Salmon Dip

Salmon dip is a fantastic way to use up leftover salmon, which never tastes quite a good warmed up again as it does when you first make it.  If you are anything like me, however, you never have leftover salmon because you ate it all the first time around.  This is why I sometimes buy salmon specifically to make dip.

Here's what you need:

Salmon (duh)
Sour cream
Mayonnaise (For the love of Pete, do not try to substitue Miracle Whip.  So gross.)
Seasoned salt
Fresh dill or Capers
Lemon juice

If you are starting from scratch (no leftover salmon here), you need to cook your salmon first.  Any method is fine, but this is what I do:

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.  Line a cookie sheet or sheet pan with foil (this isn't absolutely necessary, but I do it so I don't have to scrub salmon skin off my pans), and lay your fillet out.  Drizzle with some lemon juice, then sprinkle with seasoned salt and dry dill weed.  I don't use fresh dill at this point because it gets either wilty or brittle, and isn't very tasty in the dip.

Bake until the internal temperature reaches 140 degrees (or 145 if you are a little paranoid).  You can either use a probe thermometer like I did, or just bake it for about 20 minutes and check it.

Put the salmon into a bowl and break it into chunks.  It should peel off the skin easily.

Add equal parts sour cream and mayonnaise.  How much depends on how much salmon you started with.  You are looking for a tuna salad-like consistency.

If you are using fresh dill in your dip, mince it.  I usually prefer capers, but I happened to have a large bunch of dill in my CSA box last week.

Add the dill (or capers), lemon juice, and seasoned salt.  Fold it all together.  How much lemon juice you use depends on how tangy you want your dip, so give it a taste.  If you use capers, you won't need as much salt.

Word.

I have noticed that, when using capers, it takes a few hours before the salt in the capers makes its way throughout the dip, so don't go overboard with the seasoned salt when mixing this up.  You can add more later if it seems bland.

And we're done.  I usually eat salmon dip on crackers (rice crackers are my favorite), but you can also make a salmon salad sandwich with it, or toss a spoonful with some buttered noodles.