cedar plank on the grill, soak or no?

We're having a cookout at work tomorrow. Some of my coworkers went fishing today & are bringing in lots of stripped bass, yum! I have some cedar planks that I thought I'd try out. Should I soak them ahead of time?
BTW, I'm making a charmoula to go with the fish, love preserved lemons...

Helen's All Night Diner
  • 5993 views
  • 5 Comments
Question image

5 Comments

Helen's A. June 22, 2011
Thanks everyone! Even though the planks were soaked for over an hour, they still caught on fire, the grill was probably too hot... Tasty anyways! We only did a couple of pieces on the planks. The bulk of the fish we cooked as follows: Fish was filleted but not scaled, cut into large portion sized pieces. Brined in salted water for an hour or so. Towel dried then rubbed with olive oil. Set grill to medium high. Place fillets skin side down onto the grill, close the grill and leave for 20 to 25 minutes or until done. When you remove the fish to a platter, slide it off the skin & scales. The scales protect the fish. Don't bother to flip. It was fantastic!
 
aargersi June 22, 2011
Absolutely soak - try soaking in wine!

http://www.food52.com/recipes/4517_wine_and_honey_salmon_on_yet_another_cedar_plank
 
wssmom June 21, 2011
30 minutes, cold water. Enjoy1
 
boulangere June 21, 2011
Oh, how lucky are you! Yes, always soak before grilling. Otherwise the planks tend to turn into above-the-fire, uh, fire.
 
SKK June 21, 2011
Yes soak!
 
Recommended by Food52