Smoked Cream Cheese

There is nothing better than a delicious, warm, cheesy dip that begs you to find something to scoop it up with. This easy Smoked Cream Cheese Recipe is an easy appetizer with many flavor options and only two simple ingredients!

Smoking a block of cream cheese has officially become a thing. It has become very popular on Instagram Reels and among home hobby smokers.

I love melty, creamy, cheesy dips. I had to give this a try and see what spin I could put on this. A yummy cream cheese appetizer served with chips, crackers, or veggies is always a hit at parties.

Make sure to try this creamy Chili Cheese Cream Cheese Dip next! It is a perfect appetizer for a crowd.

Ingredients

Ingredients are simple. Get an 8-ounce block of cream cheese and your favorite spices.

• Cream Cheese Blocks - For the best flavor, you do want a full-fat cream cheese without a lot of preservatives. That said, any bricks of cream cheese or low-fat cream cheese (aka Neufchatel cheese) will work for this. I highly recommend not using fat-free cream cheese. That will not soften properly.
• Dry Rub - Any rub you think would taste good will work for this recipe. Try it with your favorite BBQ rub to highlight the smoky flavor.

How to Make Smoked Cream Cheese

Step One: Unwrap your cream cheese block, place it on a piece of foil, and put it in the freezer for 10 minutes. Since smoke is better absorbed through cold meat, I figured the same with the cream cheese, it also allowed the cheese to firm up and make it easier to prep.

Step Two: Add the dry rub of your choice.

What dry rubs go on smoked cream cheese?

Because I was doing two different ones, I cut the 8-ounce brick of cream cheese in half and covered them in rubs on separate pieces of foil. For the first one, I used a favorite spicy taco seasoning. It uses cayenne pepper as the source of heat. It also includes salt, garlic, onion, and paprika.

In the second one, I mixed even parts of salt, smoked paprika, and dehydrated honey for sweetness. I coated both half blocks of cream cheese with the rubs. I coated every side and the bottom as well.

Step Three: Next, I made shallow slits into the top with a sharp knife. This makes a nice presentation, but also for a practical sense, it makes it easier for your guests to dive into it with their crackers when trying to dip and serve themselves. The crack expands as they smoke and show off the gooey cheesy goodness inside.

Step Four: Smoke the cream cheese in a pellet grill or smoker with wood chips at 200 for 1 hour. If your pellet smoker has a super smoke setting you can use that for extra smoke flavor. I used a combination of hickory and cherry pellets in my Traeger grill.

Step Five: Serve the cream cheese dip with your favorite crackers, tortilla chips, pita chips, or veggies.

Variations

• Dessert - To make a dessert version simply coat the cream cheese with white sugar, brown sugar, honey, or your favorite sugar-free sweetener. Cinnamon is a great addition and you could even use premade cinnamon sugar. You can serve with fruit like apple slices, cannoli shells, or cinnamon pita chips.
• Pepper Jelly - Serving pepper jelly on cream cheese is a classic easy sweet and savory appetizer. For this variation just smoke the cream cheese without any seasonings added and add the pepper jam once it's cooked.
• Mexican - Sprinkle the scored cheese liberally with taco seasoning. I prefer to use one without any added salt and then add salt to taste. Once it is done smoking serve with tortilla chips and a side of salsa.
• Ranch - Coat the cream cheese with a blend of onion powder, garlic powder, dried dill, parsley, salt, and pepper for a great ranch flavor. Top with sliced green onions when it is ton.
• Everything Bagel Seasoning - This one is a fave in my house. Use it liberally and then serve with bagel chips to dip.
• Bacon - You can top with cooked crumbled bacon after cooking or even mix some into softened cream cheese, let it firm up again in the fridge, and then smoke it. Or try topping it with bacon jam!

Common Questions

How to Serve Smoked Cream Cheese

• Bagels - Many people like regular cream cheese on bagels. You can kick that up and put this soft smoked cheese on that fresh bagel instead.
• Crackers - Serve it with ritz crackers as an appetizer.
• Tortilla Chips - Tortilla chips are great especially if you go with Mexican seasoning.
• Baguette - Thinly slice the baguette, brush with olive oil, and grill for a minute or two on each side.
• Raw Veggies - For a low carb option simply serve with some raw veggies such as red peppers, carrots, celery, cucumber slices, thinly sliced zucchini, or broccoli.

How do you Store Smoked Cream Cheese

Even when you smoke cream cheese, it still needs to be refrigerated just like regular cream cheese. Place the leftovers in an airtight container or bowl and cover them with plastic wrap. The plastic wrap should touch the top of the cheese so that it prevents any moisture from getting to the cheese.

Can I Freeze Cream Cheese?

It is possible to freeze cream cheese. Be sure to wrap it with plastic wrap and then place it in the freezer. There are two ways that you can use frozen cream cheese: either leave it in the freezer and allow it to thaw, or put it in the refrigerator for two days before using. Cream cheese freezes ok but not perfect. If the texture is off after thawing you can process it in a food processor until it is smooth again. It will still work great as a dip.

Recipe

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Originally Published on February 3, 2022. Revised and Republished on November 6, 2025.