Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad with Creamy Dill Dressing- a fast and hearty entree salad that makes for a delicious lunch or dinner main. 

 Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad with butter lettuce and creamy Dill Dressing. Fast and easy, this hearty entree salad makes for a delicious lunch or dinner main. 

This Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad with Creamy Dill Dressing reminds me a little of my favorite bagel, but in a bowl over healthy greens. Butter lettuce is a lovely carrier for the dressing, but Little Gems or Romaine hearts work well here too.  Cucumbers or radishes add a delicious crunch and capers add some satisfing depth.

But what I love best about this Salmon Salad is the addition of thinly shaved fennel bulb- so refreshing and crunchy while adding a subtle anise flavor. So delicious with salmon!

If you can track down sunflower sprouts, they are such a treat- add a tasty nutty flavor.

 Creamy Dill Dressing

The Creamy Dill Dressing is easy to make and has great flavor- but if you’de rather stick with a lower calorie or dairy-free option, simply toss with olive oil, lemon juice, fresh dill, salt and pepper. But I find, especially in winter, I personally crave a richer dressing.

This dressing also makes a tasty dip for veggies.

Creamy Dill Dressing  Recipe

The Salmon Salad recipe makes two hearty entree-sized portions – but the dressing is enough for four – so you’ll end up with a little extra dressing- perfect for dipping veggies into.

I like to use a drier style smoked salmon for this recipe- not like lox which is cured.

Smoked trout is also good here.

Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad with butter lettuce and creamy Dill Dressing. Fast and easy, this hearty entree salad makes for a delicious lunch or dinner main. #salad #salmonsalad

Keeping it short and sweet this week. Enjoy the Salmon Avocado Fennel Salad, and let us know what you think.

xoxo

Sylvia

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Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad with butter lettuce and creamy Dill Dressing. Fast and easy, this hearty entree salad makes for a delicious lunch or dinner main. #salad #salmonsalad

Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 12 reviews
  • Author: Sylvia Fountaine
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Total Time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 2 1x
  • Category: salad, fish recipe,
  • Method: tossed
  • Cuisine: Northwest

Description

Smoked Salmon, Avocado and Fennel Salad with Creamy Dill Dressing. Fast and easy, this hearty entree salad makes for a delicious lunch or dinner main.


Ingredients

Units Scale

Creamy Dill Dressing (4 servings) or substitute Creamy Herby Hemp Seed dressing (using dill for the herb)

  • 1/3 cup mayo
  • 1/3 cup sour cream
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 2 garlic cloves-finely minced- use a garlic press
  • 1/3 cup fresh dill, chopped
  • 1/4 heaping teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper

Salad ( 2 entree-sized servings)

  • 1 head butter lettuce (or little gems or romaine or other mix), leaves torn
  • 1 Turkish cucumber, sliced ( or 23 radishes)
  • 1/2 a fennel bulb, thinly sliced
  • 46 ounces smoked salmon (dry smoked rather than lox) or smoked trout
  • 1/81/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
  • 2 tablespoons capers
  • 1 avocado, sliced
  • Sunflower sprouts, more dill, Everything Bagel Spice – all optional

Instructions

Make the dressing: Place dressing ingredients (except dill) in a bowl or jar and whisk until smooth , then mix  in the dill. Set aside. Dressing will make enough for 2 batches of salad ( 4 salads) so save the rest in the fridge. Also great for dipping and veggie platters.

Make the salad: Place the lettuce, fennel bulb, cucumber, smoked salmon, red onion and capers in a big bowl. Toss, then add enough dressing to coat- about half of what you made, tossing gently.

Taste for salt and pepper, adding more to taste. You can either toss in the avocado and sprouts at this point, or divide the salad and use them as garnish.

Garnish: If garnishing with the avocado, sprinkle with salt and pepper or Everything Bagel Spice.


Notes

If going for a leaner version, simply dress the salad with olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, salt and pepper, tasting as you go. Be sure to add fresh dill to the salad mix. Or try the Creamy Vegan Herby Hemp Dressing (using dill)

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 2 salads
  • Calories: 538
  • Sugar: 6.8 g
  • Sodium: 615 mg
  • Fat: 40.7 g
  • Saturated Fat: 7 g
  • Carbohydrates: 27.6 g
  • Fiber: 15.8 g
  • Protein: 24.1 g
  • Cholesterol: 48.7 mg

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Comments

  1. I am trying to sneak in a question here, because I don’t see a Q&A option. Have you experimented with the stalks of fennel. I am always a little frustrated to toss them, but haven’t really found anyone that uses them for anything more than the fronds as garnish. Thanks. ( I will definitely give this recipe a try!)

    1. Hi Joseph- I hear you! I often use them like celery in soups and also toss them in a veggie discard bag kept in the freezer for making broth.

  2. Wow. Was this ever good! Your flavour combinations are always so fresh and tasty, and your recipes are a joy to read. I also used cold cooked salmon and yogurt as I had no sour cream, but next time I’ll try it with smoked salmon because I know it’ll be amazing.






  3. This was delicious with buttercrunch lettuce and fennel from my CSA farm share! I used cold grilled salmon and subbed yogurt for the sour cream. Perfect early summer meal!






  4. I love the dill with fennel! It’s not a combination I would have thought of. I made this with smoked salmon with a cracked pepper glaze and it added just the right spark.

  5. I have made this salad – it was fabulous! Served without the salmon (lol!) but was a wonderful side salad – served to 6 men and everyone raved about it.






  6. This recipe has so many of my favorites: smoked fish, shaved fennel, fresh dill, capers and adaptations for a lactose free version! It is next up on my list as we move into summer! Thanks for what I know will be another great recipe!

  7. I just bought some fennel to make this salad. I like to make a similar dressing and use Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. I have also not always had dill and the dressing is lovely with just some fresh parsley.






  8. This is such a quick, but delicious, lunch or light summer dinner, and the dressing is a go-to for all kinds of other dishes, especially since the dill in my garden has gone into overdrive! Thanks for another tasty recipe.






  9. Feeling too lazy to cook after a long day of work, I thought I’d give this salad a go. It pulled together in less than 10 minutes and the aromas and flavors were rewarding and restorative. I used shallot instead of onion (was the same size as my fennel bulb, both sliced thin), tossed chopped fresh dill right into the greens and then topped with the Creamy Vegan Herby Hemp Dressing (I added about 1/4 cup olive oil to make it less thick).

    I cook from your recipes weekly and I’m usually too harried to comment, but this salad was remarkable! Thank you!






  10. This was delicious – like every other recipe I have made on this blog! I did not include the salmon as I was serving with whole lobster and lemon rice. Got many compliments from my guests specifically about how great the salad was! Thanks, Sylvia – you always make me look like a star! 😉






  11. Such a great salad! I made it as written, with delicious Oregon smoked salmon, and it was perfect for a warm summer evening…wonderful textures and flavors. It complemented the grape gazpacho, also with dill, that we had along with it. Thank you!






  12. Yummy salad! We put the leftover dill dressing on a “kiwiburger” which we learned about on a recent trip to New Zealand. A kiwiburger is a beef patty with cheese, beet slices, and a fried egg. We skipped the egg and smothered it in dill sauce and OMG! It’s our new favorite! Beets and your dill sauce are the best burger toppings!!






  13. This was wonderful. The fellas LOVED the creamy dressing. I went with the vinaigrette version and preferred it. Either way it was fabulous. I fried the capers and tossed in some sunflower seeds for a little crunch. Very nice. Thank you, Sylvia!






    1. Hi Lynn, there is a local grower there in Spokane who has a greenhouse. In the past they have sold at Huckleberries, My Fresh Basket even Super one. I would call around! I’m not in town now or I would tell you specifically.

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