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Salmon on Cedar Planks

Dublin Dawg
Dublin Dawg Posts: 96
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
How long do I cook salmon on a cedar plank? Any other tips?

Comments

  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    Dublin Dawg,
    you are basically baking it.
    say 350-400 "til done" which is no help, but usually around maybe 10 minutes i believe.[p]i gotta start writing it down.[p]soak the plank, toss it on. you'll eventually see some whetish proteins leak out and firm up. that's quite close to done. try it with a fork, and it should flake but be very moist. you don't want dry-flaking. if it's pinkish translucent in the middle, it's done.

    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Dublin Dawg,
    when i've done them, i've first soaked the planks in water for about 3 - 4 hours (put a heavy pot on top of them so that they fully immersed). . .set up egg at 425 dome temp with grid in normal position ....put soaked plank on the grid. ...when it starts 'crackling' (usually takes about 5 minutes or so), then put your fish on the plank. . .for salmon, i usually rub it with some olive oil, sprinkle some dizzy raging river, and a squirt of lemon juice. ...for thick salmon filets, figure about 10 - 13 minutes for the fish to start 'flaking'. ..it will still be a tad underdone in the centers, but that's how we like it. ..go 15 - 20 minute if you want it done all the way through. ...HTH

  • Dublin Dawg,
    Matt, check your email.

  • Dublin Dawg,
    Here's how I do them with some planks I found at Maine Cooking Woods:[p]TNW

    [ul][li]Planked Salmon[/ul]
    The Naked Whiz
  • Haggis
    Haggis Posts: 998
    The Naked Whiz,[p]Those cross-sectional "planks" are an interesting twist. But I gotta wonder about leaving the bark on them - I'd think that might cause unpleasant flavors if it started burning.
  • jake42
    jake42 Posts: 932
    salmoncook.jpg
    <p />Dublin Dawg,
    400 degrees. Soak plank. Put it on grill until it begins to smoke. Put seasoned fish on grill. Cook until done to your liking. 20 to 25 mins
    Salmon.jpg

  • 7655840b.jpg
    <p />Dublin Dawg,
    Did 2 of these 4.5# filets. smoked low for ~5 hours.

  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    HighCotton,
    why the pans under the planks?

    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Sigmore
    Sigmore Posts: 621
    stike, Even my old tired Hillbilly peepers can see that they were just a mode of tranportation.

  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    Sigmore,
    so where's the char on the planks?

    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Haggis,
    I don't think it would be much of a problem. I've used smoking chunks with bark on them with no taste problems. Here, the planks barely smoke, so I don't think the bark is an issue.
    TNW

    The Naked Whiz
  • stike,
    I've not gotten much char on the planks I use. I put them on a raised grid, so maybe that makes a difference?
    TNW

    The Naked Whiz
  • The Naked Whiz,
    Are these one time use like normal planks or can you get them clean since it's end grain?
    Tony

  • Sigmore
    Sigmore Posts: 621
    stike, Smoked slow for about 5 hours. Low heat = no char.

  • ColaCooker,
    Well, you can certainly turn them over and use them a second time. After that though, I guess it is up to you. The second cook should burn off the results of the first cook.[p]TNW

    The Naked Whiz
  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    Sigmore,
    but ain't the purpose to allow the cedar to smoke a bit and flavor the fish?

    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • Sigmore
    Sigmore Posts: 621
    stike, yepper. Why do some folks still soak wood chunks? Makes me crazy, I tell ya.

  • stike,
    I find that the cedar plank produces a moister and more tender piece of fish than doing it on a foil covered pan, for example, so I think you can use it for more reasons that smoke/flavor.
    TNW

    The Naked Whiz
  • Sigmore,
    Well, I keep telling people, that Harold McGee in "On Food and Cooking" explains why you should soak smoking woods, but nobody believes me. Oh well.....[p]TNW

    The Naked Whiz
  • Sigmore
    Sigmore Posts: 621
    The Naked Whiz, What does the steam do for the cook?

  • Sigmore,
    It reduces the temperature that the cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin in the wood burn at so that the beneficial compounds which provide the smoke flavors that we want are formed. When they burn at higher temperatures, the beneficial compounds are further broken down into harsh tasting compounds. [p]TNW

    The Naked Whiz
  • Sigmore
    Sigmore Posts: 621
    The Naked Whiz, Well I feel better now knowing that. As a Caveman that will be beneficial to my cooking of brontosaurus burgers. I'll bet them cowboys didn't soak their wood.

  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
    The Naked Whiz,
    it may slow the burning, but how does something burn when it is wet? isn't the water simply delaying ignition?[p]anyway, i think in an environment with free-flowing O2 all around, wetting the chips would slow them down, keep them from bursting in to flame. but in an egg, there's not alot of spare O2 around. i have thrown chips and wood pieces into a raging nuke-temp fire, and they only show flame when i open the lid and let oxygen in from the top. otherwise, the oxygen is long consumed by the ignited lump, and my chips or chunks just smolder from direct contact with the lump. i never see open flame under any conditions, as long as the fire is established before tossing in the wood.[p]wet wood burns/ignites at the same temp as dry wood, it just takes longer to do it because first the water needs to be driven off, no?

    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
  • ronbeaux
    ronbeaux Posts: 988
    stike,
    OK, I'll equate that analogy to boiling water in a paper plate. As long as there is water in the plate, the plate won't ignite. as soon as the water is gone look out. Been there done that.