A salmon fillet brushed with a sweet mustard glaze and cooked on a soaked cedar plank, which gently steams the fish and gives it a mild, smoky, slightly sweet flavor. This is a classic of the Pacific Northwest, where salmon has been cooked on cedar for centuries.
Ingredients
Instructions
Soak the cedar plank in water, weighing it down with a heavy can so it stays submerged. Follow the package directions: most planks need at least an hour, and thin ones only 15 to 30 minutes. Heat a grill to medium-high, about 400°F, for direct heat.
Pat the salmon dry and feel along the fillet for pin bones, removing any with tweezers. Season the flesh with the salt and pepper. Whisk the mustard, maple syrup and brown sugar together in a small bowl.
Place the soaked plank on the grill for 3 to 5 minutes, until it starts to char and smoke. Turn it over, then set the salmon skin-side down on the charred side. Spread the mustard glaze over the top and sides of the fish.
Close the lid and cook for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on thickness, without turning the fish. The salmon is done when it flakes easily at the center and an instant-read thermometer in the thickest part reads 135 to 145°F, depending on how firm you like it (145°F is the USDA recommendation).
Use a fish turner or tongs and oven mitts to lift the hot plank off the grill. Let the salmon rest for 5 minutes, then serve directly from the plank or slide the flesh off the skin onto plates, with lemon wedges.
Notes
Use planks made for grilling and untreated with chemicals. Cedar is the classic choice for salmon, and resinous woods such as pine should be avoided. Keep a spray bottle of water nearby in case the plank flares up.
The skin will probably stick to the plank, but the flesh should lift away from it easily. Because the fish steams on the plank, the skin does not crisp. The charred plank also makes a rustic serving board.
Variations
No grill? Bake the salmon on the soaked plank in a 400°F oven for 20 to 30 minutes.
Keep it simple: season with salt, pepper and a little olive oil, with a squeeze of lemon, and skip the glaze.
Add ½ teaspoon of smoked paprika to the glaze, or swap the mustard for a spoonful of soy sauce and some grated ginger.
Use an alder plank for a milder smoke, another traditional Pacific Northwest wood.
Source
Native peoples of the Pacific Northwest, such as the Salish and Chinook, roasted salmon on cedar stakes or planks over open fires long before European settlers arrived. The traditional method was to split the fish and fasten it skin-side down to a plank, which was set upright beside the fire so the salmon cooked slowly in the heat and smoke, often as a communal meal. Today planked salmon is a regular on Northwest menus, and the technique has spread across the country, moving onto backyard grills.
In Washington, Chinook, coho and sockeye are the salmon most often caught, and several tribes still host public salmon barbecues. Planking is not unique to the Northwest: Finland has a similar tradition of salmon cooked upright beside a fire, known as loimulohi, or "blazing salmon."