Everyone loves Salmon, and it is also very healthy. It is very low in saturated fat and a good source of protein. It’s also one of the best sources of vitamin B12, potassium, and other nutrients like iron and vitamin D.
In my opinion, cooking salmon on pellet grill is the best way to prepare salmon, and we LOVE our pellet grills for this. Woodfire adds such a key element to the end result. In this article, I am going to tell you how to cook salmon on pellet grill.
With an incredible recipe that your entire family will love! Flavorful and perfectly cooked salmon straight off the grill with only a few ingredients. This is easy to make any day of the week for a light and savory dinner. Let’s start!
Table of Contents
How to Cook Salmon on Pellet Grill?
Everyone loves a good flaky, flavorful, and perfectly grilled salmon. The pellet grill is really a great way to cook with this amazing recipe to have a wonderfully tendered and delicious taste. Let’s see how to cook salmon on pellet grill in just 5 easy steps.
1. Prepare the Salmon
Lay the salmon skin-side down on a cutting board. By running your finger on the salmon, feel for pin bones. When you find it, take a tweezer to remove them and discard it. To remove scales, use a flexible knife and run it along the skin against the grain. Rinse and dry.
2. Seasoning
Combine the kosher salt and sugar. Sprinkle about 25% of the brine on the skin side of the salmon fillet and 75% on the flesh side, then allow the fish to dry brine for 20-30 minutes. Wash the dry brine and juices from the fillet and pat dry.
3. Preheat the pellet grill
Preheating your smoker is an important step to ensure that your food cooks evenly. Preheat your pellet grill to 215°F. If you place your food on the grill before heating, chances are that one side will cook differently from the other.
4. Place salmon on the grill
Place the seasoned salmon fillet in the center of your pellet grill. The first side of the grates will cook at a lower temperature than the other side facing up. Smoke the salmon until it reaches an internal temperature of 145°F, approximately 50–60 minutes
5. Serve
Now it is time to serve. You can choose to serve your salmon immediately off the grill or allow it to cool uncovered in the refrigerator and serve chilled. Garnish with lemon, and enjoy your perfectly cooked salmon.
How to Cook Salmon on Wood Pellet Grill?
With just a handful of ingredients and a wood pellet grill, we can make a delicious and moist salmon that everybody will love. When someone asks me how to cook salmon on wood pellet grill, I suggest these simple steps that you can follow as well. Let’s get into it.
1. Ingredients
You need to have these ingredients. Fresh or frozen. About a 2–3-pound fillet. Leave the fillet whole. And Paprika, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and raw sugar. Mix the ingredients for the spice rub in a small bowl.
2. Marinate
The salmon is going to be marinated in a glaze before grilling, so it’s best to prepare this a few hours in advance so the salmon can soak in the marinade. The longer you let them sit and soak in the marinade, the better.
3. Preheat the Grill
Preheat your smoker. Set the temperature to 275-300 degrees. Add your favorite wood pallets on top of the charcoal. You can also add flavored wood pellets if you want, like, cherry and maple.
4. Place the Salmon
Once you are ready to grill the salmon, it’s best to grease the grills with some oil or rub some grapeseed oil on the salmon. When the grill has come up to the correct temperature, place salmon on the grill.
5. Cook and enjoy
Cook for about 1 hour at 275-300 degrees until the internal temperature of the salmon, measured in the middle of the thickest part, reaches 145 degrees. When it’s cooked completely, garnish it with some lemon and enjoy.
Cooking Salmon on a Pit Boss Pellet Grill
The Pit Boss Cedar Plank pellet grill is amazing. It cooks slowly and low, and this is my favorite way to cook. Pit Boss Cedar Plank pellet grills are easily available at Walmart. I love the cost of them, and it has never disappointed me yet.
Since it only takes a relatively short amount of time to cook, this is a popular dish among seafood lovers who own a pellet grill or smoker. Now let’s have a look at how easy it is to cook salmon on a pit boss pellet grill.
1. Ingredients
You will need 3 Cedar Plank, 1 Tsp Minced Garlic, 1/3 cup Olive Oil, 1 teaspoon Onion, Salt, 1 teaspoon fresh minced Parsley, 1-1/2 tablespoons Rice Vinegar, 2 Salmon Filets (skin removed), 1 teaspoon Sesame Oil and 1/3 Cup Soy Sauce.
2. Soak Cedar Plank
The second step is soaking cedar plank in the water for 30 mint or up to 2 hours. Use a heavy can to keep them from floating. Flip occasionally to make sure they’re evenly soaked. This helps prevent the wood from catching on fire while you cook.
3. Mix and Marinate
In a bowl, mix all the spices and seasoning and add salmon and let it marinate for 30 minutes so that it has time to soak up all of the delicious flavors, but not more than 1 hour. Marinating for too long can result in a mushy piece of fish.
4. Preheat the grill
Start your grill on smoke with the lid open until a fire is established in the burn pot (3-7 minutes). Preheat the grill to 225°F as it is considered to be the ideal temperature. Preheating helps to reach the required temperature for cooking.
5. Place the Plank
Place the planks on the grate. Once the boards start to smoke and crackle a little, it’s ready for the fish. Remove the fish from marinating and discard the marination.
6. Place the Salmon
The next step is to place the salmon on the plank. Grill until it reaches 140°F internal temperature. start checking the temperature after the salmon has been on the grill for 30 minutes. Be sure to use a meat thermometer to ensure your salmon is cooked to 145 degrees.
7. Cook and Serve
Salmon cooks quickly on the grill and takes about 12 minutes total. Once it is cooked, completely garnish it with some lemon and parsley and serve.
How to Smoke Salmon on Pellet Grill?
Smoked salmon is one of my favorite things. If you got a pellet grill, then Smoked salmon is super easy to make and more economical than buying from a grocery store. Let’s have a look at how to smoke salmon on pellet grill in an easy way.
1. Ingredients
In this easy recipe, you would need only 4 ingredients to cook and smoke salmon on a pellet grill. 8 ounces of salmon fillets, half a cup of sugar, 1/3 cup of sea salt, and 1/3 cup of pure maple syrup.
2. Brine the Salmon
Put the salmon fillets in a lidded container large enough for them to lay flat. Put 4 cups of cool water in a large measuring cup. Stir in the sugar and salt until it has dissolved. And pour over the salmon. Store covered and chilled for at least 4 hours, up to 8 hours.
3. Preheat the Grill
When it is time to smoke salmon, preheat the grill to 160 degrees F. If you have the option for smoke control, turn the smoke to high. Preheating helps to reach the required temperature for cooking.
4. place and brush the salmon
Lay the salmon directly on the grill grates and insert a temperature probe into the thickest part of the fish. Brush the fish with some maple syrup and close the lid. I love the way the sweet-smoky-salty flavors combine.
5. Cook the Salmon
Add some flavored wood pellets at this point. I like to use cherry wood pellets for mine and really like the result. Continue to smoke the salmon until the temperature probe reads 140 degrees. Brush the fish with maple syrup every 30 minutes or so.
6. Serve
Remove the fish from the grill and serve immediately. You can also make this ahead of time. When the fish cools to room temperature, wrap it up and store it in the fridge until you’re ready to eat.
Salmon on Pellet Grill at 350
Salmon on a pellet grill should be grilled over medium heat, about 375 to 400 degrees F. Once you close the grill lid, the salmon should cook for 14-18 minutes until almost completely cooked through at the thickest part.
Pellet Grill Salmon Temperature
Salmon cooks quickly on a pellet grill, usually no more than 12 minutes total. So don’t walk away or get distracted. The salmon will be medium-rare when an instant-read thermometer inserted into the thickest portion reads 120 degrees F. let it rest a few minutes before serving.
FAQs: How to Cook Salmon on Pellet Grill?
Final Remarks
Salmon is one of the healthiest and easiest to cook seafood. People love to eat it. As it cooks quickly, so many people get confused about how to cook salmon on pellet grill and what should be pellet grill salmon temperature.
I hope this article has solved all your problems and cleared your mind. I have discussed some quick ways and recipes that will help you next time you grill your salmon on a pellet grill. Until next time, Bye!