Smoked salmon tartines are a quick an easy idea for breakfast, lunch or a snack.
But, don't leave it there, they make a perfect appetiser or canapé too!
Simple to make in minutes, and with lots of variations, this is an easy recipe for a quick and luxurious bite to eat.
Read on to see how easy these are and more ideas for your next tartines too.
Bon appétit!

Much as I love cooking, there are times when there are just not enough hours in the day for a complicated breakfast.
These tartines are perfect for Christmas morning, breakfast in bed or any time when you need a little luxury without too much fuss.
Tartine if the French term for a slice of bread. After all, at its simplest, a typical French breakfast is normally a piece of bread. It's often spread with butter or just dipped in hot chocolate.
It's now often known as an open sandwich, mostly on toasted bread, with a spreadable topping. For me, it's better than a sandwich as its less filling than a sandwich with two slices of bread.
Even better, the variations are endless!
Jump to:
🥘 Ingredients
- Bread - use a thicker sliced bread than sandwich bread so it can hold the toppings, such as a crusty loaf.
- Cream cheese - low fat or normal fat cream cheese.
- Smoked salmon - thinnly sliced, so that you can drape it over the tartine.
- Capers - pickled capers from a jar
- Lemon - fresh lemon zest for flavour, without making the cheese too runny.
- Chives - fresh chives
- Mustard - wholegrain French mustard for tang and texture.
See recipe card for quantities.
🍽 Equipment
- Sharp knife
🔪 Instructions
Slice the bread to about 1 cm or half an inch thick.
Toast both sides of the bread and allow to cool.
Mix the cream cheese with half of the chopped chives and the mustard.
Spread the cheese mixture over the toasts.
Arrange the smoked salmon over the tartine.
Garnish with the remaining chives, lemon zest and capers.
Cut into halves or quarters and enjoy!
💭 Top Tip
- If you want to serve the smoked salmon tartines as canapés, cut the bread into squares or fingers before adding the salmon, for easier cutting.
🥗 Side Dishes
Serve as a breakfast on its own or with:
Serve at a brunch gathering with:
Substitutions
- Smoked salmon - use smoked trout or anchovies instead.
- Cream cheese - use crème fraîche or soured cream as an alternative.
- Bread - slices of toasted baguettes, brown bread or Kentish huffkins would work.
📖 Variations
Although smoked salmon is delicious there are so many other variations to try.
- Goat cheese - soft goat cheese topped with Parma ham and fig slices.
- Stilton - mashed Stilton or other blud cheese topped with thin sliced beef.
- Egg - mashed with mayonnaise and topped with cress.
- Pâté - such as chicken liver parfait, topped with sliced cornichons.
- Tuna - mixed with mayonnaise and topped with cucumber slices
- Pork - pork rillettes with onion chutney.
- Herbs - use tarragon, dill or parsley in place of the chives.
- Mustard - swap for a teaspoon of creamed horseradish.
Storage
- Refrigerator - keep the tartines in the fridge for up to 3 days. However, the toast will become soft.
- Freezer - not recommended as the bread will become soft from the moisture in the cheese.
FAQs
A normal sandwich consists of two pieces of bread with a filling in the middle.
A tartine is a form of sandwich which is open, without a top layer. They are also known as open sandwiches, bread baser, bread platter and half-widge.
Let me know what you think in the comments or you can post a picture and tag me on Twitter @chezlereve, Instagram @chezlerevefrancais, or Facebook @chezlerevefrancais
More recipes using smoked salmon
More light bites to try
📋 Recipe
Smoked Slamon Tartines
Equipment
- sharp knife
Ingredients
- 4 slices white crusty bread
- 100 g cream cheese
- 150 g smoked salmon
- 2 teaspoon capers
- ½ zest of a lemon
- 1 tablespoon chives
- teaspoon wholegrain mustard
Instructions
- Slice the bread to about 1 cm or half an inch thick.
- Toast both sides of the bread and allow to cool.
- Mix the cream cheese with half of the chopped chives and the mustard.
- Spread the cheese mixture over the toasts.
- Arrange the smoked salmon over the tartine.
- Garnish with the remaining chives, lemon zest and capers.
- Cut into halves or quarters and enjoy.
Disclaimer: The nutritional information provided is approximate and is calculated using online tools. Information can vary depending on various factors, but we have endeavoured to be as accurate as possible.
Please refer to the post for detailed recipe instructions.
Food Safety
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat.
- Wash hands after touching raw meat.
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods.
- Never leave cooking food unattended'
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds.
- Always have good ventilation when using gas.
Thank you for taking the time to leave a comment. I love to read them and answer your questions. However, due to spam comments, I do have to moderate each one, so don't worry if you cannot see your comment immediately. I'll publish your comments as soon as I can.
Amanda
Thanks so much Dee. I could live off capers, so good with fish. Happy New Year! Best wishes, Amanda
dee kruse
My very favorite breakfast! I have it on a toasted bagel - never tried mustard with the cream cheese but will on New Year's Day. Always have the capers. The best treat!
Andrea
Love this recipe. I can't wait to use it for my next party.
Lauren Michael Harris
These salmon tartines will be the perfect addition to our appetizers on Christmas. I love that it's a bit "fancy" but so easy to make.
Gina
This is the perfect easy breakfast when I'm craving something savory! The mustard and capers are such a nice touch.
Jess
I was looking for a breakfast that was different than a bowl of cereal but just as easy haha. Found it!
Savita
This looks amazing, a perfect appetizer.