Sockeye Salmon & Cedar Planks

Gotta love sockeye salmon season! This wild-caught, full-flavored, rosy- pink salmon is one of my favorite summer time treats.  You can find this sustainable fish frozen all year long, but the price is much better when it is fresh, and seasonal. I got mine for $9.99 a pound at Publix this week. There are a zillion ways to prepare sockeye salmon, but on a cedar plank on the grill is my personal favorite. You can season it what ever way you prefer, but this fish has a lot of flavor doesn't need a lot of seasoning. Plus, you get lots of flavor from the cedar plank. This is an easy fish to cook, but because sockeye isn't the fattiest salmon,  one of the biggest mistakes you can make is over cooking it. Don't be scared though, it is delicious and the cedar plank helps a lot. Here is a recipe for my lemon-dill cedar plank salmon.

The most important thing you need to know is to make sure you soak the cedar plank(s) in water for a few hours (2 hours at the least) prior to putting it on the grill. Otherwise, your cedar plank will catch fire and burn up on the grill.

Cedar Plank Grilled Sockeye Salmon

Ingredients:

1  to 1 1/2 lb sockeye salmon fillets, skin on (ask for center cut fillets, you can use one large piece or two smaller fillets, up to you)

2-3 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 tsp ground pepper

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp chopped, fresh dill

1/2 lemon zest

1 tsp freshly, squeezed lemon juice

Directions:

1. Soak cedar planks in water for at least 2 hours

2. Meanwhile, rinse salmon fillets and pat dry. Feel each piece carefully for feather bones and remove any you find, carefully (needle nose pliers work perfectly, no need for fancy fish de-boning tools).

3. Drizzle olive oil over both sides of the salmon and place the salmon skin side down on large plate or dish (I used a Pyrex baking dish).

4. Sprinkle each fillet with pepper, salt, lemon zest and dill. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill.

5. When ready to grill, heat grill to medium-low heat.  Place each fillet on cedar plank, skin side down. Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the top of each. 

6. Place cedar planks on the grill. Cover the grill and cook until cooked through, around 20 to 30 minutes. The internal temperature should read 135 degrees F. The fish should flake easily with a fork.

7. You can serve directly on the planks, but fish should slide of the plank easily, leaving the skin behind.