Cedar Plank Salmon with Fire-roasted Red Pepper Saffron Sauce

[-Cp]

Made this tonight:

we ended up getting some fresh Wild-Caught Coho Salmon from Alaska today at one of our local stores.

So I did a Cedar Plank Salmon served on top of Jasmine-mint Rice with Fire-roasted Red Pepper Saffron Sauce – I put some lightly-grilled Garlic bread on the side which made for great a great “mop” of the sauce.

I realize that fresh mint isn’t a typical ingredient associated with Salmon but it really helped bring a nice freshness to the flavor of the entire dish – it almost acted like a palette cleanser as well.

http://imagehostingsite.com/images/jnm4jemaj0jhywzy3gez.jpg

[glockmail]

I don't get this cedar plank deal. They cost like, 4 bucks each at Lowes. You can put that into a better cut of meet. Cedar has all kinds of natural, but insect-repellant chemicals in it. It can't be good for you.

[PostmodernProphet]

the cedar planks are reusable, aren't they?......

I have a question about saffron.....there are a couple of things out there that are really expensive but gourmets love....saffron and truffles come to mind.....I have never had the bucks to spare to buy either, but I did taste caviar once and wish I never had......not sure if saffron and truffles are in the same category, but glock's question brought it to mind....why do gourmets go out of their way to spend extra money on things that taste like crap?.......

[darin]

What did you drink w/ it?


I don't get this cedar plank deal. They cost like, 4 bucks each at Lowes. You can put that into a better cut of meet. Cedar has all kinds of natural, but insect-repellant chemicals in it. It can't be good for you.

There aren't really 'better cuts of Salmon' - If it's a good fish, it's a good fish. If you're going to do it get un-treated ceder planks, or go chop-down a tree. :) Some of our grocery stores sell cedar-to-cook-on right in the fish market. :)

[glockmail]

the cedar planks are reusable, aren't they?......
........ Don't think so. You slap 'em on the grill and 1/2 burn 'em up, and the top side absorbs oils and shit- nasty to store and re-use!

[PostmodernProphet]

well that sounds pretty stupid then......

I have this little cast iron box that fits in my grill.....I can load it with wood chips (I have applewood, mesquite, and cedar) that I sprinkle a bit of water on and it puts out a lot of smoke which I like for flavoring the meat.....

[darin]

well that sounds pretty stupid then......

I have this little cast iron box that fits in my grill.....I can load it with wood chips (I have applewood, mesquite, and cedar) that I sprinkle a bit of water on and it puts out a lot of smoke which I like for flavoring the meat.....


It's different. Cook a salmon on a cedar plank. Try it. :)

[glockmail]

....

There aren't really 'better cuts of Salmon' - If it's a good fish, it's a good fish. If you're going to do it get un-treated ceder planks, or go chop-down a tree. :) Some of our grocery stores sell cedar-to-cook-on right in the fish market. :)


Tell that to those buying wild Pacific salmon for $12/# (red flesh) over farm-raised Atlantic (pink flesh) for $6. Plus I knew a guy who had a place in Alaska and would send me a frozen Alaskan Salmon (blood red flesh) that he causght himself once in a while.

The insecticides in cedar are natural, as I indicated previously. That's why the wood is so desirable for house siding and shit.

[dan]

Geez, Cp, you're making me look like a real loser with my 'hot dog' thread when you post stuff like this! Looks great!

[glockmail]

well that sounds pretty stupid then......

I have this little cast iron box that fits in my grill.....I can load it with wood chips (I have applewood, mesquite, and cedar) that I sprinkle a bit of water on and it puts out a lot of smoke which I like for flavoring the meat..... There was a monster hickory that went down in the woods behind here when the tornado came through in '98. I use to chip away at that thing and make chipps for grilling as you described. I guess I got lazy but it was a huge task, being about 6' in diameter and hard as steel. Now I buy bags of chips at Walmart.

[darin]

Tell that to those buying wild Pacific salmon for $12/# (red flesh) over farm-raised Atlantic (pink flesh) for $6. Plus I knew a guy who had a place in Alaska and would send me a frozen Alaskan Salmon (blood red flesh) that he causght himself once in a while.

The insecticides in cedar are natural, as I indicated previously. That's why the wood is so desirable for house siding and shit.

Why somebody would buy Atlantic Salmon is beyond me.

If you have a piece of fish, spend $1.50 and get yourself a good piece of cedar upon which to cook it.

Soak the cedar in water for an hour - place on grill. Put fish on cedar. Cook.

Easy. like Pie.

[glockmail]

Why somebody would buy Atlantic Salmon is beyond me.

..... 1/2 the cost. At least here in the SE, God's Country. :poke:

[darin]

But it's not good. Pay more for better fish. :)

I can send ya some good Pacific/Alaskan Salmon if you want.

[glockmail]

But it's not good. Pay more for better fish. :)

I can send ya some good Pacific/Alaskan Salmon if you want.

That's my frigging point from post 2 dmp!!!

Seriously though thanks for the offer. Very generous of you. It is available at Costco several times/ year at reasonable cost.

[darin]

Try a cedar plank salmon sometime. Just try it. You've got nothing to lose and MY enjoy it. :)

[glockmail]

Try a cedar plank salmon sometime. Just try it. You've got nothing to lose and MY enjoy it. :)

I got some cedar siding left over from a project...

[darin]

I got some cedar siding left over from a project...

dont use siding. Go to a grocer. Ask the fish-folk.

[-Cp]

Tell that to those buying wild Pacific salmon for $12/# (red flesh) over farm-raised Atlantic (pink flesh) for $6. Plus I knew a guy who had a place in Alaska and would send me a frozen Alaskan Salmon (blood red flesh) that he causght himself once in a while.

The insecticides in cedar are natural, as I indicated previously. That's why the wood is so desirable for house siding and shit.

If you read the post... I DID use Alaskan Coho Salmon.... it cost me $2.98 /lb which is a great buy so we snagged some...

Glock - there are no natural insectisides in Cedar and the kind of Cedar use in most house-building has been treated and that is in fact unsafe to cook on.

That said, however, a lot of restaurants do get untreated Cedar shingles from places like Home Depot etc to use and those are perfectly safe to cook on.

The Pacific NW Native Americans have been marrying Cedar w/ local salmon for centuries..

You are right about using the planks repeatedly - there's no good way to store them and the fish oils collected on one would make it rancid in a day or so; however, the added flavor and relatively low cost per plank make them a very popular way now to grill salmon.

[darin]

...so...what did you drink with it?

[-Cp]

...so...what did you drink with it?

A Rosenblum Zinfandel.... nothing too special but it went rather well..

http://www.rosenblumcellars.com/shop/item.jsp?itemid=171&catid=56

[CockySOB]

the cedar planks are reusable, aren't they?......

No. But they make decent stock for home-made charcoal.