salmon/trout on plank

[fish_finder]

Anyone ever grill salmon and trout on a maple plank? If you havnt then do urself a favor and try it out!  Best way to do it i think. Just got done doin one mmm...gonna try a cedar one next weeknd!

[Barleydog]

FF,
We do a couple of fresh king or sockeye fillets a year on cedar planks.  Here's what I do to em.
First I soak the boards for at least an hour and then start up the grill to "red hot!"  I try to keep the fish basic without a lot of spices and "stuff."  Score the skin side of the fillet a couple times.  Limit the fish to FRESH cracked pepper, kosher salt, minced garlic, and brushed olive oil.  Flip the board on the grill and get it to start smokin'.  Next flip the fillet on top of the board skin side down and cook covered until done but not overdone!  Squeeze a FRESH lemon on the fillet right before taking it off the grill. 
One recipe used commonly up in AK is to take your fillets and place them in a dry rub of equal parts brown sugar and salt for about 5 hours.  No water is needed for this because the salt will draw the moisture out of the fish.  Quick rinse the fish off once it has sat, and PAT DRY (really important!)  Next, make up a glaze for your fish.  You can use a basic glaze of butter, brown sugar, and seasoning.  OR you can try something different like butter, dark rum, and maple syrup, but be adventurous!   Just coat the fish a couple times while cooking on the board and it'll turn out great with excellent color! 
ANother wood I like is birch.  I tried this one last year by splitting a birch log into planks and since it was green already, it didn't need soaking.  Mild smoke without a "tang" GOOOD STUFF! 

[fish_finder]

That sounds good! Gonna have to try that out next time i do it.

[bassjunky]

here are some pics from my dinner tonight





A trick I learned, for some extra flavour, place the board on the red hot grill for about 5 minutes to get it started then flip it over and place the fish on the side you just heated...you will pick up a little extra of that smoke flavour. I also keep the grill really hot, most recipes call for medium heat but I like it up over 400

[troutchaser]

ill be over for dinner   lol

[MILLERMANKT]

Bass junky, That looks AWESOME !!!!!  I've never tried that before. What kind of board does everyone use ? And where do you get them ?

[bassjunky]

thanx Millmankt, I dont know where you are from, but you can get PLanks at most BBQ supply stores, Home Depot & Canadian Tire also sells them in the BBQ section. That was a cedar plank, but you can use all the same woods you would normally smoke with

[fish_finder]

Got mine at Canadian tire, walmart has them to i think, i use maple next one is going to be cedar

[troutaddict33]

I have a lake trout in the fridge that's gonna be cooked tomorrow. Have you guys ever done it with a whole gutted fish that's not filleted?? maybe i could just flip it once on the board while cooking. I only know a few recipes to make a laker taste really good and ive tried a hundred but maybe i can add this to my arsenal if it works... had one smoked once at a smokehouse but 

[bassjunky]

you can do a whole trout for sure....what I usually do with whole fish is stuff the cavity with either rosemary or dill, along with some orange and lemon slices. use a few strips of bacon to wrap around the outside and throw her on the grill, or plank in your case

[troutaddict33]

awsome ill try it tomorrow... best recipe ive ever used for laketrout is soak in milk for the day, then coat it in flour, on the inside put mayonaise on the meat (gets rid of the bad taste they sometimes seem to acquire) then sprinkle with parmesan cheese and stuff with seasonings of choice along with onions (especially vidalia onions) and w/e vegetables you want. then wrap in aluminum foil and grill to perfection... mmmmmmm

[Litchfield Fisher]

I have a lake trout in the fridge that's gonna be cooked tomorrow. Have you guys ever done it with a whole gutted fish that's not filleted?? maybe i could just flip it once on the board while cooking. I only know a few recipes to make a laker taste really good and ive tried a hundred but maybe i can add this to my arsenal if it works... had one smoked once at a smokehouse but 

the best touge I have ever had was smoked I thought it was exalent my grandfather smoked it in his own made smoker from a 50 gallon drum and I can't remember the wood he used to smoke it but it was exalent

[MILLERMANKT]

I'm finally going to try this over the week end. Just wondering if you can reuse the plank or do you just burn it up ?

[bassjunky]

if it's done right, you wont be able to reuse the blank as the bottom and sides should be charred. 

[MILLERMANKT]

Thanx for the reply bassjunky, I hope mine comes out looking 1/2 as good as yours did. I'll let you know.