Stunning ways to serve L&J smoked salmon this Christmas

Our award winning salmon is all about fantastic flavour, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t look fabulous as well! Especially at Christmas, we all love a showstopper spread, and smoked salmon is the perfect centrepiece. So our gifts to you are some ideas, classic to cool, of ways to serve our smoked salmon with the wow factor.

Classic Plateau

Sometimes the simplest presentations are the most striking. Stylish and down to earth, give guests the chance to slice their own portion from a hand-carved salmon board and bespoke Savernake knife. There’s no fussy overcomplication here.

An unsliced whole side of smoked salmon is certainly a talking point, and an experience to serve. Go for a classic variety, like our Maldon Cure, or Deep Smoked if you prefer a richer flavour. Then surround your salmon board with classic accompaniments, like chopped dill and lemon wedges.

And why not pair your salmon board with a cheese board too? The best cheese boards have a mix of cheeses, from soft to hard, ripe to smoked. So don’t forget to add a smoked cheddar or shropshire to the selection.

Sculptural Stack

Going vertical is a classic way to create genuine visual impact. Layer D-cut slices of our Cherrywood Smoked Salmon with soft cheese and cucumber ribbons to create individual stacks. These little towers look impressive but are surprisingly easy to assemble.

Our cherrywood salmon is already prepared in D-cut slices.

• Mix up a bowl of cream cheese, chopped dill and lemon zest
• Using a veg peeler strip long ribbons of cucumber
• Layer salmon, cream cheese and cucumber a couple of times over
• Finish with a tiny dollop of caviar on top. We supply Exmoor Caviar to accompany our varieties.

For a bit of variety, try this with our Juniper Smoked Salmon too. Its subtle sweetness pairs beautifully with tangy goat’s cheese instead of cream cheese, if you fancy trying something a little different this season!

Beetroot Beauty

If we had to choose one of our range of smoked salmon that creates a visual talking point before you even taste it, it’d probably be our Beetroot Cure. It’s bright and vibrant and opens up a whole palette of presentation opportunities!

Try this: arrange beetroot cure slices in overlapping circles on a white platter, working from the outside in like a rose. In the centre, place a small bowl of horseradish cream. Scatter edible flowers around the edges if you’re feeling particularly fancy, or keep it simple with microgreens and shaved fennel plus a drizzle of good olive oil. Magenta against white gives Christmas feels without looking like you’ve covered everything in tinsel.

Interactive Station

Here’s a serving style that takes the pressure off you while adding theatre to your gathering: a build-your-own blini station. Set up a small table with bare blinis and an array of toppings. Offer a variety of smoked salmons (you can do this just from our ranges – for example Maldon Cure, Juniper Smoked, and Cherrywood). You can mix cuts as well as flavours, so D-cut and long sliced options.

As far as accompaniments go, include the classics like crème fraîche, capers, finely diced red onion, pickled cucumber, fresh dill, and perhaps some whipped smoked cod’s roe for a real diversity of choice.

Arrange everything on slates and label each salmon variety – it’ll give your guests a clue about which flavours to go for in combination. You’ll find people getting surprisingly creative, and it becomes a conversation piece rather than just food.

Hot Smoked Centrepiece

While we often think of smoked salmon as a cold buffet option, our Kiln Roasted whole side is brilliant for creating a warm centrepiece to fill your kitchen with the smell of home cooking.

To serve a hot smoked fish warm, you only need to gently warm it in the oven. You can soak first, or heat in paper or foil to prevent drying out. A wooden salmon board is, again, a fantastic way of presenting a warm side of salmon. Roasted ingredients are the theme of the spread here, with roasted new potatoes and roasted cherry tomatoes to surround the fish.

Alternatively, keep it cold and flake into an enormous seasonal salad. Add cubes of squash, pomegranate seeds and walnuts to give a standard salad a festive twist.

Rustic Sharing Board

Not every Christmas gathering needs white tablecloths and fine china. The season is all about human connection, after all. For this vibe, create a generous sharing board that feels abundant and inviting.

Arrange several varieties of our smoked salmon across a large board, or a series of smaller boards. Add chunks of our oak-smoked cheddar, some good crackers, cornichons, olives, and perhaps some smoked pâté. Include fresh crusty bread, good butter, and plenty of lemon wedges.

The beauty of this approach is that it encourages people to linger, to try different combinations, and to actually talk to each other rather than focusing on a formal meal. Scatter some fresh herbs across the board for colour, and you’ve created something that looks effortlessly stylish.

Practical Presentation Tips

While we can all get a bit carried away with aesthetics, we must remember a few practical notes that’ll make your life easier:

• Temperature matters: Take your salmon out of the fridge about 15 minutes before serving. It tastes better at cool room temperature rather than cold, and it’s more pliable for arranging.
• Less is often more: Don’t overcrowd your boards. Give each element space to breathe. The fish itself is stunning, so let people actually see it.
• Texture contrast: Always include something crunchy alongside your salmon, whether that’s crackers, toasted bread, or crispy capers.
• Fresh herbs are your friend: A handful of fresh dill or parsley costs almost nothing but makes everything look more intentional and fresh.

This Christmas, take a moment to present your salmon to look as good as it tastes. Not only will you probably receive some lovely compliments from your guests, but food presentation is a time honoured way of showing love and appreciation to your loved ones. And really, isn’t that what Christmas entertaining is all about? Choose your Christmas spread ingredients here.