I’ve delayed writing this post for weeks because I don’t know how it’s possible to explain in words how spectacular this recipe is.
Brad and I are both huge Thomas Keller fans dating back to when we first tried his recipe for simple roasted chicken. A few years ago he bought me a collection of Keller cookbooks and we immediately gravitated to Bouchon.
These salmon rillettes are among the most intriguing recipes I found flipping through the book and I was thrilled to find them on the menu the next time we visited our local Bouchon.
It just took one bite and I was completely blown away. As much as I love salmon I’ve never imagined it could be so creamy, smooth, light, and flavorful. Just as awesome, for me, was the small plate style. Â This dish is perfect for casual sharing with friends.
Salmon rillettes at the Bouchon bar quickly became a regular treat for us. A dangerously expensive treat.
Last time we visited we managed to ring up what is now our personal record in bar tabs for just the two of us. Nothing to do with the salmon rillettes and everything to do with the fact that we got a little tipsy and spent a few hours letting the bartender pour us tastes of beverages that were so delicious we were compelled to buy complete glasses.
The biggest upside of this is that we were introduced to the perfectly complimentary wine for this dish: L’enclos Savennièrres. Yum.
Brad found the wine at our local wine store and I dug up the recipe for the rillettes. Â We now have everything we need to enjoy our favorite things about Bouchon at home for a (significantly smaller) fraction of the cost.
These are the perfect make-ahead dish for casual entertaining that will blow your guests away.  Store them in these cute little  gasket-seal canning jars for up to a week in the fridge.  Pull them out all nonchalant… “I just whipped these up the other day” and claim the title of world’s greatest host/ess.  Serve the salmon spread on toasted baguette – or swap out cucumber slices to keep things keto.  Either way they’re going to change your world.
Ingredients
- 1 lb center-cut wild-caught salmon, skin and pinbones removed, trimmed and dark flesh removed
- 2 tbs Pernod
- 8 tbs unsalted butter
- 1/2 c shallots, minced
- 1 tbs creme fraiche
- 8 oz un-sliced, chilled smoked salmon
- 2.5 tbs lemon juice
- 1 tbs high-quality extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 egg yolks
- 1 tbs fresh chives, finely chopped, optional
- salt and white pepper
- clarified butter, for sealing
Instructions
Set out the butter and smoked salmon to bring them to room temperature. Cut the smoked salmon into a 1/4" dice.
Place the salmon fillet in a glass baking dish and sprinkle each side with 1 tbs of Pernod, 1 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp white pepper. Refrigerate, covered with plastic wrap, for 1 hour, turning after 30 minutes.
Set up a pot with a steamer rack and bring the water in the bottom to a simmer. Add the salmon and steam gently until medium-rare, about 8 minutes. Alternatively, if you don't have a steamer rack, you can poach the salmon.
Meanwhile, melt 1 tbs butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add the shallots, season with 1/4 tsp salt, and saute, stirring, until softened, about 4-5 minutes. Don't allow them to brown.
In a small bowl, stir the remaining 7 tbs butter until smooth and creamy. Add creme fraiche and stir to combine. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine steamed salmon, diced smoked salmon, sauteed shallots, lemon juice, olive oil, egg yolks, and chives. Season with salt and white pepper. Fold in the butter mixture and combine well.
Transfer salmon mixture to ramekins, canning jars, or pots, leaving a half inch of space at the top of each. Refrigerate 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat clarified butter over medium heat until liquid. Pour a half inch layer of butter over each pot of salmon and return to the refrigerator to solidify.
To serve, remove and discard the butter seal. Serve spread on toasted baguette, crackers, cucumber slices, or spoons.
Nutritional Information
Calories 273
Total Fat 20.6g
Saturated Fat 9.8g
Trans Fat 0.0g
Cholesterol 118mg
Sodium 968mg
Potassium 101mg
Total Carbohydrates 2.1g
Protein 18.0g
Weight Watchers Points: 7
PointsPlus: 7
WOW! This looks and sounds so good! And no cholesterol, either…Well, may some but it’s worth it.
I’ve never had salmon rillettes- this looks amazing! I love Keller’s books too- what a great gift!
Hi Maggie – lovely recipe. Do you think it would keep longer if you left out the egg yolks?
Hi Rose!
I’ve been thinking about this – I’m actually in the middle of making it right now for our V-Day dinner 🙂 I bet you could get a couple extra days out of it without the egg yolk but you’d still have to be sensitive to the salmon getting old. You’d lose a little richness but I bet it would still be delicious. Let me know if you try it!
Are these raw egg yolks?
Yes, the egg yolks are raw. I made this last night for Valentine’s dinner and it’s so good!
The ingredients say shallots, but pictured are chives. Am I missing something?
Hi Matt!
I use both shallots and chives. The chives aren’t as important to the flavor so are optional but I like the color they add =D
If you are going to add butter, some more butter, and a little more butter, off course the salmon will be creamy:-). Trick is to make the salmon taste great without cheating with butter. I think modern cooking has moved away from butter and closer to olive oil which also is cardio protective and healthier which is where the Italians and the Spaniards have it right over the French who will throw a slab of butter over everything. Mr. Keller did train in France.
Haha! So true! This is definitely a splurge dish 🙂 I’ll definitely be on the lookout for something a little more heart healthy.
Is it fresh wild-caught salmon or smoked salmon that should be used? The ingredients say wild-caught, but the instructions say smoked… I’m thinking fresh, because it also says to cook it! Please advise
Hi Virginia! This recipe calls for both: 1 lb center-cut raw wild-caught salmon and 8 oz un-sliced, chilled smoked salmon (I’ve substituted sliced without issue). You’ll see in the directions that you combine the cooked wild-caught salmon with the smoked.
You’re going to love this recipe!
Looks like there are chopped chives in your pictures but they aren’t in your recipe. Also when you say wild caught salmon “dark fresh removed”, I assume you mean dark flesh.
Thanks for catching, Simon! Corrected.
This looks fabulous, and I’d like to make it this week, but important question: is the smoked salmon cold-smoked as in nova lox or hot-smoked salmon, which is fully cooked? In looking at the pictures it looks to me like cold-smoked salmon. Although I would imagine the recipe would be good with either, I think the hot-smoked salmon would make for a stronger dish. I live in Seattle so we have a lot of both!
Such a great question!
So, to be totally candid, I think Thomas Keller intends for hot smoked – that’s what it tasted like to me at Bouchon. It’s hard to find down here so I make it with nova lox, which is crazy amazing. Nevertheless, if I lived in Seattle, I’d go hot smoked and send some down here after you make it 🙂
Best!!
Thanks Maggie! Nice to know it’ll work both ways.
Thomas Keller uses Cold Smoked salmon.
hi there,
its been a while since you had this thread but I ll take a chance. After the final stage of pouring a butter seal, do you put it back in the fridge? and if you do, do you serve it cold or let it set to get to room temp?
thanks
Mark K
Hi Mark! Salmon Rillettes are never far from my mind 🙂
Yes, after you seal them with the butter you’ll want to return them to the refrigerator. For serving, take off the butter seal while it’s cold and still hard. You can eat them either cold or room temperature. I think we usually devour them about 20 minutes out of the fridge. Still cool but a little softer.
Mmmmm… I wish I had some in the fridge now…
Also,
For all those who are worried about raw eggs , Hollandaise sauce has all the ingredients already in this dish but with cooked yolks, tell them to use it instead.
Would it be just as good leaving out the final step of clarified butter seal since you are discarding it at serving anyway. Also it already has butter-crème fraise mix so I’d rather do without the extra butter seal.(I understand that final step is for preserving the salmon but that method was used in the pre-refrigerator days though..)
Thanks!
Tony, I’ve been making these rillettes for years and Although you could skip the butter seal, O wouldn’t, especially if you’re going to serve to company. It looks classic, it helps the rillettes keep their shape, helps it develop flavors/last longer, and since it hardens on the top and is removed, you won’t be consuming the extra butter. I use prepackaged ghee as a shortcut. Also, I have found that making half this recipe is enough to serve about 8 people. When you half the recipe it doesn’t seem like a ton of butter anymore (one stick plus what is needed to seal.) If you look at it that way, it works out to about a tablespoon of butter per serving. Not so bad 🙂
I made this without the egg … my guests adored it and probably did not know the difference.
Oh yes!! this is very good. Thank you for sharing.
I’d like to make this for Christmas gifts. Can you tell me please if this be frozen?
For the steamed salmon, do you dice like the smoked salmon, fork shred, or sort of mash into the rest of the ingredients? I’ve made sausage, pate, and other blended appetizers – this looks like it has more texture? I’m already envisioning this for an upcoming special occasion. Tks!
This is awesome for special occasions! I usually kind of roughly chop/ dice the steamed salmon but let it crumble while mixing it all together. It’s mostly about your preferred texture but I love it rustic and not too smooth.
I hope you love it!