Taramasalata and Smoked Cod's Roe Recipes

Taramasalata is a Greek dip made by blending cured fish roe with bread or potato, lemon and oil. Smoked cod's roe makes a smoky variation, but it also works simply spread on buttered toast: start with the right prepared roe, remove its membrane and let its saltiness guide the seasoning.

What are tarama and taramasalata?

Tarama is the salted, cured fish roe, not the finished dip. Greek cookery writer Diane Kochilas identifies carp, cod and mullet roe as ingredients used for tarama; they are alternatives, not three ingredients that must be combined. Read the fish description on the pack rather than assuming that every preparation contains cod.

Taramasalata, also written taramosalata, is the prepared spread. Bread and potato are both established bases, and Kochilas describes household and regional variations rather than one compulsory formula. The bread-based recipe below includes onion, while her published potato version uses dill and pink peppercorns, additions she explicitly describes as non-traditional.

Choose cured tarama intended for this preparation, or smoked cod's roe explicitly suitable for eating without further cooking. Fresh, uncooked roe is not an interchangeable ingredient in these cold recipes. For the distinctions between preparations, see fresh, smoked and cured cod roe; dried mullet roe belongs to the separate subject of bottarga and related cures.

Why is some taramasalata pink?

Undyed taramasalata need not be completely white. My Greek Dish describes its natural appearance as light beige to pale pink, depending on the roe used. Kochilas also distinguishes dyed pink tarama from the undyed variety sold in Greece. A commercial dip made with dyed tarama can therefore be pink because of that colouring.

Do not identify an added colour, a fish species or the amount of roe from appearance alone. For a packaged dip, read the ingredient list: a pink shade is not a reliable substitute for that information. Our guide to naturally coloured fish roes explains the wider distinction.

For prepacked foods, the relevant colour declarations are:

These are ingredient labelling rules, not a list of colours authorised for every food. The EU, Great Britain and US have separate authorisation systems.

Bread-based taramasalata recipe

This follows the bread-based recipe published by My Greek Dish. Lemon and onion quantities follow My Greek Dish's original recipe.

Makes: 6 portions.
Time: 15 minutes.
Roe per person: approximately 16.7 g for six portions.
Equipment: food processor, bowl, grater, measuring jug and spatula.
Allergens: fish and wheat; check the bread for additional allergens.

Ingredients

• 100 g pale, cured cod roe sold as tarama and suitable for eating without further cooking
• 300 g stale white bread, crusts removed
• 170 to 180 ml olive oil
• Juice of 2 lemons
• 1 medium red onion, grated
• Water for soaking the bread

Method

1. Soak the bread in water, then squeeze it thoroughly.
2. Process the bread, onion and tarama into a smooth pulp. Add half the lemon juice and blend again.
3. With the machine running, introduce the oil gradually, a little at a time, allowing each addition to disappear into the mixture.
4. Taste, then blend in more lemon juice as needed. Scrape into a bowl and serve with bread.

Getting the emulsion right

An emulsion is a mixture in which tiny droplets of one liquid are dispersed through another. Here, gradual oil addition is the useful principle: do not pour the entire jug into the processor at once. Chef David Cook uses the same mayonnaise-like approach in his smoked roe preparation, adding water afterwards to adjust the consistency.

Keep your attention on the mixture rather than treating the oil quantity as a target to add as quickly as possible. Scrape down the bowl when necessary so that unprocessed bread or onion is not left around the sides. The intended result is a smooth, spreadable dip, not visible bread crumbs suspended in oil.

If you prefer a potato base, follow a complete potato recipe rather than replacing the bread gram for gram. Kochilas's version processes cooked potatoes with tarama and lemon, then incorporates oil slowly. That is a different formula, not simply the bread recipe with one ingredient exchanged.

Smoked cod's roe on lemon-buttered toast

Smoked cod's roe is cod roe that has been smoked. Check the pack to make sure it is suitable for eating without further cooking. This preparation is adapted from Scottish smokehouse Inverawe's published recipe. The butter is flavoured separately, leaving the roe itself as the topping rather than blending everything into another dip.

Serves: 4.
Time: 20 minutes, as stated by the source.
Roe per person: 31.25 g, calculated as 125 g divided by four.
Equipment: bowl, fork, fine grater, knife and toaster or grill.
Allergens: fish, milk and wheat; check the bread for additional allergens.

Ingredients

• 125 g smoked cod's roe suitable for eating without further cooking
• 100 g unsalted butter, softened
• 30 ml chopped fresh parsley
• 5 ml crushed black peppercorns
• Finely grated zest of 1 small lemon
• 4 slices bread

Method

1. Peel away the roe's outer membrane and discard it. If it will not lift away neatly, open the sac and scrape out the roe.
2. Beat the butter with the parsley, pepper and lemon zest.
3. Toast the bread on both sides and spread it with the flavoured butter.
4. Spread the prepared roe over the toast, or serve it separately for diners to add. Cut the toast into fingers if preferred.

The source specifies unsalted butter and adds no salt because the roe supplies it. Keep that distinction when preparing the dish: salted butter changes the balance before the topping reaches the toast.

Two more ways to use smoked cod's roe

For a whipped spread without butter, chef David Cook's recipe combines smoked roe with soaked pitta, garlic, lemon, sunflower oil and olive oil. He removes the membrane first, incorporates the oils gradually and finishes with water to loosen the mixture. He serves it with toast, crispbread or raw fennel, cucumber and celery.

For an egg-based dish, Richard Bainbridge pairs thinly sliced smoked cod's roe with a cooked savoury egg custard, maple cream and chilli oil. This restaurant preparation combines smoked cod's roe with savoury egg custard and maple cream. Neither recipe card on this page contains raw egg.

Balancing salt and serving the dip

Season the finished mixture, not each component independently. Cured roe already brings salt, and My Greek Dish advises adjusting an overly salty taramasalata with additional bread, oil and lemon; this changes the proportions rather than removing salt from the bowl. Additions should therefore be gradual, with tasting between them.

For serving, my suggestion is to begin with plain bread and unsalted vegetables before adding other salty accompaniments. This makes it easier to judge the dip itself. Put out a modest bowl first and replenish it from the fridge rather than placing the entire batch on the table.

Taramasalata also has a place beyond the everyday dip selection. Greek writer Elena Paravantes describes it among the foods eaten on Clean Monday, the beginning of Orthodox Lent, alongside lagana bread, olives and other dishes.

Keeping and handling

Follow the roe producer's use-by date, refrigeration instructions and directions after opening. Mixing roe with bread, butter or lemon does not restart its storage life. Keep utensils clean and return the prepared dishes to refrigeration promptly rather than relying on their saltiness.

For home refrigeration, UK Food Standards Agency guidance specifies 0 to 5°C (32 to 41°F); US guidance specifies 4°C (40°F) or below. The FSA's general leftovers advice is to eat them within 48 hours, but this is not a validated shelf life for either recipe: follow any shorter ingredient instruction. US guidance limits unrefrigerated perishable food to two hours, or one hour above 32°C (90°F).

Cold-smoked and cured fish require particular care for vulnerable diners. UK FSA and FSS advice tells pregnant people and those with weakened immunity to avoid ready-to-eat cold-smoked or cured fish; US pregnancy guidance similarly advises against refrigerated smoked seafood unless incorporated into a thoroughly cooked dish. These cold preparations do not provide that cooking step.

Where to go next

• Roe Recipes: find other preparations organised around the roe being used.
• Fish Roe Explained: Beyond Sturgeon: understand the ingredients behind different roe dishes.