Planked Fish

Hi,

Today I finally smoked my salmon marinating it in criolla ajo rather than the brown sugar rub. It cooked in 90 minutes with the crunchy edges being especially good. I'm thinking next time I will place the salmon closer to the edge rather than centering it, to promote these crunchy edges.

You know how you haven't thought of something in a long time, then hear or see it everywhere. Last night I had a discussion with my Dad about the salmon I was planning to smoke. He was hoping it would taste as good as planked Salmon we had in Seattle in 1976. Meanwhile today, I gave some Salmon to Erik M when I met up with him for lunch. He also started ruminating about planked fish from the west coast. Erik's recollection was it was Cedar planks, I remembered something else but couldn't recall until 5 minutes after we parted: Alder wood.

When I went to:

The BBQ Pit
925 W. Armitage Avenue
Chicago, IL 60614
773-348-3271 (Mon-Sat: 9

That's Alder wood (not Elder). Alder is the traditional wood used to smoke salmon in the Pacific NW...mainly because they are so plentiful out there (the trees as well as the fish). When I lived out there, we used to cook the salmon in a foil packet over an open pit along with some sliced onions and blackberrys, Nez Perce Indian Style.

The way you kill a fire is by depriving it of oxygen, no? Close all the vents up tight and while the WSM is not terribly airtight, it should die out pretty quickly.

I still can recall the planked (cedar) trout I had at NOLA (an Emeril spot) in New Orleans. Delicious. I think all of the salmonids take kindly to planking.

(FYI, I believe it is Nez Perce and not Nez Pierce)

Here's what one site selling planks says:

"On a barbecue set to medium-high, these Grilling Planks will smoke, char and deliver a richly flavored and moist entree.

Mike G wrote:The way you kill a fire is by depriving it of oxygen, no? Close all the vents up tight and while the WSM is not terribly airtight, it should die out pretty quickly.

Yeah, you have a point. In my limited experience Saturday, slowing the fire during cooking wasn't working very well. This fire was so darn hot, I never put the hamburgers in the middle. Everything was placed on the edge and cooking fast. Our balancing act succeeded in that we didn't have charred exteriors and raw interiors. However, we could never quite get even a medium cook, everything ultimately came out well cooked, luckily juicy rather than dry. I guess we caught it in time.

All the grilling experts recommended 'the let it burn itself out' method after being unimpressed with trying to slow the heat by closing vents during cooking.

In the back of my mind, I had visions of all these happy mushroomers cheerfully waving good-bye from their cars while I babysat a hot grill. Fortunately, our guest mycologist (who is speaking Tuesday night - see events board) loves to teach. He just kept talking as long as anyone was interested. So I had lots of company fortunately.

I will try what you suggested by shutting everything down on my patio next time.

Shutting the vents does indeed shutdown the fire, but the coals can continue to smolder for a very long time. I think with the timeframe Cathy2 was shooting for leaving after the cooking was done and the available options the "burn it fast" option might have been the best. I know folks that have portable BBQ's that address this issue by bringing a metal container (one uses the bottom carcass of a Smokey Joe that met it's maker), an implement for scooping the coals, and water. That way they can avoid adding the water to the hot interior of the grill and avoid potential damage (your WSM's porcelain coating might not like repeated procedures like that) by instead dousing the coals in a 'junk' can. Using that method then I think shutting the vents to slow the coal burn is the right call.

Cathy,

I often plank salmon here in Seattle. I usr storebought cedar planks most of the time. Alder is also good. Some like it better than cedar. We can buy the planks in packs of four here at the grocery store. I guess they may not be available there. Cedar planks from the lumberyard would be fine so long as they are NOT treated, of course.

I just cook mine on my Weber kettle. Easy. Just get a hot fire going while you soak your plank in water for about 30 mins to an hour. Put the plank on the grill and let it heat til it starts smokin' nicely then just put the fish on top of the plank with whatever marinade or sauce you like. Cook it till its done.

Perfect salmon.

Kman wrote:I still can recall the planked (cedar) trout I had at NOLA (an Emeril spot) in New Orleans. Delicious. I think all of the salmonids take kindly to planking.

(FYI, I believe it is Nez Perce and not Nez Pierce)

You are correct. I typed the i by accident. I'll edit my post.

Cathy: You can buy cedar planks at the lumber yard.Just be sure they are untreated! They are fun to cook with.

Hi,

So what is the optimal thickness for these planks? I have seen 3/8 and 3/4 inch thick just looking around. Stock sizes seem to be 7x16 inches.

From what I am gathering, these are used once only for cooking, then used again directly on the coals for smoking vegetables similar to wood chips.

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Thanks for the tips on driving down the fire. I have seen in the past, where they had garbage cans dedicated to hot coals. Maybe even a coffee can in a pinch could work to deposit and finish extinguishing the coals. I was worried about damaging the enamel skin, but frankly more worried about being left behind in a forest preserve. I think someone would have stayed but the creepiness element does elevate when you are by yourself.

Also I think I need to learn a bit more about grilling using this wood charcoal. It is certainly a hotter fire than the brickets.

Higher temperatures create more smoke -- and flavor. On a barbecue set to medium-high, Grilling Planks will smoke, char and deliver a richly flavored and moist entree. On gas grills, the heat can be easily adjusted to create a sweeter smoke (low setting) and give each plank two or more uses. Charcoal grills may char on the first use. But it's not over yet. After the plank has charred and blistered, crumble it up and let pieces fall to the bottom of the grill and reuse them as seasoned smoking chips. Absolutely wonderful when grilling vegetables. I have used 3/8 and 3/4 inch thick planks.