Grilled Flounder Two Ways

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I love to grill fish, and I am always trying different varieties on the little Char-broil grill we keep on our balcony. Alas, I’m still trying to convince our HOA to allow a charcoal model.

In any case, our local grocery had a great deal on fresh, wild-caught flounder fillets, so I thought I’d use the last of our Outdoor Gourmet Maple Wood Grilling Planks and enjoy a nice dinner at home with my sweetie. She loves fish, but she won’t eat any other meat. Yes, it’s true. I’m a meat eater who loves a vegetarian (or pescatarian…. or whatever!).

The fillets were a very nice size, but a bit too long for the shorter maple planks I had. So, I broke the two fillets into four and grilled two on the maple planks and two in a makeshift foil tray on the grill.

My goal with the Outdoor Gourmet maple planks was clear enough – get them smoky good over a medium low flame. With the foiled fish, I wanted to get them a bit of carry over smoke flavor from the planks, but also poach them a bit in some Palm Belgian amber beer. This was a fling it and wing it maneuver that actually turned out pretty well.

The maple smoked flounder fillets received a moderate sprinkle of Draper’s AP Rub and a little fresh basil purée. I put a bit of hot Madras curry powder on the poached fillets and finished them in a little of the Palm Belgian Amber.

Here’s a general overview of the dinner prep!

These Outdoor Gourmet maple grilling planks rock! They also make planks in cedar, alder, cherry, and hickory. We soaked them in water for a couple of hours.

Flounder cooking away on the trusty Char-Broil Grill.

Close up shot of the flounder getting that tasty maple smoke taste profile on the Outdoor Gourmet Plank.

Flounder Way One: Poached with a little smoky flavor on Asian greens topped with a sweet chili sauce.

Flounder Way Two: Maple planked flounder on Asian greens topped with sweet basil.

Overall, we were both happy with the meal. I think we liked the planked version the best. If you have not tried plank grilling, head over to the Outdoor Gourmet site. Start out with a few cedar planks and maybe some cherry, which are our favorite for adding a subtle sweet smoke flavor to salmon!