Costco Hot Smoked Salmon + Amazing Serving Suggestions

Costco-Hot-Smoked-Salmon-Kirkland-Signature

Kirkland Signature Hot Smoked Salmon at Costco

Costco sells their Kirkland Signature Hot Smoked Salmon with a touch of honey for $13.99 a pound. The Kirkland Signature Hot Smoked Salmon can be found in the refrigerated deli area near the other smoked salmonhealthy noodles, and the sausages. 

 

Check out our full Costco Smoked Salmon Guide for reviews, price comparisons, and rankings.

Kirkland-Signature-Hot-Smoked-Salmon

Costco’s hot smoked salmon is sold in packages ranging in weight from 0.7 pounds to 1 full pound. The smoked salmon is fully cooked and ready to eat!

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Kirkland Signature Smoked Salmon with a Touch of Honey

Costco’s hot smoked salmon is crafted from Atlantic salmon that has been brined and then glazed with honey. 

It is then hot smoked with hickory hardwood, creating a wonderfully rich flavor with just a touch of honey sweetness.

Costcos-Hot-Smoked-Salmon

Hot Vs Cold Smoked Salmon

There are two different ways to smoke salmon: hot and cold. Costco carries both options, which are drastically different from one another. 

In this Kirkland Signature hot smoked salmon, the salmon is smoked and cooked simultaneously. The end result is extremely flavorful salmon that is closer in texture to traditionally cooked salmon. 

Hot smoked salmon can be, and is usually, eaten cold.

Hot-Smoked-Salmon-Ingredients

Cold smoked salmon is salmon that is smoked at a lower temperature and retains its raw texture. Costco sells a cold smoked salmon slices as well as a Wild Sockeye Smoked Salmon.

Costco’s Other Honey Smoked Salmon

In the past, Costco did sell hot honey smoked Salmon from a company called Honey Smoked Fish Co. That item sold for $14.89 a pound ($1 higher than Costco’s price), but does not appear to be available at Costco any longer.

Kirkland-Signature-Smoked-Salmon-with-Honey
Kirkland Signature Hot Smoked Salmon

The Kirkland Signature Honey Smoked Salmon seems to be a direct replacement for a brand-name item that Costco no longer carries. Costco has also done the same thing with their frozen Kirkland Signature Everything Crusted Cod, which replaces Hook Line and Savor’s version of the dish.

 

Is Costco starting to introduce more and more of the Kirkland Signature brand to replace many of the name-brand food items they sell?

Costco Cost Comparison

How Much Does the Smoked Salmon at Costco Cost?

Costco sells its hot smoked salmon for $13.99 a pound. My purchase was on the smaller end at 0.7 pounds and cost $9.65 for the package. 

This is a very fair price for a piece of smoked salmon and almost in line with what raw fresh Atlantic salmon ($12.99/pound) goes for at Costco now.

Costco-Smoked-Salmon-Price

For comparison, Costco’s cold smoked Atlantic Salmon goes for the same price of $13.99, and the smoked wild Alaskan Salmon goes for $21.99. 

The $13.99 price tag for hot smoked salmon is pretty darn good.

Costco vs The Competition

Sam’s Club does sell 12 ounces of Honey Smoked Fish Company’s salmon for $12.98 or $17.38 per pound.

Target sells an 8-ounce version of the same Honey Smoked Fish Salmon for $9.99 or $20 a pound.

Costco Wins on Price

Costco’s Kirkland Signature Honey Smoked Salmon is quite the deal at $13.99 a pound. 

I wonder how much of a role the price played in Costco’s decision to sell their Kirkland Signature brand over the name Honey Smoked Fish Company.

Costco Hot Smoked Salmon - Taste Test

Appearance and texture

Visually, the hot smoked salmon looks fantastic. It’s vibrant, glistens with flavor, and is perfectly crusty. The salmon has a nice sheen that gives it the candied salmon look. 

The exterior provides a nice chewy texture.

Costco-Hot-Smoked-Salmon-with-Honey

Underneath the chewy exterior is exceptionally moist and flakey salmon. This salmon reminds me very much of traditionally cooked salmon that falls apart very easily. 

Costco-Smoked-Salmon

If the smoked salmon were warm and not in a refrigerated state, I have no doubt the salmon flakes would just fall apart. Costco’s salmon is smoked wonderfully.

Nice Smoky Flavor

For flavor, the smoke was definitely there. The salmon has a moderate but appropriate amount of smoky flavor. It doesn’t overwhelm the fish but is also very present.

Kirkland-Signature-Smoked-Salmon

I, personally, couldn’t really taste the “touch of honey.” My wife claims she can taste the honey flavor, but it wasn’t there for me. 

Companies always choose their words very carefully and favorably, and there probably is a very minuscule amount of honey.

Skin On

One bonus with this hot smoked salmon from Costco is that it has the skin on. 

This is a nice treat as Costco’s cold smoked salmon options will not include any skin, and their fresh Atlantic salmon will also be skinless.

Costco-Smoked-Salmon-Skin-On

The skin isn’t crispy as you would expect when you normally cook salmon skin, but it still brings in a lot of flavors and is very enjoyable.

Overall Taste Thoughts

Overall, this is excellent tasting hot smoked salmon. The smoke flavor combined with the salmon is fantastic. 

I ate the salmon as-is, as well as with some goat cheese and crackers. Both were great and very tasty.  

Smoked Salmon Serving Suggestions

One advantage of hot smoked salmon over cold smoked salmon is that it is a little more versatile when paired with other foods. 

Cold smoked salmon and its raw texture definitely have its place, and some great combinations can be made with it, but hot smoked salmon can essentially be used almost everywhere traditionally salmon is used as well as where cold smoked salmon is used.

Smoked-Salmon-and-Goat-Cheese-Crackers

Some of my favorite uses for hot smoked salmon would be to include it in almost any type of pasta. Creamy sauce is my personal favorite.

Hot smoked salmon is also absolutely fantastic for breakfast when combined with eggs. 

Costco-Hot-Smoked-Salmon-Breakfast

You really can use hot smoked salmon to replace traditional salmon in almost any dish. Let me know in the comments what your favorite hot smoked salmon dish is!

Kirkland Signature Hot Smoked Salmon Nutritional Information

How Many Calories in Hot Smoked Salmon

One serving of Costco’s Hot Smoked Salmon will be 2 ounces and will contain 120 calories. Those 120 calories will come from 8 grams of fat, 0 grams of carbs, and 12 grams of protein.

Kirkland-Signature-Hot-Smoked-Salmon-Nutritional-Information-and-Calories

This is a standard salmon nutritional profile and is quite excellent for what it is. The protein count is solid, and the 8 grams of fat will be fairly healthy for you.

Salmon health Benefits

Salmon fat is packed with omega-3 fatty acids, which are excellent for your overall health. Omega 3 fatty acids contribute to heart health by reducing inflammation in the arteries, maintaining blood pressure levels and even lowering cholesterol. 


Fat is a necessity for healthy living, so you might as well consume some of the most beneficial fat around with Salmon’s Omega 3 Fatty acids.

Costco Food Database User Reviews

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1 thought on “Costco Hot Smoked Salmon – Kirkland Signature”

  1. Which location or state is this salmon available I can’t find it my my Washington state area. Also do you know who makes it for costco?

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