BBQ Smoking Plank Whisky/Oak - Grill Fanatics

A smoking plank whisky oak is the easiest way to add smoke to a dish: you place the food on the plank and the plank does the rest. The oak wood is pre-treated with whisky aroma, giving you a warm, lightly sweet undertone alongside the robust oak smoke. Salmon, trout, cheese and chicken come out especially well this way. You don't need a smoker box or chunks, and you don't have to keep opening the lid.

What a smoking plank whisky oak does to your dish

As soon as the plank warms up, the underside starts to smoulder. That sends the smoke up from right beneath the food, rather than from the bottom of your barbecue. That gives a more direct flavour and keeps your fish or cheese in place at the same time. On a kamado this works nicely, because the closed dome holds the smoke around the dish.

• Oak smoke with whisky aroma: fuller than fruit wood, not sharp
• Fish, cheese, chicken and vegetables stay intact and don't stick
• No smoker box or loose chunks needed
• Works indirect on a kamado and direct on a kettle or gas barbecue
• The plank catches fat, so your grate stays cleaner

How to use the plank

Soak the plank in water for at least an hour, with a weight on it so it stays submerged. Pat it dry, place your dish on it and put the plank on the grate at around 160 to 200 degrees. Close the lid and let the dish cook until the core temperature is right. Keep a spray bottle or something to extinguish flames handy in case the edges of the plank start to flare.

Reuse and maintenance

If the plank has only browned, you can often use it a second time. Rinse it with hot water, no soap, and let it dry completely. Once the wood is black, cracked or brittle, it's done: at that point it mainly gives off bitter smoke.

Want to use several planks in a row? Check out the 30 cm smoking planks or the wider range of smoking planks. All wood types and shapes are listed under smoking wood.