Salmon en Croûte. Puff Pastry Wrapped Salmon!
This puff pastry wrapped salmon, also know as salmon en croûte, is an incredible meal – easy and fancy! Buttery salmon is topped with creamed spinach and wrapped in a puff pastry crust. It’s impressive but not that difficult to make!
Welcome to our first festive meal this holiday season!
Every year when the holiday season rolls around, I love sharing a few special meals that you can make for a special occasion. Whether it’s a holiday party, a small dinner gathering or even Christmas Eve, I like making special things that really pack a punch.
In the past, I’ve shared my family’s favorite beef tenderloin recipe. This is what we’ve eaten on Christmas for many many years. I’ve also done an espresso crusted beef tenderloin with truffled risotto, a pomegranate cider pork roast with rosemary potatoes and last year I shared this crab topped salmon.
Funny story: that salmon is incredible, but I photographed the final test of the recipe during my early pregnancy with Jordan. I hadn’t told you guys I was pregnant yet! Oh my word, I was so sick, and just looking at the photos makes me cringe and feel that way. So do my christmas decorations! Isn’t that wild?
Anyway, salmon en croûte.
Let’s talk about this deliciousness.
You make some creamed spinach. Season your salmon. Throw the spinach on TOP of the salmon, then wrap the whole thing in puff pastry.
YEP.
Then bake it, until the puff pastry is golden and crisp. The salmon will be buttery and flakey inside. The creamed spinach is, well… creamed spinach. Which is delicious in itself.
It’s so easy. So GOOD. And so impressive because it looks super fancy!
But did I tell you how easy it is? It really is not difficult.
How to make the salmon en croûte:
I make the creamed spinach first. I like to use fresh baby spinach, which most people don’t do for creamed spinach. They use the frozen version. And that’s great and easy too. But fresh is so accessible and easy as well! So there’s that.
Season the salmon all over with salt and pepper. Add the creamed spinach in a layer on top of the salmon. Spread it right on!
Wrap the salmon in puff pastry, with the spinach being on top. Slice the pastry a few times for ventilation and bake that baby up.
The end result is INCREDIBLE. So flavorful, satisfying and loaded with wonderful texture.
I can’t believe how long it has taken me to make this recipe. It is a showstopper for SURE!
And while I wouldn’t prep it very far ahead of time, the great news is that you can have it prepped by the time you’re having guests over. As in, make the spinach, wrap it all up and have it ready to roast earlier in the day. How amazing is that?
On the side, you can serve some extra creamed spinach. But really any other vegetables work. Something roasted and caramelized and charred. Think broccoli and brussels. Or you could do a big greens salad drizzled with a seasonal vinaigrette!
I love that this can be a light meal (paired with a salad) or a hearty meal (as a main, made with side) and that it’s so beautiful without being fussy. It’s a must try!
Puff Pastry Wrapped Salmon
Salmon en Croûte
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 1 shallot, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 8 ounces fresh baby spinach
- kosher salt and pepper
- 4 ounces cream cheese
- 2 tablespoons parmesan cheese
- 2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1 (2 pound) salmon filet, about 1 inch in thickness
- 1 sheet of puff pastry, thawed if frozen
- 1 large egg + 1 teaspoon water, beaten together for egg wash
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the shallot and garlic with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes until slightly softened. Stir in the spinach. Cook, stirring often, until the spinach wilts. Once wilted, stir in the cream cheese until melted. Stir in the parmesan cheese and the lemon juice.
- Place the sheet of puff pastry on a baking sheet. I like to lay a bed of creamed spinach right in the center, about the size (or slightly smaller) than the salmon filet. Season the salmon all over with salt and pepper. Place it right on top of the spinach.
- Wrap up the puff pastry, folding in all sides until the salmon is covered. Gently flip it over so the seams are on the bottom. Brush the pastry all over with the egg wash - on the tops and side. Score the pastry a few times on top.
- Bake the pastry for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden and crisp on the outsides. Remove and let cool for 5 to 10 minutes. Slice and serve!
Did you make this recipe?
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I appreciate you so much!
Prettiest and SO good.
44 Comments on “Salmon en Croûte. Puff Pastry Wrapped Salmon!”
Dearest Jessica, how do you prevent the extra liquid that could ruin the pastry and make it smushy?
I boil Gold potatoes half way. Instead of spinach, I cube the potatoes and toss it with horseradish cheddar cheese. I layer it on the bottom.
I cut the salmon in 1.5″ inches to sear the skin side quickly. After deboning, I mix lightly a cup of store bought coleslaw; chopped shallots; garlic paste; herbs de Province; a dash of Cajun, chopped two unseeded fire roasted jalapeños— I add no salt whatsoever. I tuck in horseradish Cheddar cheese.
I bake it at 350F for an hour.
I’m usually receptive to comments that modify the original recipe but you’ve crossed the line. Should you think your recipe is so great then please post it as an original instead of besmirching another person’s love of food.
Sir: With all due respect, your interpretation doesn’t match my intention.
Sharing my experience doesn’t mean to put down others’ recipes let alone “love of food.”
Sorry to say I don’t think my recipe is great as this wasn’t the idea. It was simply to share my experience, nothing more and nothing else.
I don’t know how you got the idea I “crossed the line!”
You crossed the line by posting your recipe. Your arrogance prevents you from seeing what is obvious to decent people.
I for one took your post for what you said it was and not some act of arrogance.
I did not care for your recipe as it seems to be too complex an would distract from the star of the show.
Easy and Delicious
I make this but add tartar sauce between spinach and salmon…just an extra zing…really good!
Did you cut the skin off the salmon?
Yes
It’s called Caloubiac. French or sometimes Russian versions add sauted mushrooms. I sometimes added processed smoked salmon to my salmon. And serve it with a white dill sauce.
Can you put together the salmon in the puff pastry ahead of time in the morning? Then take out 1/2 hour before baking in oven. What would you serve with it rice, or potato?
Really tasty, but stuck to baking sheet. Next time would spray before. Easy meal!
I baked it on parchment paper, no sticking.
I baked it on parchment paper, no sticking. Made exactly per recipe and it was so delicious!
I made this recipe and it was a huge hit at my dinner party. The only thing I would say is a negative is I would not add the lemon juice. I made this twice and I didn’t care for the lemon juice. I also used mascarpone cheese because I’m not a fan of cream cheese. I will definitely make this again. It was so easy for a dinner party because you can do the cream spinach the day before and the salmon can be done the morning of your dinner. It only cooks for 30 minutes. So so easy and so so delicious.
Hi there! I don’t do Facebook or Instagram . This recipe looks amazing! However, having never used puff pastry, I really wish you would have told me to use one block or both??? How thin was I supposed to roll out the pastry, again depending on if I used one or two blocks??? The printed recipe says to wrap up the puff pastry ….then gently flip over so seams are on bottom. Now the spinach is on the bottom. Isn’t it supposed to be on the top where you score the pastry??? These might seem trivial but for mine to look like yours, these are important things to specify. I ended up rolling out both squares of pastry and gently flipped it over. Now it’s cooking with the spinach on the bottom!!! I just hope it bakes through all that pastry…and the spinach doesn’t stick to the baking sheet. Hope it tastes as amazing as you say because it won’t look like yours. Thx for reading.
Hi – sorry I don’t know the answer to your question about the number of blocks (I assume one? I think it’s supposed to be reasonably thin). But in terms of your second question about spinach on the bottom, you misread the instructions. It says to lay the spinach spread first, then the salmon, then wrap and flip. So the spinach should be at the top.
If the creamed spinach was on the bottom with the sealed edge, you run the risk of it along with the salmon juices making the Puff Pastry soft and soggy &/or spilling out on your baking sheet.
This was amazing. So easy – surprisingly easy!!! Will definitely make again. Looks soooooo elegant.
How many sheets of puffed pastry did you use to wrap salmon
I am a puff pastry FIEND so I like to wrap one salmon serving in one sheet of puff pastry. Last time that ended up being too much puff pastry (even for me) so I trimmed off the extra and made parmesan puff pastry twists. If you want to reduce the pastry to salmon ratio or are cooking for more than two, use a big piece of salmon and sandwich between two sheets.
This was easy to make, though I would advise that you might need to roll the puff pastry out a bit to ensure that it will wrap around your salmon. I made individual portions so that each person had a salmon puff all to themselves. it was absolutely delicious and impressive looking!
I added some capers and white wine to the spinach mixture. Turned out great. Easy recipe to follow and delicious.
I like that idea. Do you remember amounts of each?
Easy and delicious
I liked it. My only alteration was making bite sized 1.5” sized salmon in each pocket piece.
I want to try this tomorrow night. I have all the ingredients except shallot — can I use green onion or diced frozen onion instead? Has anyone tried the recipe with frozen spinach — I also have that on hand instead of fresh.
I can go to the market tomorrow but just thought I’d ask about these substitutions.
Thanks for your help.
lovely basic en croute
This was phenomenal and super easy!! I used frozen creamed spinach (cooked it first in the microwave) and prepared puff pastry.
I made this recipe tonight. It is so good that I sent the link to my sons that do the cooking at their houses. For those that cannot have dairy, I used dairy free cream cheese from Trader Joe’s and their vegan parmeasan cheese. It is definitely a repeat.
This is a great recipe that I follow exactly. It comes out really well. I’ve been making it for New Year’s Eve and Good Friday. I make a dill cream sauce with it. This is in my text box and will be for years.
I go back to this recipe time and again. Use a taste-forward salmon like sockeye; it’ll cut through the richness of the pastry and cheeses. You can even use low-fat cream cheese or whipped cheese is even better, and you won’t lose flavor. I sprinkle a little sea salt on the egg-washed pastry for a big flavor amp.
I made this about a year ago and it was really good! I can’t remember through. Should I use grated Parmesan or shredded Parmesan? Or does it not matter since it is being mixed it?
I used freshly grated parmesan. The store-bought grated stuff doesn’t have the same flavor. The Shredded has starch added to keep it from clumping and doesn’t melt as well.
This was really delicious and easy! The only trouble I had was flipping it over,but managed with 2 spatulas!
I’ve never made creamed spinach and I’ve never used it in puff pastry so I’d like to know if the bottom of the salmon gets soggy after baking? Did you remove excess moisture from the creamed spinach or use as is? Thanks!
This looked very elegant and was delicious, but — 2 lb. of salmon was way too much! No way would all that salmon fit into one sheet of puff pastry. I ended up cutting the salmon in half and using just one pound, and freezing the other pound for another time. It was plenty for 4 people.
This was so easy to make and I followed your exact recipe! They are fancy and taste so amazing. My children don’t enjoy spinach, but these were gone after the first sample. Thank you for sharing!
I saw this recipe & had recently noticed that I had what I thought was a frozen puff pastry in the freezer. I didn’t have quite enough cream cheese so added some Brie to what I had—then no Parmesan to avoid competing flavor. When I went to roll out the pastry I realized it was actually a pie crust (need to do a better job labeling). I thought all was lost, but went ahead & rolled/cut/patched the pie crust to make it work. It turned out surprisingly delicious! Not recommending the subs, but the recipe is so good that in a pinch they worked. Going to go pick up a puff pastry & do the recipes as written for next week!
I make this recipe- only have made it when we have dinner guests- tonight being the second time- I know it will be delicious ! Great, easy, yummy dinner :)
Spectacular. I cook the dinner meals. My wife does breakfast except on the weekend when I do brunch. Recently I was at a business dinner at a 5-star restaurant and my wife was at home. She picked up a frozen salmon wellington for her dinner. It went in the garbage. minimal salmon, way too much pastry and little flavor. She followed the package timing but it was dry.
To make it up I went looking for a salmon en croute recipe. Found lots but yours appealed. So easy and so delicious. I had to protect the creamed spinach from both my wife and our granddaughter. They hovered, armed with spoons, and successfully took some each time my back was turned. I think the OMG from our granddaughter says it all.
Only one tweak. The bottom pastry was a bit mushy. Next time I will pre-heat the pan in the oven while I prepare the salmon and then place the bundle on the hot pan to start the baking process.
Delicious, elegant presentation, easy to make and cost effective!
Amazing! High-end style restaurant delicious. I happen to have a salmon fillet with Mediterranean seasoning on it and used that so good so easy to make too.