5 seafood appetizer recipes

Seafood starters and appetizers are an elegant way to welcome guests to a sophisticated dinner. There’s no end to the variety of different ingredients that you can experiment with, and we’ve shared our favorite seafood appetizer ideas below from grilled scallops to tuna carpaccio. Discover the best seafood appetizers in our round-up of dishes that are guaranteed to start your dinner party off with a bang and impress your guests from the very first taste. 

Prawn and fennel chowder

When looking for inspiration for appetizers with seafood, a traditional chowder is a classic place to start. A prawn and fennel chowder is a refined appetizer and twist on a classic chowder recipe. The fennel brings a light, delicate, aromatic flavor to the chowder, whilst the prawns add texture and color. It’ll take around an hour to make, but you can prepare this recipe ahead of your guests’ arrival and leave to simmer on the stove until you’re ready to serve. 

Grilled scallops are one of the tastiest seafood dishes around. Sweet, buttery, and tender, there’s not much to dislike about a perfectly grilled scallop. And when paired with creamy avocado dip, it’s truly irresistible. Try our grilled scallops with avocado dip recipe, for a stylish start to the meal. Add your avocado dip to the bottom of a small glass, and then balance the skewered grilled scallops on top. You can prepare the sauce ahead of time, and place it into the fridge a couple of hours before guests arrive. Introducing a dollop of crème fraîche to your avocado dip will bring a welcome tartness to balance out the sweetness of the grilled scallops. Once guests are ready for their starters, the scallops only need a couple of minutes searing on each side, so they can be quickly prepared and handed round. Simple to make, this is one of our favorite easy seafood appetizers. 

Tuna carpaccio is a fantastic and special dish that looks much harder to make than it actually is. This one is all in the presentation and the quality of the tuna, so try to source your tuna from your local fishmongers if you can. The art to a spectacular carpaccio is to slice your meat or seafood evenly and very thinly. You want to aim for very thin, rectangular sliced tuna that all looks beautifully uniform when on the plate. For an inviting and elegant carpaccio, tuna carpaccio with avocado mayonnaise is full of flavor. We’ve also suggested in the recipe shared that you apply your avocado mayonnaise to the tuna via a thin nozzled sauce bottle, so you have complete control over the style and placement of the tuna mayonnaise. A sprinkling of scallions brings a final color pop to the plate as a fresh and tasty garnish. 

Fish cakes are often reserved for the main course, but they can be a really inviting starter as a smaller portion, or canapé-style size. Fish cakes with herbs are a brilliant starter and incredibly easy to make. You can also make the fish cake mixture ahead of time and leave in the fridge until you’re ready to cook the cakes once guests have arrived. They’ll only take around eight minutes in total to cook and you can squeeze a few into the pan at the same time. In the recipe shared, we’ve suggested making these fish cakes with haddock, but you can of course substitute in other fish like salmon if preferred. Whichever fish you opt for, lemon juice is a must-have ingredient as the zesty citrus notes enhance the flavor of the fish in the cakes. Either create these cakes as a starter portion or make mini fish cakes to hand out whilst guests enjoy a welcome drink. 

If you’re looking for a dip that’s slightly different to the expected tzatziki or sour cream and chive, then a hot crab dip is a fun twist on a dip for appetizers. It’s best to make this one with fresh crab meat, and it’s worth a trip to your local fishmongers or fish counter to ensure you start with the best produce available. Add all of the ingredients to the food processor, apart from the crabmeat, and then fold in the crabmeat after you’ve blended to your liking. Elements like Tabasco sauce and sherry help to bring out the flavors of the crab meat, and add a kick to the dip. This recipe also features ingredients like Dijon mustard, Worcestershire sauce, and parmesan cheese, for a dip that’s full to the brim with flavor. A dash of chives and a sprinkle of paprika are the perfect garnishes. Serve alongside fresh toasted pita bread or crackers for a delicious seafood appetizer.