Smoked Salmon Pizza

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This Smoked Salmon Pizza is fast, flavorful, and absolutely fabulous! Featuring pillowy soft naan bread slathered with everything bagel-spiced cream cheese, and generously topped with crisp spring vegetables, fresh herbs, and salty cured fish, this salmon pizza is my ideal weeknight meal in warmer weather. 

Update: This post was originally published in April 2016. I made updates to the article below to include more information about making pizza with smoked salmon at home. 

If you’re on the lookout for a super speedy midweek meal, naan pizza is the way to go! Using store-bought flatbreads is a perfect way to recreate the blistered, charred, and chewy texture you crave from your favorite ‘za.

About this recipe for salmon pizza 

Picture this: warm, toasty naan bread slathered with rich cream cheese, sprinkled with seedy, flavor-packed everything bagel spice, and lovingly topped with luxurious, delicate, thin slices of salmon, fresh herbs, and cool, crisp spring vegetables. Is your mouth watering yet?? GOOD!

If you’re looking for more salmon appetizers, be sure to try these delicious reader favorites next: cream cheese and salmon dip and smoked salmon roll appetizer.

Why you’ll love this pizza recipe!

Aside from being a sensational spring soirée for your taste buds, this pizza with smoked salmon is also:

• Quick & Easy. Dinner will be on the table in just 20 minutes tonight. You’re very welcome. 
• Made With Just 4 Basic Ingredients. Flatbread, smoked fish, cream cheese, and EBB seasoning is all you NEED. The rest is totally up to you (and whatever is lurking in your fridge)!
• Super Versatile & Customizable. The toppings are limitless (think avocado, tomatoes, or even caviar if you’re feeling fancy) and the flavor is amazing.
• Wholesome & Nutritious. With all those cool, crunchy veggies and that protein-packed salmon, how could this NOT be health food? 😉

Ingredients for smoked salmon pizza

As promised, you need just a handful of simple ingredients to make this smoked salmon flatbread pizza. Here’s everything you’ll need:

• Cured Salmon – Technically speaking, this is more of a gravlax pizza rather than a lox pizza since I’m using homemade cured salmon from earlier in the week. Read on below for a quick explanation of the differences.
  • Substitution: Feel free to swap in cold-smoked salmon (or even hot-smoked salmon) if you prefer!
• Naan Bread – You’re welcome to make your own or make life even easier and grab some premade naan at the store.
  • Substitutions: Feel free to use any kind of flatbread you like. You are also welcome to use a pre-baked large pizza crust.
• Whipped Cream Cheese – This is the cream cheese that comes in a tub. I like to use it because it’s easier to spread. Feel free to use block-style cream cheese that you whip with a hand mixer instead.
  • Substitutions: For a lighter take, swap in cool, creamy Greek yogurt or creme fraiche. Alternatively, try making my Everything Bagel Dip instead of plain cream cheese. You’re also welcome to use the plant-based alternative of your choice.
• Everything But The Bagel Seasoning – I always keep a shaker of this homemade spice blend in the cabinet. Feel free to use store-bought for added convenience. 

Optional Toppings

If you’re anything like me, part of the fun of pizza night is going hog-wild with all the toppings! Feel free to mix and match to your heart’s content. Here are some of my favorites to pair with this salmon cream cheese pizza:

• Avocado – Like is drawn to like, so they say. The luscious consistency of avocado is a perfect complement to rich, buttery smoked fish and creamy whipped cheese.
• Shallot – I like a little bit of piquancy to help cut through the richness of everything.
  • Substitutions: Try using pickled red onions or pickled shallots, or thinly sliced red or yellow onions. If you use plain onions, you’re welcome to soak the slices in cool water for 10-15 minutes to remove some of the spicy “bite.”
• Cherry Tomatoes – These pretty red nightshades are always on my favorite breakfast sandwich, so it seems right that they’d be on this smoked salmon breakfast pizza, too!
• Micro Greens – While these little beauties add lots of color, they’re also nutrient powerhouses. Opt for peppery micro arugula for a particularly tasty pairing.
• English Cucumber – For a bit of cool, crunchy goodness.
• Radishes – Slightly peppery and deliciously crisp, radishes are a lovely addition to nearly any dish.
  • Pro Tip: Soak them in ice water for about 10 minutes to amp up their crunchiness factor even further. 
• Fresh Herbs – Fresh dill, fresh chives, or flat-leaf parsley are the best flavors to pair with deliciously fatty salmon. 
• Capers – For a briny bite. I suggest giving them a quick rinse to prevent them from tasting too salty.
• Lemon Zest – For some citrusy brightness. Make sure to only use the vibrantly colored yellow part; the white pith is quite bitter. 
• Cheese – If you can’t imagine a pizza without melty cheese, try mozzarella cheese.

Variations & Dietary Adaptations

As much as the Boy and I love this pizza with smoked salmon recipe just as it’s written, I know that dietary preferences and limitations sometimes get in the way. Not to worry! Here are some totally delicious and viable alternatives:

• Gluten-Free – Swap in your favorite gluten-free flatbread or pizza shell.
• Dairy-Free – Use plant-based cream cheese and opt for vegan naan to make this a lac-tard friendly meal.
• Other Smoked Salmon Toppings – In my house, red onions, capers, tomatoes, and black pepper are all you need for a perfect lox and bagels sandwich. If you have other favorites (think medium-boiled eggs, salmon roe, or arugula), feel free to use them at will!

How to make pizza with smoked salmon

Tossing smoked salmon on pizza with cream cheese is not only the tastiest combination you didn’t know you needed, it’s also one of the EASIEST & FASTEST meals in the NSN repertoire! Here’s how it’s done:

1. Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil for easy clean up. Then, spray the foil with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.
2. Flavor the Cream Cheese: In a small mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese with all the seasonings. If you like a thinner cream cheese consistency, add in a splash of milk or cream, one tablespoon at a time. Taste the cream cheese and adjust for seasoning. Set aside.
3. Bake the Naan Plain: Place your naan bread on the baking sheet. Transfer to the oven and bake the naan for 8-10 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and lightly toasted.
4. Assemble Salmon on Pizza: Remove the naan from the oven and place the baking sheet on a wire cooling rack. Use a small spatula or bread knife to spread a heaping fourth-a-cup of the flavored cream cheese on top of the naan crust. Then, arrange the pieces of smoked salmon on top of the cream cheese. Next, garnish the pizza with your favorite toppings and herbs, such as radishes, capers, and dill.
5. Slice and Serve: Transfer the pizza with smoked salmon to a cutting board and slice using a pizza cutter. Enjoy immediately.

Expert tips for the best salmon on pizza

• Stock up on naan when it goes on sale (or make a big batch on your meal prep day). Flatbreads freeze beautifully and can go directly from the freezer into the toaster oven. Ta-da!
• If you are using unbaked pizza dough, shape it into a round, brush it lightly with olive oil and sprinkle on your favorite seasoning blend, then bake it naked. Add the cream cheese, smoked salmon, and other toppings when you’re done!
• Use this salmon pizza recipe as a template rather than as gospel. Feel free to add more or less of any ingredient you choose!

FAQs: frequently asked questions

What is the difference between smoked salmon and cured salmon?

Without boring you TOO much, here is a SUPER SIMPLE breakdown:

Gravlax is a cured, UN-SMOKED salmon. There are 3 basic ingredients to the gravlax cure: salt, sugar, and dill, plus weight and time.

There are TWO types of smoked salmon, cold and hot:

• Cold-smoked salmon is cured in only salt. Then, it is rinsed and cold-smoked, meaning the smoke flavors the fish, but it does NOT cook the fish.
• Hot smoked salmon is cured in only salt as well. But, then it is essentially barbequed… meaning it gets cooked ALL the way through until it is flaky.

Make sense? Good.

That being said, on today’s salmon flatbread pizza you can ABSOLUTELY use any kind of salmon – gravlax, cold smoked, hot smoked, poached, grilled — WHATEVER your little heart desires. Do you, people.

Serving pizza salmon recipes 

This quick and dirty version of Wolfgang Puck’s famous smoked salmon pizza is fancy enough to serve with a sparkling glass of champagne but simple enough to pair with a pilsner. 

My family can each crush a whole naan-worth of pizza, so we don’t really have need for any sides. If you want to make a more rounded meal of it, feel free to serve it alongside a lightly dressed arugula salad.

This also makes for an excellent appetizer in lieu of a charcuterie or cheese board.

Or serve it with more smoked or cured salmon dishes, like:

• Salmon Gravlax
• Creamy Salmon Dip
• Smoked Salmon Roll with Cream Cheese
• Creamy Pasta with Smoked Salmon

Storing pizza with salmon

• Bread, including naan, doesn’t really like to be refrigerated. If possible, eat the assembled salmon pizza while fresh.
• Any leftovers will keep in the fridge for up to 4 days. To serve, reheat it briefly in a toaster oven to take some of the chill off.
• Feel free to make the Everything Bagel Cream Cheese up to a week ahead of time and store it in the fridge. Any leftovers are also excellent spread on bagels, sandwiches, or any other place you could use some savory, creamy deliciousness.

Alright, my little weirdoughs! I hope you’re craving a piz-za this Smoked Salmon deliciousness as much as I am. Until next time, know that, unlike this Naan Pizza, you can’t be topped!

Cheyanne

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More recipes for pizza!

• Butternut Squash Pizza
• Pizza with Corn and Bacon
• Steak Bruschetta Pizza

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