Food - Drink
Is A Cedar Plank Safe To Use In The Oven?
By WENDY LEIGH
Cedar plank cooking might seem relatively new, but culinary enthusiasts have been sizzling up steaks and seafood on planks of wood since at least the early 20th century. Today, the technique commonly involves an outdoor grill, but if grilling isn’t your thing, you may wonder if your oven can accommodate cedar.
It's a common consensus that wood-plank cooking works just fine in traditional indoor ovens, and the wood is actually less likely to catch fire without the flames of a grill. The wood also requires only 15 minutes of soaking in water before cooking, rather than an hour, and the process will still keep food from drying out.
Many companies that make cedar cooking planks advise to season the wood with cooking oil before using it the first time, but since an oven’s temperatures are more controllable, a simple coating of oil is fine. Also, you can buy special grilling or baking planks, but also universal planks that work with both applications.