We used these (from the last time they were up) to cook salmon for a friend's wedding last summer. Everybody loved it and many who were curious enough to come over to the cooking station asked "What is this 'Woot!' on the plank?" We were happy to educate.
We've been using these all summer and I am relieved to get more since we're down to 1! (in for 3!)
As for the re-use and flare-up questions: At the wedding, we had some flare-up issues because the gas grill was an old clunker with poor temperature regulation and no deflectors on half of the jets. Learning from this, we simply reduced the temperature on all subsequent efforts and never had a flare. Re-use was out of the question for the flare victims. Even though the others might have been reusable, we didn't chance ruining good fish with the scorched planks. The fact is that a lot of the flavor comes from the resin in the wood, which is largely used up with the first use. They do make great fire starter - not only do they burn easily, they smell great.

lipophilia wrote:We used these (from the last time they were up) to cook salmon for a friend's wedding last summer. Everybody loved it and many who were curious enough to come over to the cooking station asked "What is this 'Woot!' on the plank?" We were happy to educate.
We've been using these all summer and I am relieved to get more since we're down to 1! (in for 3!)
As for the re-use and flare-up questions: At the wedding, we had some flare-up issues because the gas grill was an old clunker with poor temperature regulation and no deflectors on half of the jets. Learning from this, we simply reduced the temperature on all subsequent efforts and never had a flare. Re-use was out of the question for the flare victims. Even though the others might have been reusable, we didn't chance ruining good fish with the scorched planks. The fact is that a lot of the flavor comes from the resin in the wood, which is largely used up with the first use. They do make great fire starter - not only do they burn easily, they smell great.

Good points. I went through my woot! planks and never re-used any of them. They are cheap and I would rather have fresh tasting food rather than risking things going south.

Wonder if these can be used in a wok? If so I could see da chef wok the plank!

What exactly makes these "gourmet"? They are planks for wood.. not sure what classifies that as "gourmet".

Robin
"holy frazzle dazzle batman ... cedar planks on woot, what kind of cynical???"

Batman
"I suspect the joker Robin"

In Communist Russia, planks ....

Nevermind.

I'd love to try some of these out sometime. Hamster bedding is made out of cedar wood chips. Can't I use those for cooking instead?

tomhuffmania6 wrote:Wow, way overpriced. I always just go down to my local Lowe's, pick up a cedar fence picket, and have it cut onto 10" pieces. All for less than $2. Done this for years without a problem.

Isn't that wood treated with chemicals? I'm not sure it's safe for food.

bought these last time with the cedar wraps. These are awesome for salmon. Because I never plan ahead and get home late I've soaked them for as little as an hour with no issues. Also a great way to get rid of any cheap wine people leave at your house. Soak the plank in some blush wine for an hour or two and grill some salmon on top and it always comes out good. I've also used these in the oven with no problems. Never had an issue with flare ups as I always keep the temp a little lower than usual.

This recipe works amazingly well for salmon on the planks. I usually cut the recipe in half for a normal size piece of salmon and instead of parchment and tray just use the cedar planks
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Roast-Side-of-Salmon-with-Mustard-Tarragon-and-Chive-Sauce-350761

"Keep a spray bottle of water nearby in case of flare-up. Don’t be alarmed, just spritz flame and continue grilling"

Guess this leaves out gas grills. LOL

kmeltzer wrote:What exactly makes these "gourmet"? They are planks for wood.. not sure what classifies that as "gourmet".

Gourmet means they cost more

Will this work on an electric stove top?

Purchased a Woot set of these close to two years ago. They make grilling fun and delightfully tasteful. Just make sure to soak before use. You can soak for 30 minutes and use, but expect a lot of charring, or soak for 4 hours (adding seasoning to the water) and get a great product. ENJOY!

w00t! Just got me a 12 pack of hipster tablets!

If they are using Lowes or Home Depot wood the odds are that the wood that was grown in the Western U.S.A. was not turned into shingles or fence slats in the U.S.A. If it was done here the wood was not fumigated. Done outside our borders and it's required it be fumigated before it can be brought back in. It does not matter that it repels pest naturally, lumber which is what this is has to be fumigated to enter our borders. Since it was not meant to be used for anything other than fencing or roofing or decking there is no requirement it be labled as having any treatments done to it. There is no requirment to show country where it was turned into whatever either so it can say Western Cedar as that is where the wood originated from.

dclwarren wrote:Isn't that wood treated with chemicals? I'm not sure it's safe for food.

I cut the boards in half, soak, and then drop a wheel of brie on top. Add a little honey and dried cranberries and cook for about 20 minutes. The brie will ooze out when you cut into it... perfect on a slice of fresh french bread. Yum!

Just got 3. This is an exceptional deal.

user="ilimel"]Will this work on an electric stove top?

Yes, if your goal is to make a fire this will work on an electric stovetop. If you want to cook food on it no. Wood is not a good conductor of heat and it catches on fire when subjected to direct intense heat. You could try using cooking in a covered pan. If you have one big enough.

Roasting and closed lid grilling seems to work best for me.

ghostofdavid wrote:In Communist Russia, planks ....

Nevermind.

I'd love to try some of these out sometime. Hamster bedding is made out of cedar wood chips. Can't I use those for cooking instead?

Your hamster would get cold! I'd use hamster bedding for the original intent and get the planks instead.

Very true. I live in the pacific NW and the cedar goes from tree to Home Depot without ever leaving the area. The thicker, rougher wood works better than the thin machined planks in my opinion, although they do need some brushing to ensure they are clean. I use them for Salmon fillets (skin side down).

kwetz wrote:If they are using Lowes or Home Depot wood the odds are that the wood that was grown in the Western U.S.A. was not turned into shingles or fence slats in the U.S.A. If it was done here the wood was not fumigated. Done outside our borders and it's required it be fumigated before it can be brought back in. It does not matter that it repels pest naturally, lumber which is what this is has to be fumigated to enter our borders. Since it was not meant to be used for anything other than fencing or roofing or decking there is no requirement it be labled as having any treatments done to it. There is no requirment to show country where it was turned into whatever either so it can say Western Cedar as that is where the wood originated from.

ilimel wrote:Will this work on an electric stove top?

Yes, but it would be more efficient to build a campfire in your oven.

Homebrewers: these might be interesting for aging beer.

CapnJB wrote:I cut the boards in half, soak, and then drop a wheel of brie on top. Add a little honey and dried cranberries and cook for about 20 minutes. The brie will ooze out when you cut into it... perfect on a slice of fresh french bread. Yum!

That looks AWESOME!!
(Now I know what I'm going to do with my last plank from the previous batch.)

7lords wrote:Gourmet means they cost more

In my experience, these are actually cheaper than you can find cedar grilling planks anywhere else.

These planks are so great for use with Alaskan Copper River Salmon. Soak in water for an hour and then toss them on the grill.

How many times can one plank be re-used?

Since we live in Salmon country (Vancouver) we grill with cedar planks a lot. Those that say they are re-usable is questionable. After you get all that salmon skin on there, it's hard to scrape them off enough to use again, besides they are charred and charcoally.. it's just not worth it, but this price is no better than costco, and there you don't pay shipping

mattlscc wrote:How many times can one plank be re-used?

You can probably get away with cooking two filets back to back on one plank during one grill session... but you can't reuse them after.

Also, not sure if it has been mentioned this time around, but for more/different flavor you can soak the boards in wine instead of water.

hdtvcamera wrote:user="ilimel"]Will this work on an electric stove top?

Yes, if your goal is to make a fire this will work on an electric stovetop. If you want to cook food on it no. Wood is not a good conductor of heat and it catches on fire when subjected to direct intense heat. You could try using cooking in a covered pan. If you have one big enough.

Roasting and closed lid grilling seems to work best for me.

So I assume this means you can't use them with an indoor electric grille either (like a Foreman)?

Please be aware that there are some potential health risks associated with using cedar in cooking.

People with respiratory conditions or who are prone to asthma should avoid eating food cooked on/with cedar.

There are several conflicting studies regarding whether or not cedar is carcinogenic. From personal experience I can confidently say cedar contains a carcinogen that at the very least effects small rodents (mice, hamsters, etc.) if not humans. I had two hamsters die of cancer caused by cedar bedding. I had six hamsters not noticably effected by cedar bedding. That's a 25% cancer rate in my small study.

Regarding the respiratory issues, here is a quote I nabbed from a medical study, "Western Red Cedar occupies a particular place in hazard awareness because it contains the irritant chemical plicatic acid. Plicatic acid is most concentrated in western red cedar, but it is also found in significant quantities in eastern white cedar and japanese cedar. Plicatic acid is believed to be the causative agent in western red cedar induced asthma and affects between 4 and 13.5% of exposed populations."

I'm not saying don't use cedar planks. I'm saying make an educated, informed decision rather than a knee-jerk reaction to try a relatively new (at least to the midwest and eastern US) trend.

philrulez wrote:So I assume this means you can't use them with an indoor electric grille either (like a Foreman)?

Very correct, I wouldn't try indoors either on electric (George Foreman or otherwise), gas or in the oven, it probably isn't safe.

joshthegeek wrote:Please be aware that there are some potential health risks associated with using cedar in cooking.

People with respiratory conditions or who are prone to asthma should avoid eating food cooked on/with cedar.

There are several conflicting studies regarding whether or not cedar is carcinogenic. From personal experience I can confidently say cedar contains a carcinogen that at the very least effects small rodents (mice, hamsters, etc.) if not humans. I had two hamsters die of cancer caused by cedar bedding. I had six hamsters not noticably effected by cedar bedding. That's a 25% cancer rate in my small study.

Regarding the respiratory issues, here is a quote I nabbed from a medical study, "Western Red Cedar occupies a particular place in hazard awareness because it contains the irritant chemical plicatic acid. Plicatic acid is most concentrated in western red cedar, but it is also found in significant quantities in eastern white cedar and japanese cedar. Plicatic acid is believed to be the causative agent in western red cedar induced asthma and affects between 4 and 13.5% of exposed populations."

I'm not saying don't use cedar planks. I'm saying make an educated, informed decision rather than a knee-jerk reaction to try a relatively new (at least to the midwest and eastern US) trend.

Or conversely, make an educated, informed decision rather than a knee-jerk reaction not to try something new based on unproven suppositions regarding the risks of cancer from burning wood.

AJsAWiz wrote:"Keep a spray bottle of water nearby in case of flare-up. Don’t be alarmed, just spritz flame and continue grilling"

Guess this leaves out gas grills. LOL

Not sure if you are just joking, but they work great in gas grills. The idea is to spritz the wood with the water if the edge of the plank catches on fire, but it won't be a big problem if you soak the planks ahead of time. And the cedar smokes a bit to give wood-smoke flavor to whatever you are cooking, which is even more important on a gas grill.

RocRizzo wrote:What makes this different from cedar shakes that I can get at the lumber yard, other than the fact that they have "instructions" burned into them?
Cedar shake is certainly much less expensive.

Cedar roofing shakes are treating with chemicals to make them fire resistant - EW.

rikushix wrote:Cedar planks are NOT reusable, unless you're cooking at fairly low temperatures. Though you could use them as serving platters, I suppose.

Can you use them in the oven? Technically, yes, but it can't be too hot, and you'll have to check on them.

Ideally, you want to soak the planks for at least four hours in water - overnight is preferable - and then put them on the grill. Side of sockeye, one part dijon mustard, one part brown sugar and you have an epic salmon BBQ. Usually good to also have a spray bottle handy to wet down the wood if it starts charring.

Thank you! Our experience as well ... they really can't be re-used. We use honey and olive oil ... your recipe sounds really good!

I love these planks. Great timing on this offer as I just ran out of my last batch. I use two to three of these planks a week, mainly for fish. I don't think I'd want to reuse them as I would be concerned about bacteria growth. I do serve the salmon fillets on these planks on a plate

But at this price there is little reason to chance reuse. I ordered 6 dozen which should last me for 6-8 months of cooking.

localfitch wrote:You can probably get away with cooking two filets back to back on one plank during one grill session... but you can't reuse them after.

Also, not sure if it has been mentioned this time around, but for more/different flavor you can soak the boards in wine instead of water.

ABSOLUTELY!!
If you're going to this much effort, use the wine ... not a "black-tie-buy" quality wine, but any inexpensive white would work. We used two-buck-chuck with salmon and it was great.

I'm just going to say this "trend" has been going on for hundreds if not thousands of years... And everything causes cancer.

QuadConPana wrote:In SW Florida the grilling season runs from January 1 to December 31. Bought 12 the last time I saw these. 24 this time.

I soak several ahead of time, put them in a 2 gallon Zip-Lok® bag, and freeze them. That way, I can grill at a moments notice. I keep a spray bottle of water handy while grilling to prevent the board from completely burning up.

My favorite is Salmon marinaded in Soy, ginger, garlic, and a touch of cayenne. The skin sticks to the board, and the filet slides right off of the skin. Now, my mouth is watering.

And now I have a recipe to try with these! Ah yeah!

Just got four free trout and am torn between cooking them right away or waiting for these

Only way to grill salmon. Put it on a plank like this with some salt and pepper or seasoning blend of your choice, don't flip it, cook until done. I never reuse the planks. They get all burnt and nasty.