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Guide to Grilling the Perfect Salmon Filet from Kalamazoo
Outdoor Gourmet
Step-by-step instructions to help anyone grill like
a professional.
Salmon filets are ideal for grilling. This guide from our grillmasters should
help you achieve great results every time.
Step One: Salmon Filet Selection
Different people prefer the taste of different salmons. Copper River Salmon
has a fanatical following. Tasmanian Salmon can be flown in fresh overnight
from Hawaii. Coho Salmon has its own distinctive flavor. The bottom line
is... If you know what you like, stick with it. If you don't, experiment.
Note: Farm-raised Atlantic Salmon has great flavor and texture, but
also has higher content of harmful chemicals than wild-caught salmon. Many
researchers recommend that those who prefer farm-raised salmon eat it less
than twelve times per year.
Select skin-on salmon filets from the head end of the fish. Good, thick
filets are best. You can also take advantage of the tapered nature of filets
to suit the tastes of your guests. Cook the thick cuts and thinner cuts
for the same amount of time, serving the thinner filets to your guests who
want their fish "cooked all the way" and the thicker cuts to the
salmon lovers who want their fish cooked to medium.
Try to avoid buying the tail-end filets as they are often too thin to grill
well.
Step Two: Preparing the Salmon
Leave the skin on and pull out any obvious bones. Rinse the filets under
cold water and pat dry with paper towels.
We like to cut the salmon into serving-size pieces at this point, but that
is purely optional.
Place the filets skin-side down on a work surface or platter. Squeeze fresh
lemon juice over the salmon.
Next, season with your favorite dry fish seasoning for salmon. Our favorites
are Chef Paul Prudhomme's Blackened
Redfish Magic or our own Kalamazoo
Garlic Rub. You can also use a traditional barbecue rub, such as our Motor City
BBQ Rub or a more creative barbecue rub such as our ZaZa
Barbecue Rub.
The salmon filets should be brought to room temperature before grilling.
Let them sit, seasoned, for about twenty minutes before the grill is ready.
Step Three: Grilling the Salmon
Preheat the grill for direct grilling at 500 degrees.
Use smoke from your favorite wood chips to enhance the flavor (we like cherry) or
grill over an open hardwood flame.
When hot, clean the grill surface with your brass or stainless steel grill
brush. Use grilling tongs to carefully wipe down the grill surface with
a clean rag dipped in vegetable oil.
For filets that are 1-inch thick, we grill the salmon for a total of 8 minutes
at 500 degrees over direct heat. This should result in fish that is cooked
medium to medium-well.
You need twice the space for grilling each filet as the piece occupies on
the grill. This is not totally necessary, but we leave the skin on the grill
when we flip the filets...
Start each filet skin-side down over direct heat. After 4 minutes, use a
grill turner or fish turner (large enough to support the whole filet) to
turn the fish over. Slide the turner between the skin and the meat, separating
the fish from the skin. Turn each filet over, leaving the skin behind and
placing the filet on an open area of the grill surface.
After grilling the second side for 4 minutes, remove the fish from the grill,
turning each filet to serve seasoned-side up.
The salmon should be opaque and flaky with a bit of char on the outside.
Dispose of the salmon skin pieces now that they are charred and easier to
handle.
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