Spring!

It’s finally Spring around here, and that means two of my seasonal grilling favorites are starting to show up in our stores – salmon and artichokes.

Salmon and artichokes

I love to cook salmon on a cedar or alder plank. The wood adds a lot of flavor and because it protects the fish from the flames you can high temperatures to seal in the juices. Use a food-grade plank that’s at least half and inch thick. Because you want the plank to smolder, not burn, it needs to soak in water for about 30 minutes.

While the plank soaks, halve the artichokes, trim away the tough outer leaves, and spoon out the choke. Put the prepped artichokes in a large bowl with about 4T of lemon juice, 4T of olive oil, a little sea salt, and toss to coat.

Set your grill up for direct cooking at medium-high heat (about 450°F). Oil the skin side of the salmon and put it on the plank. Good, fresh salmon doesn’t need much seasoning, so I usually just dust it with a little Dizzy Pig Raging River rub and some sea salt.

Put the plank on the center of the grill and flank it with the artichokes. After about 15 minutes, turn the artichokes and check the salmon. Salmon is best medium rare, so take the fillet off when it starts to flake, but is still a little translucent red inside – about 135°F internal.

Cook the artichokes until the stems are soft and you can easily stick a fork into them. If they are browning too much, put them off onto indirect heat or remove them to a bowl and microwave them briefly to finish.

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