Cooking on Slate

Shrimp cooking on slate.  Photo by Rob Robitaille

 I love cooking on slate.  It is not very common in this country, but more so in France.  Called pierrade cooking, it is basically a piece of slate over an open flame.  The slate acts much like any other pan, but it imparts a wonderful mineral flavor to whatever is cooked on it, and if used in a fireplace, you get a nice smokey flavor as well.  But, we don't have a wood fireplace and the thought of standing in the snow over the Weber has lost its appeal now that I am 45, so it was time to utilize the next best thing, a gas cook top.  We decided on shrimp and scallops, which had nothing more than a pinch of salt for seasoning.  The rest of the seasoning was from the slate. The shrimp were slightly seared and perfectly done.  The slate adds a mineral hint, which initially reminds you of black pepper, but more complex.  It is wonderful. 

Now, you may be wondering where you get slate for cooking?  I get mine from the flooring section of my local home center.  The important thing is that it can't be chemically treated in any way, so it is best to verify that fact before buying it.  These are just straight up untreated 100% slate floor tile.  Once you have your tiles in hand, the rest is easy, but there are some caveats.  We have already talked about the most important one, no chemicals.  The next most important thing is to keep them in a very dry place.  I always keep a box in one of my lower cupboards.  If they are not kept in a dry place, the moisture will cause the tile to pop apart when you heat it.

Here is how I use the slate tile.  I give it a quick wash and dry it very well.  Then I put it in the oven and turn it on to 500 so that the tile can temper.  Once the oven beeps telling me that it has reached 500, I leave it in for another 15 minutes.  I like this method because the oven works like a containment unit in the event your tile was damp and it pops apart.  When the 15 minutes have passed, I  move the slate with a pair of tongs to the hottest burner on my cook top and fire it up.  Slate is not like cooking on metal and it takes a bit to get it really hot.  Once a drop of water skitters on it, it is ready to use.  Then, just cook your food like you would normally.  Later, once the tile has cooled, you can check it to see if it is damaged.  If it still seems to be in one piece, you can wash it and put it away for another use.  However, I have found they tend to crack in half after only one use, but occasionally I do get two uses out of one. Fortunately, a box of slate tiles is relatively inexpensive, and it's not like I use them every day.

If you decide that this is something you would enjoy doing and you are a bold cook, I would encourage you to try, but be very careful.  You will be dealing with a natural product that has a tendency to do what it wants from time to time.  But, you if are cool with that, go forth and boldly cook and above all, have fun.