Canadian Cedar Planked Salmon

This planked salmon recipe was GREAT! I tried the lumbar yard route to get the planks and found the taste horrible. I had tried the hickory and another one which I don't remember. I found that the white cedar was the best. I ended up purchasing some online from www.Acadian-woods.com. I would recommend purchasing from a "food grade" safe source. I "planked" some salmon for our weekend of company and it was a great hit. Thanks for the unique and delicious recipe. Dave P.

This a great basic recipe to use as a baseline, especially if you've been out fishing the majority of the day. I prefer to substitute the Olive Oil with a high quality garlicky vinaigrette containing all natural ingredients. I've found, depending on the size of the fillet (cooking time), that a plank (Red Cedar) soaked anywhere between two to four hours is suitable for the job. I also like to sprinkle some Kosher salt (or Hawaiian red salt) on a lightly oiled (Olive Oil) plank before topping it off with the fillet skin side down. This followed up with some small slices of onion (I prefer Sweet, but use what you like) and a few slices of lemon provides not only an exquisite taste but a very impressive presentation. The fresher the fish the better, the picture I've provided was of a Western Washington Coho caught, filleted, put on ice in a container (stored in the refrigerator, drain the water as the ice melts occasionally to avoid letting the fillet to soak up water) and planked the same day. No matter how long you've soaked the plank I'd suggest you always keep a squirt bottle containing water to eliminate any flare ups.

Fabulous recipe, tastes just like in a restaurant. I found putting the lemon slice on top of the salmon shielded that part of the fish from the heat (so it didn't cook properly in that spot) so I just squeezed the juice on the fish and took the slice off. Better to just use the slices for presentation at the end. My plank also caught on fire a few times (heat was too high I guess), so have a glass of water ready and dribble water along the edge of the plank if it catches on fire.