Cedar Plank Salmon - disaster averted...


 

BrianCal

TVWBB Pro
Ok, so we decided to try our hand at Cedar Plank Salmon, found what looked like a nice recipe on Allrecipes.com
Vegetable oil, rice vinegar, sesame oil, soy sauce, green onions, grated ginger root and minced garlic. Marinated for about an hour, soaked the plank for about 2 hours.

20170318_205616_zpsha9bicb2.jpg


- - - Updated - - -

Preheated the plank for just a few minutes, and I must say, my back deck smelled amazing....

20170318_205819_zpsuqash2gq.jpg
 
Now, where the near disaster happened is that after about 5 minutes, the plank was ablaze. Didn't get a picture, was more focused on getting a cup of water to douse the flames, but here is the aftermath.

The good news is that it didn't affect the filets, but the plank was a little crispy, lol.

20170318_210907_zpsgp5uxv8u.jpg
 
Here they are resting, with what is left of the plank......BTW, any advice here ? Should I have soaked longer? Did I maybe have the heat too high ?

20170318_212149_zpswlxlke8a.jpg
 
Here are the results, plated with some Ginger Garlic Brussel Sprouts, and Hasselbeck potatoes. The good news, everything, especially the salmon, was delicious !!!

20170318_213132_zpsbkfwplfb.jpg
 
Wow. Amazing stuff. You know why don't you: you got the wrong plank! That plank is specifically designed for "Cajun Blackened Salmon" :cool:

Glad it worked out for you in any case:)
 
You lucked out on that one. Two hours should have been long enough for the plank, maybe to much heat or the vegetable oil from the marinade caught fire, hard to say.
 
.....I had to chuckle at this post, Brian, 'cuz every time I see someone doing planked salmon, it reminds me that we used roof shingles as kindling in the fireplace when I was growing up (we took our roof off in '76, and let me tell you, those things didn't need much encouragement to light up hot and fast!!) ;) Ok, having said that, sorry that you had a little miscue, but your end result looks great! Nice dinner you had there.

R
 
Great recovery! It seems we all have to avert disaster at times. I've never cooked on a plank so I don't have any advice there. I love your marinade. Sounds tasty. I'm glad dinner turned out well!
 
Thanks for the suggestions.....they were definitely submerged, had a bowl on top of them. But the high heat seemed to dry it out pretty quickly, I agree that is the likely cause. But I did like the "flame broiled" effect.

Was raining so I was too lazy to fire up the Performer, next time I will use that and go indirect.

I had heard that planks are re-useable, thinking maybe not so much on this one.....
 
Nice save!
I'm allergic to Cedar,(so I don't use it for cooking but have to work with it ) but it is an outdoor wood and soaking it for 2 days or 2 hours wont make make a difference because it wont soak up water like a pine.
I'm with the others indirect instead of direct.

Tim
 
I preheat my soaked planks over direct heat to get them smoking BEFORE I add the salmon. Once I add the salmon, I move the planks to indirect heat (no flame under it). I get 4 to 6 salmon cooks on a single plank before they are used up. I have gone to Alder wood planks, rather than cedar. A much milder, sweeter smoke smell.
 
Brian;
I often cook planked salmon on my Performer. I dump a full lit chimney of Kingsford Original charcoal in the Performer and spread it equally over the charcoal grate. I let it heat with the lid closed for five minutes. I then clean the food grate and apply a soaked Cedar Plank in the center (or two if I am cooking for a crowd). I put the plank on, food side down, for two minutes by the clock. This sterilizes the soaked plank, then flip the plank. I have the vents wide open. When the plank starts smoking with the lid down, I open the lid, and put the salmon on the plank. It IS a good idea to have a spray bottle of water handy (just in case the plank catches fire although that has not been a problem for me). I cook the salmon from 7.5 minutes for steelhead up to 20.0 minutes for a thick salmon filet. Thickness determines the time of the cook. I just cook until the salmon can be flaked easily with the tongs.

The salmon or steelhead is placed on the plank skin side down. When it just begins to flake you can also slip a spatula between the skin and the meat. I use a rub sold at Gordon Food Service - their own salmon rub. I put a bit of EVOO on the salmon to hold the rub. The salmon is near wonderful both hot and cold.

I watch my cook carefully. If it starts to smoke to heavily, just turn the heat down. You want to see smoke so it bathes the food with that delicious smoke. If it smokes heavily that's a sign it's about to catch fire. That's the key - just watch the smoke and adjust the heat accordingly. Many don't really get the full benefit because they don't understand the benefits of smoke, fully.

Here's an older cook:
http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?41879-Steelhead-on-the-grill&highlight=salmon+plank

Here's one with cod on a plank:
https://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?43267-Cod-Filets-on-a-Plank&highlight=salmon+plank

FWIW
Dale53
 
Last edited:
I buy my salmon already planked at the local Supermarket, using my 26" kettle I can put 4 planks on the grill, using a full chimney i'll use half the grill for the fire and the cool side for the salmon, in about 15/20 minutes the salmon is cooked to perfection, the plank edges just start to show burn marks.
 

 

Back
Top