At Palisade Restaurant, where wood cooking is featured, executive chef John Howie developed an entourage of recipes using cedar and alder planks, including one for his signature salmon with basil-tarragon rub.

Yet a lot of people are intimidated by the thought of using wood to cook at home. It's a fear easy enough to conquer. With practically no fuss, you can soak chips from hard woods like hickory and mesquite and throw them onto a charcoal fire to imbue meats and fish with that irresistible, unmistakable smoky flavor. Or, you can try a technique that's less well-known despite its long local history: Cooking on wood planks. Adapted from the Native American tradition of fire-pit planking, the modern home method is really pretty basic. All you need is a piece of kiln-dried cedar or alder and the fish or meat of your choice. The plank rests directly on top of your gas or charcoal grill — or even on a rack in your oven.

Several fine Northwest restaurants have pioneered the way for home cooks, offering specialties such as alder-plank-roasted salmon and cedar-plank-roasted halibut. Palisade Restaurant executive chef John Howie has gone one step further, creating a home business selling planks and related wares to everyday cooks.

To get started No matter how desperate you may be for wood-flavored food, never cook with composites like plywood or woods such as pine or fir that give off resinous fumes. Instead, rely on a reputable commercial product. Check out www.plankcooking.com for planks and recipes from John Howie. Similar cooking planks are available at www.chinookplanks.com and at several local cooking stores.

"It is one of the simplest and easiest ways to cook," says Howie, who was inspired while developing recipes that would capture the restaurant's Northwest/Polynesian feel. "People are blown away by the results and by how easy it is."

Howie first learned about plank cooking 10 years ago from a Seattle company called Chinook Planks, whose products he used to develop Palisade's signature cedar-roasted salmon with a basil-tarragon rub.

But he soon realized the company couldn't supply all the planks the restaurant needed, so he sought help from his stepfather, Phil Bagwill, who was working in the lumber industry at the time. Bagwill began making planks from knot-free, kiln-dried Western red cedar; Howie started a Web site (www.plankcooking.com) and wrote two cookbooks, "The Cedar Plank Cookbook" and "The Plank Cookbook." When Howie appeared on the Martha Stewart Living television show early last year, orders skyrocketed. Now the business sells both cedar and alder oven planks, cedar barbecue planks, cookbooks, spice rubs and a variety of related gift packs.

Recipe from John Howie, executive chef, Palisade Restaurant Serves 2

Dry rub seasoning - Makes 1/4 cup 2 teaspoons lemon pepper 1 teaspoon granulated garlic 1 teaspoon dried tarragon 1 teaspoon dried basil 1 tablespoon paprika 1 tablespoon Kosher salt 2 teaspoons light brown sugar Place ingredients in a food processor or spice grinder and process until well blended. Transfer to a small bowl or cup, wrap tightly and store at room temperature until ready to use. Salmon 1 cedar BBQ grilling plank 2 six-ounce pieces of fresh salmon fillet, about 2 inches thick, skin removed 1 tablespoon dry rub seasoning 1 lemon, cut into 4 wedges 1. Place the fillets on wax paper. Sprinkle both sides of the fish evenly with the dry rub (1 1/2 teaspoons per serving). Press the seasoning into the flesh. 2. Refrigerate the salmon, uncovered, for at least 2 hours and up to 12 hours. 3. Place the salmon pieces in the center of the cedar BBQ grilling plank. Squeeze a lemon wedge over the salmon. Place the plank on a grill. If using a charcoal grill, wait until coals are covered with gray ash. If using a gas grill, preheat on high then turn down to medium before placing the planks on the grill. Cover with a lid. 4. There will be some crackling and heavy smoke. Keep a water bottle handy in case the planks begin to flame. If they do, sprinkle lightly and cover again. Salmon should take 8 to 10 minutes to cook, depending on the thickness of the salmon and the heat of the grill. Remove when the salmon reaches an internal temperature of 120 to 125 degrees. Garnish with lemon wedges and serve. Print friendly version.

The cedar "BBQ grill planks" (6 for $15.95), designed for one-time use, are ideal for fish, boneless chicken breasts or thin pork chops. Each plank can be used to cook up to four 6-ounce portions. Preparation is simple: Soak the planks in water for an hour, and if you're cooking fish, take the skin off first. Season according to a recipe or your own inclinations, but remember: The wood is the spice you highlight here.

That's because when it's exposed to the heat of cooking, cedar releases oil that gives food an intense flavor and keeps it moist at the same time. You won't need to add any butter or oil, so it's great for creating low-fat meals. And simple.

In fact, it's so easy you don't even have to turn over your food. When you grill, the planks charcoalize and cook from the bottom, Howie explains.

If you're using a charcoal grill, wait until the coals are coated in gray ash before putting on the planks. Cover the grill and let the plank do the rest. Cooking time is usually 8 to 10 minutes. Sparking and crackling is normal, so don't worry. But you may want to keep a water bottle on hand in the unlikely event that you see an unruly flame or two.

For cooking on a gas grill, preheat it on high, then turn it down to medium when you're ready to put on the food. Put the seasoned meat or fish on the presoaked planks, set them on the grill, cover and wait. Check the food in 8 to 10 minutes.

If it's raining and you've got a hankering for that smoky taste, plank cooking in the oven presents a lot of tasty options. Howie's recipes include halibut with lemon-chardonnay sauce, sage-rubbed pork loin roast with cider glaze, and lemon-garlic prawns. And besides cedar, the oven planks come in alder for a subtler, softer sort of flavor. Unlike the BBQ planks, the oven planks last several years, so they're more expensive ($49.95 for a 16-by-7-inch alder, for instance, including cookbook, shipping and a tool for tightening the plank).

Whatever way you go, once you've tasted food cooked on wood planks, you may never be satisfied with your plain charcoal or gas grill again. It must be that primal thing.

Catherine M. Allchin is a Seattle writer. Tom Reese is a Seattle Times staff photographer.