There's no tailgating at Lumen Field, so the Seattle tailgate happens at home, and the stadium is a train ride away. That changes the whole job. Nothing has to survive a cooler or hold in a pan for three hours; it only has to be ready when the crew is, and eaten before somebody says it's time to catch Link. Cedar-plank salmon fits it exactly. Cooking salmon over cedar goes back to the Native peoples of the Pacific Northwest, who roasted it on cedar stakes around an open fire, and the grilling plank is the backyard version: 15 minutes with the lid down, and the fish comes off tasting like the smoke.
Home gear: a sheet pan or sink deep enough to soak the planks, something heavy to hold them under, a spray bottle of water and a heat-proof tray for serving
1 HR
At home, soaking the planks
30 MIN
Homegating
8
Serves
Ingredients
Planks
- 4 untreated cedar grilling planks, about 5 × 11 in
Salmon
- 4 lb skin-on salmon fillet, cut into 8 pieces of about 8 oz
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Rub
- ⅓ cup packed brown sugar
- 2 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- Zest of 1 lemon
Serve
- 2 lemons, cut into wedges
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh dill or parsley
Steps
At home, the day before or that morning
- Lay the planks in the sheet pan or sink, cover them with water and weigh them down so they stay under. Soak at least 1 hour. Overnight is fine.
- Mix the brown sugar, salt, pepper, paprika, garlic powder and lemon zest in a small jar.
- Keep the salmon in the fridge, or at the bottom of a cooler, at 40°F or below until the grill is hot.
Homegating, game day
- Heat the grill to medium, about 400°F. Pat the salmon dry, brush the flesh side with the oil and press the rub on in an even layer.
- Drain the planks and set them on the grate. Close the lid for 3 to 5 minutes, until they crackle and start to smoke.
- Set 2 pieces of salmon on each plank, skin side down. Close the lid and grill 12 to 18 minutes, depending on thickness, without flipping. Mist the plank edges with the spray bottle if they catch fire.
- Start checking at 12 minutes. The salmon is done when the thickest part reads 145°F and flakes with a fork.
- Lift the planks onto the heat-proof tray with tongs and heat-proof gloves. Serve the salmon right off the wood with lemon wedges and dill.
What goes wrong with cedar-plank salmon
- The plank catches fire. A dry plank burns instead of smoking. Soak it at least an hour with something heavy holding it under, run the grill at medium, not high, and keep the lid closed. When an edge flames, the spray bottle puts it out; a flame-up with the lid open is how a plank turns to charcoal under the fish. The same medium heat and closed lid keep the brown sugar in the rub from scorching before the fish is done.
- It overcooks during the pregame show. Salmon goes from right to dry in a couple of minutes. Start checking at 12 minutes; it's done when the thickest part reads 145°F and flakes with a fork. Thin tail pieces finish first, so pull them early.
- Somebody tries to flip it. Don't. It cooks skin side down on the plank start to finish, and the skin sticks to the wood, which is the point: lift the fillet off with a fish spatula and the skin stays behind.
Work backward from the train
For a 1 p.m. kickoff, the gates open at 11. There's an official pregame inside the Event Center from 10; skip it, the salmon's better. Planks go in the water by 9. Light the grill at 10:15, planks on to heat at 10:30, salmon on by 10:35, and everybody's eating straight off the wood by 11. Feeding 20? It's two rounds of planks, so light the grill at 9:55. Wash up, lock up, and catch Link by 11:30; the Stadium, International District/Chinatown and Pioneer Square stations are all a short walk from the gates. Our Lumen Field guide has the rest.
Before you leave, soak the used planks in water. A plank can smolder for a while after it comes off the grill, and nobody wants to come home to that.
That's the Seattle tailgate: lift the planks off, eat the salmon right off the cedar, and walk to the train smelling like the smoke.
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