Cooking with planks lets you create extraordinarily flavorful food! Cooking with planks on a Big Green Egg lets you do the same thing, but in a much easier way!
“Plank cooking” goes back to Native American food preservation methods, where foods were cooked & dried over moist wood planks and open fires out on the prairie.
With a Big Green Egg, you have much superior heat retention than an open fire, giving you the ability to easily and indirectly grill your food on the same type of moist, all-natural plank of natural wood that was used long ago. The wetness of the wood infuses the food with moisture and flavor, while protecting the food from direct heat.
How do you describe the flavor? Most fans say the moist plank adds a subtle smoky or even woodsy flavor to your favorite recipes. Plus, you serve the cooked food right on the plank!
So, How Do You Cook With Planks “The Right Way”?
It is really, really easy. You start with the plank, preferably one containing western red cedar or northwest alder, without any artificial or chemical additives in the wood. Strange substances in the wood will affect the subtle flavors.
Big Green Egg makes their own grilling planks under the Big Green Egg Grilling Plank product name. These are planks sourced from certified sustainable forests that are raised as food-grade sources of wood. The planks are selected and cut for the best flavor.
Next, you pick what you’re going to cook on the plank. Lots of different types of foods go great with different types of Big Green Egg planks. Big plank grillers often go for cuts of Salmon, Grouper, Pork Loin or Beef, and some also opt to grill veggies or desserts on the plank.
After that, you have to prep the plank that you’re going to use. You’re supposed to soak the plank for an hour in water, and you should put something on top of the plank to keep it underwater (wood planks float!). Halfway through that hour, turn the plank over so it is soaked evenly and resistant to charring.
You can mix it up by adding apple juice or wine to the soaking water. It will add more flavor hints and the plank will also smell great from it.
Just like you season your grill, you have to prepare the plank. In plank grilling, all you have to do is put the plank on your Big Green Egg cooking grid for a few minutes. When it starts to smoke & pop, flip it over and get your food onto the charred side of the plank. You want to make sure that the maximum surface area of each piece of food is directly in contact with the plank. If you have to, prep two planks so you can spread things out.
After you’ve cooked and eaten, you can clean the plank so it can be re-used. DO NOT USE SOAP, or your food will taste like soap the next time you use it. Rinse the plank with hot water while brushing it off, and then let the plank air-dry in a well-ventilated area. Throw away the plank when it begins to deteriorate from the heat or warp.
Do You Need a Big Green Egg?
If you’re thinking about getting a Big Green Egg, give us a call or visit the showroom! We are Nashville’s top destination for various premium grill manufacturers including Big Green Egg, and have a ton of experience with the various different Big Green Egg models and accessories. There is an entire world of accessories and add-ons that make Big Green Egg one of the most versatile grills on the market.
Plank Grilling Recipes
