Maple Planked Whiting with White Truffle Balsamic Glaze

About the Return Guest Blogger:  Kevin Sandridge

  

Author of The BBQ Smoker Site, a blog that details products, reviews, new, recipes, competitions, and everything BBQ and native Floridian, Kevin knows his way around the 'cue. Got a question pertaining to cookin' it up on the grill, ask Kevin.

Well, the last of our Wildwood Grilling Outlet 100 Percent Natural Wood Planks has given up the ghost. But it was a tasty, tasty, ghost! After a trying Monday at work, I had to get the grillin’ groove on. So, I stopped by the grocery and picked up a few Whiting fillets, some broccolini, and a white truffle balsamic glaze made by an Italian company called Colavita.

Wildwood Grilling Outlet - Maple Planked Whiting with White Truffle Balsamic Glaze

This cook was a bit different, as I only had one plank left. Luckily, it was a maple one, which we have found we like quite a bit. While the maple doesn’t give off the spicy smoke flavor that we get from the cedar planks, it does impart a subtle mellow smoke flavor that serves as a nice backdrop for the fish and whatever sauce or spice mixture we use.

The other serving I made went inside two of the Cedar Grilling Wraps from Wildwood Grilling Outlet I put together and tied using the natural fiber thread that comes in the wrap packs.

Wildwood Grilling Outlet - Maple Planked Whiting with White Truffle Balsamic Glaze Prep

Whiting fillets are a bit ‘skinny,’ so I put two on the maple plank and two in the cedar wraps. The spice mixture on the fish consisted of sea salt, fresh cracked pepper, a little chili pepper, and some herbes de provence. The broccolini I coated with some light olive oil and then tossed with sea salt and more of the cracked pepper.

Wood Grilling Planks
Wildwood Grilling Outlet - Maple Planked Whiting with White Truffle Balsamic Glaze Grill

I grilled the fish on high for a few minutes to get the wood to smoke a little, and then turned the burners down to medium to let it finish up. Mid way through I put on the broccolini, which wilted up nicely with a touch of charring. Good stuff.

If you’ve not used wood planking on the grill, I suggest you give it a try. I know I’ve been doing a lot of fish with it lately, but this is what happens when a meat eater loves a vegetarian! I promise to do some land animal very soon, or at least as soon as we renew our stock of Wildwood Grilling Outlet Wood Grilling Planks!

Welcome to your weekend. 

Cedar Plank Grilled Orange Roughy with Fresh Tarragon

About the Guest Blogger:  Kevin Sandridge

  

Author of The BBQ Smoker Site, a blog that details products, reviews, new, recipes, competitions, and everything BBQ and native Floridian, Kevin knows his way around the 'cue. Got a question pertaining to cookin' it up on the grill, ask Kevin. 

If you read this blog with any regularity, you know that I’m a huge fan of the Outdoor Gourmet company.  In fact, I’m quickly running through my supply of 100 percent natural and sustainably  produced Cherry, Maple, and Cedar Grilling Planks and will soon have to place another order! 

Tonight’s contribution to my shrinking wood plank supply – Plank Grilled Orange Roughy with Fresh Tarragon  - was perhaps one of the tastiest efforts in plank grilled fish I’ve attempted.  Ever.  Yes, folks.  It was that good.

Seriously.  I thought my last effort with Cherry Plank Grilled Salmon with Amber Agave Nectar Rub was good.  And then there was the Cedar Skewered Gulf Shrimp with Chimichurri Flank Steak, which was off the hook!  But tonight’s meal just worked.  I’ve had my disasters, and as Larry over at the BBQ Grail can tell you, it ain’t no fun when food plans run aground. Of course, the special joy of tonight’s meal was that I got to share it with the woman I love.   It was but a small gesture to try and show her how much I appreciate her putting up with me for the past six years.  Trust me, she deserves a medal!

 

Orange Roughy set out on soaked Cedar Planks from Wildwood Grilling Outlet.

 

Close up of the prepped orange roughy with olive oil, cracked black pepper, cumin, chilli pepper, orange peel, fresh tarragon, and a little amber agave nectar.

 

Getting some heat over a medium flame. The cedar smoke smell during this cook was awesome!

If you haven’t tried grilling with wood planks, you should give it a go.  Beware the “pre-packaged” fish on a plank packs you can find now in your grocer’s freezer section.   It’s just not right.  Especially when you can select top quality fish from nearly every corner of the country these days.  Also, all planks are not created equal.  You want to be sure the wood grilling planks you use are 100 percent natural, produced in the USA.  You wouldn’t spritz your grillables with pesticide would you?  Well of course you wouldn’t.  So don’t grill on something that might have the stuff “built in!”  Plus, companies like Outdoor Gourmet not only source 100 percent untreated Western Red Cedar Grilling Planks, they also do it in a sustainable manner. Know what you eat.  Eat what you love.