasta
- Penne Alla Vodka
Recipe
Hot Smoked Salmon Pasta
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Equipment
- Knife
Ingredients
- 250 g Pasta
- 250 g Asparagus woody ends trimmed
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
- 2 Garlic Cloves peeled and chopped
- 100 g Frozen Peas
- 1 Lemon juice only
- 250 g Creme Fraiche
- 2 tablespoon Dill chopped
- 25 g Grana Padano finely grated
- ¼ teaspoon Sea Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
Instructions
- Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the asparagus for 2 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the asparagus onto a chopping board. Leave to cool slightly.
- Bring the water back to the boil and cook the pasta according to instructions.
- Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan or casserole and cook the chopped garlic for 2-3 minutes over a medium heat.
- Add the creme fraiche, peas, lemon juice, Grana padano, chopped dill, salt and pepper. Cook for 3-4 minutes.
- Using a sharp knife cut up the apsaragus stalks into small pieces but leave the spears whole.
- Add the chopped asparagus stalks and flaked hot smoked salmon to the creamy sauce and stir to combine.
- Drain the pasta (reserving 1 cup of pasta cooking water), then add the pasta to the sauce, along with as much pasta cooking water as you need to make the sauce glossy and smooth.
- Serve with the reserved asparagus spears, more chopped dill and an extra grating of grana padano.
Notes
- Add a handful of pitted olives or capers to the dish for a flavour boost.
- A sprinkling of toasted pine nuts would give the dish a lovely crunch and texture.
- Up the veggies and stir in 100g of baby spinach.
- I used honey roast hot smoked salmon fillets, but feel free to use a different flavour such as lemon pepper or chilli.
Nutritional Information (Approximate)
Tried it? Let me know what you think and rate it ⭐️ below. Tag me @effortlessf00d-I'd love to see! Don't forget to subscribe for more recipes.
Tavo says
This looks so yummy and creamy! I am going to try this for dinner tonight!
Gina says
This is exactly the kind of dish I'd order in a restaurant - creamy, decadent and comforting! Love how easy it is to make at home. The smoked salmon complements the creme fraiche so nicely.
Beth says
This looks and sounds amazing. I love salmon so this is a must try. I am thinking Saturday night.
Carrie Robinson says
Smoked salmon is definitely one of my favorites! I need to make this pasta dish asap. 🙂
Danielle Wolter says
This was incredible! The creme fraiche is the perfect touch with the salmon and asparagus.