Salmon - from coast to plate

Braggart

Filled the freezer earlier this year with west coast table fare...salmon, halibut, crab, prawns, rockfish and lingcod.   As always, a trip of memories that yields bounty that we can enjoy for the rest of the year.  



Here we are now with snow on the ground, no better time to dip into the deep freeze and bring out some salmon. 

Start with a simple marinade of brown sugar, maple syrup, soy sauce, lemon juice, cayenne, garlic powder and s/p. 



Marinade for a couple of hours...flipping fillets half way thru.    (Fillets look choppy underneath as we like to trim some of the fat layer off...dogs like when we trim too, for different reasons though!)



In the meantime, time to grab a cedar plank.    Not just any plank, one freshly cleaved from a coastal "shingle stump".  

"Stumpers" are guys who follow the loggers on the coast and cut the stumps that are left behind after the trees are cut and cleared.  The stumps are collected and used to make cedar shingles.   When we head to our coastal fishing destination on Haida Gwaii, we use rough logging roads to get to our rough beach camp and these shingle stumps can be found in the bush if your lucky enough.   We always pack a couple home for this very reason!



At this point the dogs are following me everywhere....they love salmon.  

Next up, trim the planks to fit the Mini Max and its also time to light the egg.   

Got caught up doing other things while the Mmax got going.  Looked at the temp on one occasion and it read 450F...thought to myself that I'd give it another 5 mins or so...and then lost track of time.   About 30 mins later when it was time to throw the fish on it read 350?   I thought it was odd until I opened the lid...it appears that I wrapped the dial!  Best guess it was over 1000 degrees?   Wow. 

I closed up all the vents and waited...

Once it got down to 550-600, on went the cedar planked salmon.  

The egg was so stoking hot the cedar burst into flame almost immediately.  

I shut the lid, and closed the vents...leaving the daisy wheel cracked a hair to keep the temp around 500.  The smoke was heavy and heavenly. 

Left the salmon on for 5 mins, and cracked the lid.   Perfect.   Pulled from the egg and served on the still smouldering plank. 

Paired with a bottle of Okanagan Gerwertz...

Add some sides (pasta with homemade rose sauce, snap peas sautéed in oil and garlic)....

And everyone was happy!  Well, almost everyone...

How we do it in the far north!

B

BIll-W221

Great writeup and an even better meal !!!!

SGH

What a great post brother. The salmon looks spectacular. I really like the homemade planks. For sheer greatness:

Legume

Fantastic.  That salmon looks great and I live he cedar story.  Killer plate of food there, you win.

theyolksonyou

Awesome post!  I'm sitting here drooling. (Like the pups)

Little Steven

Is that two Bernies?

Spaightlabs

Outstanding!!

WeberWho

Fantastic post! Enjoyed all the pics 

bgebrent

Outstanding!  Great cook!

NPHuskerFL

Nice work Yankee.  

Braggart

Little Steven said:

Is that two Bernies?

You bet.  In our humble opine, the best dogs going.   Friendly, loyal, affable, easy on the eyes...similar to us Canadians!

Little Steven

We don't slobber on, put our giant paws on and lean our hundred and fifty pound bodies on the Yanks. We don't bark like crazy when we haven't seen them in fifteen minutes or eat their dinner off the counter, at least not all the time.

Braggart

Braggart said:

Little Steven said:

Is that two Bernies?

You bet.  In our humble opine, the best dogs going.   Friendly, loyal, affable, easy on the eyes...similar to us Canadians!

Oh, and both are at home in the snow!

(Berners and Canuckers)

Little Steven

Nice cook BTW. Coho?

Braggart

Little Steven said:

Nice cook BTW. Coho?

Thanks.  No...Soxi.  Have a bunch of coho as well as a few big springs, but these were sockeye. 

Got all 5 of the pacific salmon this past trip...but the Sox and Coho are our fave by a country mile.