Print

Florida Smoked Fish Dip

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

No reviews

Smoked fish is combined with aromatics and a creamy base for a savory spread perfect for topping crackers. 

  • Author: Nicole Stover
  • Prep Time: 15
  • Chilling Time: 120
  • Total Time: 2 hours 15 minutes
  • Yield: 6-8 1x
  • Category: Appetizer
  • Method: Smoking
  • Cuisine: Floribbean

Ingredients

Scale

Florida Smoked Fish Dip

  • 2 cups, or 16 ounces smoked fish
  • 6 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
  • 1/4 cup mayonnaise
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 
  •  1/2 teaspoon hot sauce, or to taste 
  • 1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons lemon zest
  • 1/2 teaspoon seafood seasoning
  • 1 celery stalk heart, including leaves, finely chopped
  • 2 green onions, finely chopped
  • 2 tablespoons pickled jalapenos, chopped
  • Hot sauce, lemon wedges, pickled jalapenos, and crackers for serving. 
  • Paprika for garnish if desired

Smoked Mahi-Mahi

  • 1 1/2 pounds mahi-mahi, skin on
  • 1/4 cup kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar

Instructions

Florida Smoked Fish Dip

  1. Flake the fish, careful to remove any pin bones.
  2. Add the cream cheese, mayo, lemon juice and zest, hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and seafood seasoning to a bowl or a food processor. Mix to combine.
  3. Add the flaked fish to a food processor and pulse until desired texture or add to the mixing bowl and stir to cobine.
  4. If using a food processor transfer the mixture to a bowl and fold in the celery, pickled jalapenos, and green onions. If mixing in a bowl fold in the celery and green onions.
  5. Cover the fish dip and allow it to refrigerate for at least two hours, up to overnight.
  6. After chilling, taste and see if seasoning needs to be adjusted.
  7. Serve chilled with crackers, pickled jalapenos, hot sauce, and lemon wedges.

Smoked Mahi-Mahi

  1. Trim the mahi-mahi into even sized pieces. If you have thinner pieces you trimmed off they can be smoked too but will come off the smoker sooner.
  2. Mix together the kosher salt and brown sugar. 
  3. Sprinkle the salt and sugar mixture over all sides of the fish. Place it in an airtight container and allow it to refrigerate for one hour.
  4. Rinse off the fish and thoroughly pat it dry.
  5. Place the fish on a wire rack fitted into a baking sheet, flesh side up. Allow it to refrigerate overnight up to 24 hours.
  6. Preheat your smoker to 225 degrees.
  7. Place the fish skin side down directly on the grates, or on a wire baking sheet on the grates.
  8. Allow the fish to smoke until it reaches an internal temperature of 145 degrees. Thinner pieces will finish sooner. 
  9. Remove from the smoker and allow to cool.

Notes

Use your favorite variety of smoked fish for this recipe. Mullet, cobia, mahi-mahi, grouper, kingfish, amberjack, Spanish mackerel, and wahoo are all excellent choices. 

The texture of the dip will be more wet when you first make it. Once it chills the cream cheese will thicken this dip.