Cedar Plank Salmon

Really a SIMPLE thing to make and oh so delish!

This recipe will feed 4 people (or 2 of me!) I just Love Salmon, more than I love a good steak at a high-end steak house. I literally have to stop myself because I will eat till it hurts.

You will need to prepare the night before. The planks need the prep, not the fish. You can wait to catch your fish that day ;-)


Ingredients:

1 5lb or so FRESH, Wild caught (as local as you can get it) whole Sockeye Salmon, filleted (skin on - you're gonna need it)

cedar planks (to fit all the salmon onto) (you can find these in the grilling or fish section of most grocery markets or you can cut your own and season them yourself)

salt to taste

water and a tub to soak the planks in (the tub has to be able to fit the planks submerged)

What to do:

Soak the planks in water for at least 6 hours (preferably overnight!). This will keep the planks from burning out from under your fishes (hopefully). Some folks add a flavor to the water like apple cider, wine etc... but, we are doing ours simple to enhance the flavor of the sockeye. Sockeye is a very very dark pink, flavorful salmon - it needs no "help".

Time to cook. place your salmon on the planks skin side down. If you have to cut the fish to fit, it is OK. Don't have fishes hanging off the side. Sprinkle the fish lightly with salt. Grill on hot grill till done.
"Done" varies from person to person. For this blog I will suggest to cook to an internal temperature of 140 degrees F. But, I like mine just slightly underdone. The insides not gooshy but just firmed up and still a little "soft". Grilling time will depend on the heat of the grill and the thickness of the fishes. Usually it is done when it "flakes with a fork" but is still moist. Our 5 lb fish took about 15 minutes.

You can do cedar plank on gas grills. That is what is so cool about the plank - it gives a "woodsy charcoal" flavor to the fish, keeps it from falling through the grates and it is already "plated".

"The kitty LOVES the fishy"

Wine Pair - 2007 gewurztraminer from Bloom