Plate 09 of 10

Cedar-Planked Wild Salmon

Name: Cedar-Planked Wild Salmon
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 18 min
Total time: 38 min
Yield: 6
Cuisine: United States
Ingredients: 1 side, about 1 kg Wild sockeye or king salmon fillet, skin on, pin bones removed; 1 or 2 Untreated western red cedar grilling planks, about 38 by 18 cm, soaked 2 hours; 60 ml Kentucky straight bourbon; 50 g Dark brown sugar; 30 g Coarse whole-grain mustard; 15 ml Apple cider vinegar; 15 ml Melted butter or olive oil; 2 cloves Garlic, minced to a paste; 5 g Smoked paprika; 8 g Fine sea salt; 2 g Freshly ground black pepper; 1 medium Lemon, sliced paper-thin; 15 g Fresh dill or chives, chopped, to finish

The Columbia River method of the Coast Salish and Chinook peoples, on a grill. Wild sockeye or king salmon roasts on a soaked, charred western red cedar plank that shields it from the flame and steams cedar oil into the flesh, under a simmered lacquer of bourbon, brown sugar and grainy mustard, pulled at 52 °C.

Prep: 20 min
Cook: 18 min
Serves: 6
Difficulty: Medium

Researched · Kitchen testing pending

A side of ruby-red wild salmon lacquered dark amber on a smouldering cedar plank over grill grates, with thin lemon slices and dill on top.

In the river basins and rainforests of the Pacific Northwest, from the Columbia to Puget Sound, the Coast Salish and Chinook roasted wild salmon on split cedar stakes around beach fires. Plank cooking is the region’s native gift to open-wood cookery.

A soaked slab of untreated western red cedar is laid over the coals until it crackles, and a side of wild sockeye or king goes on top. The wood buffers the flame and releases cedar oils into the fish. Lacquered with bourbon, brown sugar, grainy mustard and cider vinegar, the salmon roasts to a moist, pearlescent flake with caramelised edges.

Ingredients

1 side, about 1 kgWild sockeye or king salmon fillet, skin on, pin bones removed
1 or 2Untreated western red cedar grilling planks, about 38 by 18 cm, soaked 2 hours
60 mlKentucky straight bourbon
50 gDark brown sugar
30 gCoarse whole-grain mustard
15 mlApple cider vinegar
15 mlMelted butter or olive oil
2 clovesGarlic, minced to a paste
5 gSmoked paprika
8 gFine sea salt
2 gFreshly ground black pepper
1 mediumLemon, sliced paper-thin
15 gFresh dill or chives, chopped, to finish

Fifty-two degrees

Wild Pacific salmon is lean. Past 55 °C its fibres contract and squeeze white albumin onto the surface. Pulled at 50 to 52 °C it carries over to medium-rare and flakes in ruby petals with none of it.

The plank is a buffer

Two hours of soaking saturates the wood. Over 200 °C grill heat, water vaporises out of it as a cool steam layer under the skin while the charring underside gives off cedrol and thujaplicin into the steam.

Simmer the glaze first

Three or four minutes over medium-low boils off the bourbon's ethanol and concentrates the sugar and oak lactones into a lacquer that holds moisture in and caramelises under the lid.

The five tastes on this plate

Salt is sea salt on the flesh and the brined wood. Fat is the salmon's oils and the butter in the glaze. Acid is cider vinegar and lemon. Heat is grainy mustard, black pepper and the bourbon's bite. Umami is wild salmon, caramelised brown sugar and cedar smoke.

Equipment

Charcoal or gas grill with a lid, set for medium indirect heat
Fish pliers
Small saucepan
Heatproof gloves and a heatproof platter
Instant-read thermometer

The original was split cedar stakes planted over beach embers. In a home oven, set the soaked plank and salmon on a foil-lined tray at 200 °C for the aroma without the smoke.

Method

Soak the planks2 hr
Submerge the planks in warm salted water under a heavy pot for a full 2 hours.
Submerge the planks in warm salted water under a heavy pot for a full 2 hours.
Prepare the salmon5 min
Feel along the fillet for pin bones and pull them out with the grain using fish pliers. Pat dry and season the flesh with the salt and pepper.
Feel along the fillet for pin bones and pull them out with the grain using fish pliers. Pat dry and season the flesh with the salt and pepper.
Simmer the bourbon glaze4 min
Combine the bourbon, brown sugar, mustard, vinegar, butter, garlic and paprika in a small saucepan and simmer over medium-low 3 to 4 minutes until the sugar dissolves and the alcohol fumes fade into a glossy syrup.
Combine the bourbon, brown sugar, mustard, vinegar, butter, garlic and paprika in a small saucepan and simmer over medium-low 3 to 4 minutes until the sugar dissolves and the alcohol fumes fade into a glossy syrup.
Char the plank3 min
Heat the grill to about 200 °C. Set the drained plank on the grate under the lid for 3 minutes until it dries, crackles and smokes. Flip it so the charred side faces up.
Heat the grill to about 200 °C. Set the drained plank on the grate under the lid for 3 minutes until it dries, crackles and smokes. Flip it so the charred side faces up.
Glaze and plank-roast12 to 15 min
Lay the salmon skin side down on the charred face, brush on half the glaze, and lay the lemon slices down the spine. Close the lid. Roast 12 to 15 minutes, brushing with the rest of the glaze at 10, and pull the plank when the thickest part reads 50 to 52 °C.
Lay salmon skin-down on the charred plank; brush with half the glaze and arrange lemon slices along the centre. Cover; roast 12–15 minutes, adding remaining glaze at 10 minutes. Remove when thickest flesh reaches 50–52 °C.
Serve from the plank
Lift the whole smouldering plank onto a heatproof platter with gloves. Scatter with dill and chives and serve family-style from the wood.
Lift the whole smouldering plank onto a heatproof platter with gloves. Scatter with dill and chives and serve family-style from the wood.
07
Sensory cues of doneness
- Visual: coral-ruby flesh under a glossy amber lacquer with no white curd, and plank edges charred black.
- Auditory: quiet crackle and pop from the wet wood, and a gentle sizzle of fat rendering onto it.
- Olfactory: cedar smoke, bourbon caramel, whole-grain mustard, embers and dill.
Look for coral-ruby flesh, glossy amber glaze without white curd and blackened plank edges. Expect gentle wood crackling and sizzling fat, with cedar, bourbon caramel, mustard, ember and dill aromas.

Troubleshooting

Chalky flesh and white curd.: Past 55 °C. Pull it at 50 to 52.
The plank ignited.: Under-soaked. Two hours minimum.
A chemical taste.: Lumber cedar. Use only untreated, food-grade grilling planks.

Substitutions

One-to-one swaps, with the technique change each one needs.

Ingredient substitutions

Ingredient	Replace with	Culinary impact and technique adjustment
Wild sockeye	Wild king, coho or steelhead trout	One-to-one. Steelhead has a similar texture and fat
Bourbon	Rye whiskey, dark rum, or apple cider for no alcohol	One-to-one. Cider caramelises beautifully
Whole-grain mustard	Dijon or stone-ground mustard	One-to-one. Supplies the tang

Scaling

Half, for 3

A 450 g fillet on a small plank. Time stays at 12 to 14 minutes.

Double, for 12

Two sides on two large planks side by side.

What to serve it with

Wild rice pilaf with dried cranberries and toasted pecans
Grilled zucchini, sweet corn and asparagus
A Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, or a Washington Syrah

Questions

Can I reuse a plank?

If it is not badly charred, scrub with hot water and no soap and use it once more. Most cooks use planks once.

Oven method?

Soaked plank and salmon on a foil-lined tray at 200 °C for 15 to 18 minutes.

What is the white stuff?

Albumin, forced out when the fibres contract from too much heat. Gentle plank roasting keeps it in.