First off, we need to square away that whiskey isn’t just for drinking and maple syrup is not just for pancakes or waffles. Whiskey is great in sauces and glazes as well as cocktails. So is maple syrup. In fact, this WhistlePig maple syrup is only available for bartenders to blend in with cocktails, although this syrup that is aged in whiskey barrels, will soon be available for the general public. This was an experiment I did with both whiskey and syrup that turned out amazing. So let’s get at this Whiskey, Maple Syrup Salmon recipe.

Whiskey, Maple Syrup Salmon Ingredients:

1 cedar plank
1 side of salmon
Coarse salt
6 tbsp of WhistlePig Rye whiskey
6 tbsp of maple syrup (the real stuff, not the imitation junk)
Fresh thyme, divided
Purple onion, chopped and divided
1 lime, sliced
1 lemon, sliced
2 cutie oranges, sliced
1 blood orange, sliced
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp poppy seeds

Start by soaking the cedar plank in water for an hour

Salmon prep

Then place the side of salmon, skin side down on the plank and hit the salmon with some coarse salt:

Next up, spoon over some of the Whistle Pig Rye over the salmon:

And then drizzle the maple syrup:

At this point, you can let the salmon sit there and absorb that whiskey and syrup for an hour or so:

Then hit the salmon with the thyme and some chopped purple onion before layering the slices of citrus fruit:

Then more thyme and onion before sprinkling the sesame seeds and poppy seeds:

How to Grill Whiskey, Maple Syrup Salmon

Now, prepare the grill for medium high heat and place the cedar plank over the heat:

Something interesting happened to the syrup and whiskey on the cedar plank.You will notice the liquid surrounding the fish will foam and turn white. This is normal so don’t worry about that effect.

Once the salmon reaches anything above 145 degrees internal, it is ready to serve:

Now pour a nice WhistlePig rye and slice that salmon and devour:

Here’s a shot of the three main ingredients of this recipe:

And here’s a close up of the inside of that salmon:

Whiskey, Maple Syrup Salmon Summary

The beautiful part of this recipe is that each bite is a little different. One might have some hint of blood orange and thyme. One might have stronger notes of lemon and purple onion, but every bite has the hints of whiskey and syrup which bring all of these flavors together. Sweet, savory, citrus, fatty salmon, herbs and onion. It really is a fantastic dish.

WhistlePig Rye sponsored this post. If you haven’t had a chance to try the WhistlePig and enjoy a good whiskey or bourbon, or on this case, rye, then run, don’t walk to you local spirits vendor. I consider my bar naked without a bottle of WhistlePig on it to offer guests and to celebrate with. And I can honestly say that I’ve had a bottle of WhistlePig on my bar for at least 5 years. Basically, from the time I learned to really appreciate whiskey, I fell in love with the Pig and so will you.

We have all sorts of other great grilled or smoked seafood recipes.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below or shoot me an email.

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Print Recipe

Whiskey, Maple Syrup Salmon

Whiskey and maple syrup drizzled salmon, topped with thyme, chopped purple onions, slices of orange/lime/lemon and garnished with poppy and sesame seeds, all grilled on a cedar plank.

Prep Time20

Cook Time30

Course: Entree, Fish, Main Course

Cuisine: American, American Fare, Barbecue, BBQ, Fish, Grilling, Salmon, Seafood

Keyword: Cedar Plank, Cedar Plank Fish, Cedar Plank Salmon, Fish, Gas Grill, Grill, Grilled Fish, Planked Salmon, Salmon, Smoked Fish, Whiskey, Whistle Pig, Whistle Pig Rye

Servings: People

Equipment

1 Cedar Plank

Ingredients

1 side salmon
coarse salt
6 tbsp Whistle Pig Rye whiskey
6 tbsp maple syrup (the real stuff, not the imitation junk)
fresh thyme divided
red onion chopped and divided
1 lime sliced
1 lemon sliced
2 cutie oranges sliced
1 blood orange sliced
1 tsp sesame seeds
1 tsp poppy seeds

Instructions

Soak the cedar plank in water for an hour
Remove the plank from the water and place the side of salmon it
Salt the salmon and then drizzle the Whistle Pig rye over it
Then do the same with the maple syrup
Sprinkle the fresh thyme and purple onions, then layer the lime, lemon, and both kinds of oranges
Add more thyme and sprinkle with poppy and sesame seeds
Place in the plank in a 400 degree grill until the salmon hits 145 degree internal
Remove from the heat and serve

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Scott Thomas

Scott Thomas, the Original Grillin’ Fool, was sent off to college with a suitcase and a grill where he overcooked, undercooked and burned every piece of meat he could find. After thousands of failures, and quite a few successes, nearly two decades later he started a website to show step by step, picture by picture, foolproof instructions on how to make great things out of doors so that others don’t have to repeat the mistakes he’s made on the grill.