I recently bought Dina Guillen’s cookbook Pizza on a Plank about grilling pizza on a 7 x 15 inch wooden plank. I bought some cedar planks and the photo is my first attempt. I made a barbeque pork pizza using 1 serving worth of dough from Pizza for Many or For One.
This posting is all about technique.
Start by soaking the wooden plank in cold water for at least an hour. Put something heavy on top of the plank to make sure it is fully submerged.
Preheat the barbeque grill to a target temperature of 475-500 degrees.
Have the dough, some cornmeal, and all the toppings ready to use. Have a spray bottle with water handy in case the plank catches on fire vs. smoldering. (A small amount of grey smoke as the edges of the plank char is good. The plank catching fire and producing black smoke is not good!)
On a well-floured surface stretch the dough so that it is the shape of the plank.
Put the soaked plank on the preheated grill, close the lid and toast one side for a couple of minutes. Then flip the plank and toast the other side for a couple of minutes. The objective is to have the edges slightly charring so that a light grey smoke comes out of the grill.
Sprinkle the prepared plank with cornmeal. Fold the dough loosely in thirds and put it on the plank on the grill. Poke it with a fork in multiple places to keep it from puffing too much. Close the lid and prebake the crust 5-7 minutes before adding any toppings. Keep an eye on the temperature and on the level of smoke.
After 5-7 minutes, open the lid and quickly top the pizza, and then close the lid. Bake the pizza for another 5-7 minutes until done, again keeping an eye on the temperature and level of smoke. Remove the plank from the grill and then the pizza from the plank and cut and serve.
The plank can be used multiple times if washed in cold water (without soap) and put in a plastic bag and stored in the freezer until the next use. A plank used for pizza can probably be used for any other purpose. A plank used to grill fish should only be reused for fish.