Salmon again. 0-600ºF in 13 minutes.

[wilburpan]

Here’s the salmon that we had for dinner last night.

Sprinkled with my go to all purpose rub: equal parts salt, pepper, cayenne, and oregano.
 


Onto Smaug they go, at 600ºF, direct.



Finished product.




 
 
First lesson from this cook: I didn’t follow the cardinal rule of cooking fish: leave it there until it comes off the grill by itself. That’s why you can see areas on some of the pieces of salmon where the nice crispy area came off at the edges, revealing the meat underneath. Bad chef.
 
Second lesson: I’ve often said that having a kamado grill is like having a charcoal grill that’s as efficient as a gas grill. This is why. I started with a full basket of charcoal, lit it over a fairly wide area, and had the lid open with the bottom vents fully open, with the grate off. After five minutes, I flipped over the chunks in the top layer of the charcoal a bit in order to get the top surface to give off heat, put the grate in, closed the lid and opened the top vent as high as it would go. I hit 600ºF after a total time of 13 minutes.
 
My old gas grill would have to heat for about that long or so before the grates were hot enough to cook salmon like this, and it never got this hot.
 
I’ve often read on this forum that people have a problem getting the temperature high enough in a reasonable amount of time. As much as I would love to say that the solution is to get a KK grill , I think that my approach to starting a hot fire would work for anyone.
 
I think that the moving the charcoal around after five minutes helps a lot, because it gets lit coals right at the top of the basket and distributes the fire more quickly than letting it burn on its own. (That’s also why I leave the grate off at first so I don’t have to maneuver a hot grate later to stir up the charcoal.) I’ve noticed in the past that if I’m going for a high temperature, and there’s large pieces of charcoal on the top that are burning only on the bottom side, the unlit portion of the charcoal is preventing heat from coming through. Flipping over those pieces did a lot to speed up the process.
 
I’ve noticed that when my thermometer hits 500ºF, the top surface of the charcoal will mainly be on fire, but the larger chunks will have a dark spot in the middle that isn’t actually burning. Here’s a picture from the Serious Eats website that shows what I mean.
 

 
This looks like a good charcoal fire, but it’s really not at full blast yet. You see those large pieces of charcoal in the middle that still look black? That’s charcoal that’s not burning. I think this acts as an insulator, blocking the fire underneath it, and preventing the temperature from rising higher. Turning those pieces over helps the temperature come up faster. 
 
One last thing: I know that BBQ is all about patience, and enjoying the process. But as long as folks keep talking about keeping a gas grill around for quick cooks, I’m going to keep making the point that starting a charcoal fire for high temp direct grilling can be pretty quick with a kamado grill. Using this method, I’ve consistently been able to hit these temps in 15 minutes, tops. And as I mentioned before, that’s about as long as I would let my old gas grill warm up to get the grates hot before grilling steaks or burgers.

[kjs]

Looks good! I haven't made fish yet on the KK, but I intend to very soon.

[MacKenzie]

and I just wish I was a fish lover, it looks sooooooo good, Wilbur. Thanks for those tips on a quick fire. I am off to light my grill, except I only want to hit 350F- 375F.

[CeramicChef]

Wilbur - yet another really nice cook! I love salmon just about any way it gets cooked. You're absolutely right about letting fish cook until it releases. I've had to learn that lesson many times myself. Now I don't feel so bad.

Gorgeous money shot! Wilbur, I think you are your own worse critic. I'm giving this cook two thumbs up and major kudos!

I've also found that if I lightly coat my salmon with real mayonnaise it helps the whole cooking process. Sounds also strange, but it works quite well. Just coat the salmon, put on a hot grill, and it releases easily. The mayo is adsorbed and the fish comes out simply wonderful.

[bosco]

Ok, I need to address this first... MacKenzie you are a coaster and you do not like seafood?????? What!!!!!!!

 

That salmon looks sensational  very nice cook.  I think I need to be grilling my fish hotter this is a great idea.  I always stay sub 400 and regret it each time.

 

Great looking plate of food!!

[tony b]

Nice looking piece of salmon, Wilbur!

 

Patience is not one of my virtues, either! 

[PRippley]

With the detail you give us newbies wilburpan, it goes a long way toward helping us gain the confidence to leave the gasser behind!😊Thank you!

[Poochie]

That salmon looks yummy to me. You've got some grill marks on it too. Like CC said, don't be too hard on yourself. You turn out some great food!

[ckreef]

Nice salmon and great write up. Took me a long time to finally figure out how to cook fish on a grill with out it sticking and tearing apart.

Another trick I learned from the Internet - use a LG 2 prong bbq fork. Put it down through the grates. Slide it over to the fish and gently try and lift it from the underside. If it still sticks give it a little more time. When it's ready it will release at which point you can flip it. Spaculas can really massacre fish especially if it wasn't ready to release yet.

[tony b]

Nice cooking tip, ckreef! I'll have to remember that one!