Ingredients
Unsalted butter Yellow miso paste Chopped kimchi Fresh basil Large Cedar plank salmon Whole salmon filet Honey Soy sauce Fresh ginger Garlic cloves Sesame oil Toasted sesame seeds Heirloom cherry tomatoes or regular cherry tomatoes Extra Virgin Olive oil Salt and pepper lemon juice fresh herbs such as cilantro, oregano, or fresh dill
Kitchen Supplies
parchment paper sheet pan or large baking dish instant read thermometer serving dish
Step by Step Instructions Step One Soak the cedar plank in water for at least 30 minutes before grilling, but 2-4 hours is ideal. Step Two Meanwhile, whisk together two tablespoons honey, 1/4 cup soy sauce, the ginger and garlic. Add the salmon to a ziplock bag or Pyrex pan and pour the marinade over the salmon. Place in the fridge for 30 minutes. Step Three Remove the salmon from the marinade and lay the whole salmon filet on top of the cedar plank, making sure none of the salmon is hanging off. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the cedar plank on the grill and cover the grill. Grill for about 12-15 minutes and check for doneness. The salmon is done when it’s uniformly pink in the center. Step Four Using a large spatula, remove the cedar plank salmon and transfer to a flat surface such as a baking sheet or drying rack to rest. Step Five In a small bowl, combine the remaining 1/4 cup honey, one tablespoon soy sauce, sesame oil and the sesame seeds. Brush the salmon with the honey glaze and drizzle lemon juice on top, save any extra honey glaze for serving. Any leftover salmon can go in an airtight container for lunch the next day! It’s one of those “feeling kind of chatty” days for me. I want to talk all about this salmon and how it was my first experience with using a cedar plank, how miso butter is possibly the best thing ever and how I am addicted to these sweet cherry tomatoes that I way overpaid for at the store. I also want to tell you how Asher just told me that I should make doughnuts because I haven’t made those in a while. That girl – so much love for that little…but not so little anymore…girl. And I have to tell you that our Saturday was BEAUTIFUL. I mean a little cold for me because I like it when it’s 90 degrees and humid outside (I know, I am completely in the wrong part of the country), but the 60+ degrees and sunshine was SO welcomed after months and months of cold snow and rain. Sunday was back to some clouds, but my one day of sunshine sure felt amazing. Sun and warmth, please, please come back soon. You make me smile 🙂
And this? Well, this is totally random, but I am currently having a very proud moment. Let me explain. My brothers Kai and Red have a good friend, Blake. I have mentioned Blake a time or two around here, but today’s kind of different. Blake’s definitely like an adopted brother, he kind of just hangs with the family (he somehow made it on to my work trip to LA and San Diego last week too). Even though Kai is currently in Cleveland, Blake and Kai never seem to be apart for all that long. So getting to the point here, Blake’s an awesome photographer. Like really good, and I swear if he ever gets into food photography I know I will be totally jealous of his shots… After listening to him talk about photography for a good two hours on the plane ride back from CA, I realized how much he really is into it. Like so much so that he could probably make it into a career. Until this trip, I never knew he was so passionate about his photography. It was fun listening to him be so excited about something (other than snowboarding – cause you all know how crazy I am about that…right) he clearly loves. So I broke out the Jenny in me (AKA my mother, because this is something she’d totally do), I told him he should make a portfolio and start getting his photos up on Pinterest. Why have a boring job when you could have one you love?? He seemed really into, but to be honest, I never thought he’d actually get up and do it.
I mean, he’s a snowboarder and if you guys know anything about people in the snowboard industry then you know that most of them, work on well… I was going to say “Miller Time”, but that’s actually a bit harsh, they just take their time getting things accomplished. Of course there are definitely exceptions, that’s not meant to be mean or anything, it’s just what I have observed. But then again, I do sort of have a thing with the snowboard industry. Meaning, I semi-dislike it, but that’s a story for another random thought day. But umm, you guys, Blake made a portfolio, and his site is amazing! It only took him all of one day to build too. Where was he when I was building this site?? ONE DAY?!?!? I mean come on. Back to the point, so I feel semi-responsible for kicking Blake in the butt and getting him to get his photos up online. So clearly this means I am urging you all to take a look at his photos (and pin and share them too!). Last bit of randomness, that kid named Malachi under the “people” tab, yup, he’s my brother. Yup, he could so be a model, and yup, I am totally jealous of his looks…aren’t the good looks supposed to go to the girls in the family?
OK and random chattiness ending now. Oh but wait, I never even told you about my trip to Denver with my moma this weekend. Ugh. Tomorrow. I need to tell you about this salmon or it’s gonna kill me…and I am gonna lose you guys for good.
So this cedar plank grilled sesame salmon, like I said earlier, this was my first time using a cedar plank and it so will not be the last. I loved the flavor it gave the salmon, but even better, was that it made cooking the salmon on the grill so easy. I don’t know about you guys, but when I grill salmon, a lot of times when I take it off the grill it does not look nearly as pretty as I want it to. Granted, this is probably due to my poor grilling skills, but I am just saying the cedar plank makes things so easy. The salmon has a killer sesame honey glaze and it gets topped with a Korean inspired miso butter. You guys, this butter? It’s life changing. I know that is dramatic, BUT I swear you will be putting this on all your grilled fish and seafood recipes this summer. It’s perfect for almost everything and makes fish and seafoood taste SO GOOD.
I made the kimchi part to the butter optional just because I can’t decide which way I like it better, with or without the kimchi, so I figured I’d just let you guys decide on your own. Either way is delicious!! And then to round out the meal, I grilled up some heirloom cherry tomatoes because I really just cannot get enough of them. Prepare for a summer FULL of tomatoes! Yes. Be sure to share photos of your recipe on social media. I love seeing your recipe pictures on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (Now X!)…. Enjoy!
So dinner? This? It’s so simple and easy. DO IT.
