Since I released my Holiday Pork Loin video, I have received a few questions about the Cedar Plank Tray that I used and I hope to be able to provide you with a detailed description of how I make mine here. You can, of course use any type of plank you desire, oak, apple, hickory, pecan, etc. just match it up with the type of food you are cooking.Your grilling game will vastly improve when you add Cedar Plank Trays to your grilling arsenal. I received my Cedar Planks from Natures Choice, some of the finest Cedar Planks I have ever used.

You will need a few tools to make the Cedar Plank Trays:

• Table saw
• Safety goggles/glasses
• Tape measure
• Pencil
• Drill
• Small drill bit (slightly smaller than the nail you will be using)
• Hammer
• Nails
• Cedar Planks (or wood of your choice)

I make three different sizes of Cedar Plank Trays:

• Small 5″ x 5 1/2″ x 2 1/2″
• Medium 5″ x 9 1/2″ x 2 1/2″
• Large 5″ x 15″ x 2 1/2″

These sizes are just what I have found to save me as much wood as possible after cutting.

The large size is same as the delivered Cedar Planks from the manufacturer: 5″ x 15″ x 1/2″

So I am able to cut a medium and a small bottom out of one large plank.

The sides are cut from another piece. At the most you will need three planks to make a large Cedar Plank Tray.

Make several different sizes to maximize your waste.

Here is a typical layout for making a small Cedar Plank Tray with left over scrap to make a medium bottom (top right).

I have my 5″ x 5 1/2″ bottom piece, 6 1/2″ x 5″ long side and a 5 1/2″ x 5″ short side from just two Cedar planks.

Once you have cut your pieces out of the Cedar Planks you need to split the short and long side pieces into two halves each.

This will give you four pieces approximately 2 1/2″ wide.

Nail hole locations shown above (slight overkill).

Drill a pilot hole where the nails are going in the sides only (no holes drilled into the bottom piece).

Use a drill bit slightly smaller than the nails you will be using.

Nail holes drilled.

Note: I would only use four nail holes on a small Cedar Plank Tray – two on the bottom edge and one on each side.

The picture above is good for the medium and large trays.

Side attached with nails. – I use ribbed paneling nails for my boxes, they seem to hold better than smooth nails.

This box shows the 1/4″ grease weep holes. I drill these in when I am grilling greasy foods and don’t want it to pool up inside the tray.

The final Cedar Plank Tray assembled and ready for the grill.

Some final notes:

• Soaking is optional.
• You can use the trays multiple times (depending on the food you grilled).
• Keep a squirt bottle of water and an fire extinguisher close by when grilling.
• Do not leave the grill unattended.

Related Reading:

The Grilling Book: The Definitive Guide from Bon Appetit

Wood-Fired Cooking: Techniques and Recipes for the Grill, Backyard Oven, Fireplace, and Campfire

Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible: Master the Finesse Swing and Lower Your Score (Dave Pelz Scoring Game)

Weber's Big Book of Grilling

Sea Fishing - What Equipment to Use, How, Where and When to Fish - With Some Tips on How to Cook Fish Correctly

The Plank Grilling Cookbook: Infuse Food with More Flavor Using Wood Planks

The Total Outdoorsman Manual (Field & Stream)

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Last time we looked at selecting and preparing a pineapple for grilling in my “How to Grill Pineapples – purchasing and cutting” article. Now I will show you how I prepare and grill pineapple with a few tips thrown in for good measure. You will find that grilling pineapple is easy, abundantly delicious, and perfect for grilling as a side dish, desert or an accompaniment to amazing recipes for the grill. Rarely do I use canned pineapple on the grill, just too much water content to grill nicely. You will find that fresh pineapple is the grillers choice for all of the right reasons – fresh, juicy, tart, amazing color combination of deep dark crusty grill marks scored on a field of brilliant yellow-orange and bursting with sweetness that takes your sweet taste buds to another world.

Here we go how to grill pineapples!

A wedge, rings, slices, half or completely whole, it is all good on the grill. I choose wedges for this time, a nice corn dog stick in the end of these would make for a fun snack also. This pineapple was heading to the dark side (see top left corner of first full pineapple wedge) starting to over ripen a bit. Some might wish to trim these parts off or leave them there as I did, very sweet still and oh so juicy!

When grilling, do you oil the grate or the food?  OK, just received 101 answers from 100 grillers about that grilling question. I won’t stir the pot to much but I have been known to do both depending on my strategy at the time – how’s that for walking the middle road?

I am applying a light olive oil to my pineapple wedges before placing them on the grill. Oiling keeps the pineapples from sticking till the grill grates caramelize the pineapples to release from the grate and produce your grill marks (known as the Maillard reaction). Notice how dry the pineapple is? Moisture was removed with a paper towel first. This extra moisture prevents the pineapple from caramelizing as it steams on the grate, which is not what you want to accomplish.

How to grill pineapple? I grill my pineapple over direct medium-high heat; this seems to work the best with larger cuts of pineapple. Using charcoal or gas is great for grilling your pineapple. Just a few minutes on each side to get those juices released in the pineapple and nice grill marks to form. Don’t play around with the pineapple by checking and flipping, peak and flip when it’s ready, patience pays off here.

Once you have those beautiful grill marks on your pineapple, it’s time to add your next flavor profile (if you choose to). I brushed on a simple brown sugar, cinnamon, honey and rum glaze to finish off the grilled pineapple. This will only take a minute or two longer, just enough time for the glaze to set. You could also just sprinkle some sugar on the pineapple or brush on some honey, or eat it as is, simple is good.

Now you know how to grill pineapples! One of the quickest crowd-pleasing grill treats I like to serve.

Related Reading:

Weber's Big Book of Grilling

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Fruits and Vegetables Smoothies Detox

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Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun

The Barbecue! Bible

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Grilled pineapple is one of life’s great grilling pleasures. When you grill pineapples, they are soft, crunchy, juicy, sweet, tart, aromatic, colorful and easy if done correctly. I always include grilled pineapples in my grilling classes for that refreshing “Ah Ha!” moment for all of the new grillers in class. Grilled pineapple is a great addition to many recipe, drinks, side dishes and appetizers but by far the most appealing taste come from grilling pineapples.

In this first of two article on “How to Grill Pineapples – purchasing and cutting”, there are several tips I will share with you on how to prepare your pineapples for the grill from wikiHow that will having you rushing to the store to pick one up for the grill.

How to Tell if a Pineapple Is Ripe

from wikiHow

How do you tell when a pineapple is ripe and tasty? Many of us have experienced the rapidly deteriorating pineapple or the under ripe pineapple. If you want to get it right, there are some little tricks guaranteed to help you choose the right pineapple each time.

Steps

1. Be alert for two key elements of a ripe pineapple: freshness and deterioration. You are looking for a fresh pineapple, not a rotting one. The stem is the area of the pineapple that feeds sugar to the fruit. It is from here that the pineapple changes color.
2. Look at the pineapple. It should reflect a golden yellow color. The minimum area for this should be on the eyes at the base of the fruit. Never purchase a pineapple that is fully green as it will not ripen well. The higher the color rises up the pineapple, the sweeter it will be.
   • Be aware that some pineapples are considered to be ripe when green. This is the claim of those promoting them; you be the judge by testing them when green. The varieties that claim this include the Central American pineapple and some Hawaiian pineapples.
3. Smell the pineapple. If it smells sweet, then it’s ready. If it has no scent, it’s not ripe. If it smells fermented, it’s overripe!
4. Touch the pineapple gently. It should be firm to a gentle press and only yield slightly. If it’s soft or spongy, don’t buy it.
5. Beware the myth! It is an urban myth that a pineapple is ripe when a leaf can be removed from the crown easily. It is proof of nothing in terms of ripeness.[1] If a leaf does come out easily, the pineapple is rotten (which should be evident already) and if you can pick the scales off a pineapple, that’s a bad sign because it means that the interior has gone soft, and will be sour and unpleasant.
6. Don’t buy or eat a deteriorating pineapple. A deteriorating pineapple will be a reddish, bronze color or it may even be green. It will smell as if it is fermenting, like vinegar. It will also be mushy when pushed gently and it will likely have wrinkled skin. Other clear indications include mold, oozing sticky juices, cracks in the skin and leaves turning brown and dropping off. It’s only good for the compost heap at this stage.
   • Avoid any pineapple that appears bruised or withered or has browning leaves.

Ripening a pineapple

1. If you’ve purchased a pineapple that isn’t ripe enough yet, try these steps:

• Stand the pineapple upside down on the kitchen counter.
• Wait for it to develop a golden hue and a good smell. This method works by encouraging the sugar to flow toward the top of the pineapple.[2]

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Tell if a Pineapple Is Ripe. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Cut a Pineapple

from wikiHow

Pineapples (Ananas comosus) are best eaten fresh. It is healthier to cut a pineapple at home rather than resorting to the pre-cut variety available in a can with additives and preservatives. Get fresh with a pineapple!
Steps

1. Choose a good quality pineapple. Use your sense of smell––the pineapple must smell highly aromatic, namely sweet and fresh. If you detect an odor that suggests fermentation or there is no sweetness present, skip that pineapple. Prefer pineapples that are heavy for their size and avoid pineapples that are bruised or mushy to the touch.
2. Place the pineapple on its side.
3. Cut the crown and the stem off the pineapple.
4. Stand the pineapple up on one end. Slice the skin off the sides, going from top to bottom. Leave as much flesh as possible remaining on the pineapple––by following the contour of the fruit, this will help to prevent loss of flesh where the pineapple bulges in the middle.
5. Remove the eye spots. Eye spots are on a diagonal on the pineapple. Cut a V-shaped groove along the diagonal line and remove a set of eye spots each cut. The remaining flesh is ready for cutting now.
6. Cut the pineapple. The type of cut depends on how you want to use the pineapple. You can choose from any of these cuts:
   • Cut pineapple circles. Simply cut the pineapple circle slices in a width suited for your needs. Core each circle slice after cutting; this can be done with ease using a round pastry or dough cutter.
   • Cut the pineapple into halves, then quarters for cubes or wedges. For each quarter, cut off the core before segmenting into chunks, then cut the chunks to size.
7. Add the pineapple to your recipe or meal. It is delicious eaten as it is with nothing added or you can add yogurt, whipped cream, crushed nuts, etc. Or use it to make pineapple upside-down cake, as an addition to a meat dish or as a decoration atop a dessert.

Tips

• The white fibrous matter in the core tastes bitter but some people like this taste. It is safe to eat, and healthy (it contains antioxidants), but it may not be to your texture because it’s generally tough, although the actual taste is mild and quite appealing.
• Pineapples are low in fat and cholesterol free. They contain vitamin C and trace essential nutrients. And they are brimful of great fiber.
• Pineapples contain bromelin; this is an enzyme that breaks down protein. This makes pineapple juice great for marinating tough meat but don’t marinate for too long or the meat will fall apart. Bromelin also stops gelatin from setting, so if you want to make gelatin desserts using pineapple, either cook it first or used the canned version, as both processes destroy bromelin.

Warnings

• Exercise the usual caution when using a knife. Make sure that the base of the pineapple is stable before slicing off the fruit skin.

Article provided by wikiHow, a wiki how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Cut a Pineapple. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

Next time we will grill our pineapple with a delightful blend of butter, honey, and cinnamon over a bed of coals.

Related Reading:

The Cruiser's Handbook of Fishing

Weber's Big Book of Grilling

The Total Outdoorsman Manual (Field & Stream)

Fred Thompson's Southern Sides: 250 Dishes That Really Make the Plate

Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun

Weber's Big Book of Grilling

The Cook's Illustrated Guide To Grilling And Barbecue

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