Cedar Planks for Grilling

john · Post by **john** » Tue May 08, 2012 5:14 pm

I make mine with cedar fence boards bought at local home reno stores. These are not treated, but I sand off all dirt and machining marks to remove contamination.

These boards are 5/8" thick and have never burned through yet. Our Costco store sells packages of 8 for about $12. A good deal, but they are only 1/4" thick. I have never tried them but I have wondered how long they would last even if they are soaked.

We have a great recipe for salmon topped with scallops and one for brie cheese topped with fruit. With warmer weather approaching we are looking forward to these summer dishes.

Have fun BBQ'ing

John

dusty · Post by **dusty** » Tue May 08, 2012 6:22 pm

OKAY I have had plank grilled salmon in restaurants but I have never done one on my own grill.

Are we talking about open grilling or under the cover. Is it heat from the plank or what?

pennview · Post by **pennview** » Tue May 08, 2012 7:21 pm

Here's a short video on plank grilling -- http://www.kraftcanada.com/en/recipes/g ... 89552.aspx

tomsalwasser · Post by **tomsalwasser** » Tue May 08, 2012 7:42 pm

Thanks for all the great information! It really is a great way to grill fish. Because it's cooked with indirect heat, you won't have flare ups. My recipe varies a bit from the video. I soak the cedar plank all day. Don't worry, you can't over do it. I fire up the grill, then place the towel dried plank over the burners on high (I use gas). When the plank starts to pop and smoke a little I turn the burner down that is under the plank but leave the other burners up. I sprinkle the fish generously on both sides with coarse sea salt. There's no end to marinades you can try but in my experimentation I liked this simple preparation best. Place the fish on the clean wood and close the grill. It will cook and lightly smoke in just a few minutes. Remove the fish when it's done to your liking. I'm learning to not over cook my fish, but it's easy to let it go too long. It's still delicious either way.

After researching a little more I believe the Tlingit people of the Pacific Northwest have cooked this way forever so they must have used the Western Red Cedar so common there. I would like to try different woods others have mentioned. I suppose any wood normally used for smoking like maple, hickory or alder should work. I'm glad to know others are making their own cedar grilling planks and that no extraordinary preparation or precautions are necessary other than using good clean untreated wood and common sense.

Best,
Tom

mgdesigns · Post by **mgdesigns** » Tue May 08, 2012 9:29 pm

My wife and I bicycle road around Nova Scotia with 200 other cyclists in 2000 (Lighthouse Tour), and in Liverpool NS the local Civitan Club had a salmon bake for us. The had fresh caught farm raised salmon filleted and nailed to 4'-0" long planks with a kick stand behind them. Then with a huge bon fire, the roasted the salmon about 6 ft. away from the flames, and we all survived happily. The salmon were roasted by the side heat from the fire, not directly over the flames, and I don't know what type of cedar they used, but I'd assume Eastern, unless there's another local variety in that part of Nova Scotia, or maybe they imported it? After a 70 mile bicycling day, nothing could have tasted better.

smredleg · Post by **smredleg** » Tue May 08, 2012 10:25 pm

When I was posted to Fortress Lewis, there was a place in Seattle, that specialized in planked seafood. Still use their "planks," and that was a long time ago..... Later, in Chicago, I use to go to "Shaws, Crab House" for their planked whitefish. In all cases, the fish is done in the oven. If anyone wants planked cedar recipies, I've got them.

foxtrapper · Post by **foxtrapper** » Wed May 09, 2012 7:27 am

tomsalwasser wrote:Any issues with sanitation and food safety to consider?

I don't really think so. The grill itself is probably far less sanitary than the scrap wood you slice up for planks.

Oh, I suppose you should consider where the wood came from (like a dumpster for example), and maybe strive to cook on the freshly cut surface.

Otherwise, It's a grill, it's hot, it'll burn off much of whatever could make you sick.

dusty · Post by **dusty** » Wed May 09, 2012 7:39 am

foxtrapper wrote:I don't really think so. The grill itself is probably far less sanitary than the scrap wood you slice up for planks.

Oh, I suppose you should consider where the wood came from (like a dumpster for example), and maybe strive to cook on the freshly cut surface.

Otherwise, It's a grill, it's hot, it'll burn off much of whatever could make you sick.

I used to practice that philosophy with the grill itself but SWMBO caught me one day and read the riot act. I clean the grill now - right after I get through using it (while every thing is soft) and then again before I put the heat to it.

donalexander · Post by **donalexander** » Wed May 09, 2012 8:19 am

After 33 years in public health (but not directly food sanitation), I'd offer a few comments about food safety. First, there are two issues here - one is biological contamination and the other is chemical toxicity.

I have not studied this extensively but I have grilled fish using cedar planks that I purchased for that purpose. I believe they were Western Red Cedar, not the Eastern Cedar/Juniper and the cost per plank was ridiculous, as I recall. Purchasing untreated lumber (or cutting your own if it grows where you live) should be fine. I'm not sure if the Eastern Cedar would be toxic (as someone suggested) or not but I can't imagine it would impart a pleasant taste. That's the reason we're using the wood in the first place - to impart flavor. I smoke a LOT of meat and cherry, maple, oak, and hickory all work well, either singly or in combination. I would not hesitate to use any of these to plank fish.

The second concern is biological contamination and here we're usually dealing with bacteria. The keys to preventing food borne illness are good sanitation (keep the fish and tools you use - including the wood clean - wash them if necessary and add a couple of drops -no more - of unscented bleach in sink of water to sanitize, not sterilize, the wood - soak it for 20-30 minutes). As far as I'm concerned the soaking and sanitizing the wood depends on how well you know your source of wood. It won't hurt if you don't over do the bleach.

Time and temperature of the fish are the other two big keys to handling the fish in a sanitary manner. Generally you want the fish under 40/45 degrees or over 140 degrees. These temperatures do not sanitize - they just slow the growth of bacteria. If you're going to marinate the fish, either do it in the refrigerator or keep the time to less than an hour at room temperature and you should be fine. In part, it depends on what you're starting with - the fresher the fish the better in every way.

Smoked fish is great but in my opinion planking is just a so-so way to smoke fish. It gives a different presentation that some folks like. The cooking on 4' boards by radiant heat from a fire sounded interesting. To really get a smokey flavor (which can be over done but shouldn't be) use a dedicated smoker. If you're not familiar with smoked meat, fish, and cheese, you're in for a treat....and a new use for your scrap wood.

Don

ebpollock · Post by **ebpollock** » Wed May 09, 2012 11:05 am

In the past we have used cedar shingles. They are cheap, no need to resaw. if the do need resized they split very easy. The thickness is tapered but we just overlapped two shingles to fit the size of the grill and fish anyway.

Evan