Banana Leaf

Ah yes, banana leaf. The culinary gem that everyone's eating these days.

Okay, you can't really eat it. But believe you me, it serves a culinary purpose. Banana leaves are typically employed in Indian, Southeast Asian, Polynesian and South American cuisines. Or, you know, places where banana trees grow indigenously. They are used for frying, steaming, boiling, or as serving vessels, and are believed to impart flavor and aroma while retaining the cooking juices. I think the latter school of thought is poppycock because of the leaf's porous nature, but I've only been to one luau, so I can hardly consider myself an expert.

Hey, it's a banana leaf. Pretend for a moment the fish isn't there. We'll get to him. Banana leaves are kept well frozen, take up very little freezer space, and thaw surprisingly quickly (within 30 minutes or so), so they're a great auxilary culinary item to have in your kitchen. I'd never used banana leaves before, so I was wowed at how big these suckers really are. We're talking feet. Their thin and flimsy nature makes them quite simple to cut, so I had a little fun by making some throwing stars and rising sun headbands in case the red snapper went all zombie on me. (I'll act like a 4-year-old if I want--it's my blog.) Banana leaves smell incredibly like green tea. Now typically one doesn't eat them, but I had to try it. Sure enough, it tasted like green tea with a hint of artichoke. The texture, however, makes it pretty much unpalatable.

Vietnamese Red Snapper Steamed with Banana Leaves

2 red snappers, scaled and gutted

1 medium shallot, minced

3 cloves garlic, minced

3 Vietnamese/Thai peppers, minced

1 1" nub galangal, minced (or ginger)

2 T Thai basil

1.5 T cilantro

pinch brown sugar

pinch kosher salt

1 banana leaf, cut large enough to wrap the fish completely

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. If you have a mortar and pestle or food processor, I suggest using them to create a paste out of the ingredients (other than the fish), but mincing them works just fine. Slice 1/4" deep slits in the fish (2 or 3 depending on the size) and rub the paste into them as well as the stomach cavity. Let the snapper sit for 30 minutes. Wrap the fish like a burrito within the banana leaf and place into a glass dish with the opening side facing down. Place in the oven 20ish minutes, or until slightly flaky.* Serve with dipping sauce.

*The general rule of thumb with baking fish is 10 minutes per inch, but that's uncovered. 12 minutes ought to do it with the leaf.

Chet really needed to lose weight before he could defend his hide-and-seek championship belt.

Vietnamese Dipping Sauce (Nuoc Cham)

2 limes, juiced (about 2T)

2 T warm water

1 T brown sugar

1 T fish sauce

1 T vinegar

1 tsp soy sauce

1 clove garlic, minced

1 Vietnamese/Thai peppers

1/2 T cilantro and basil, minced

Combine all ingredients and adjust as necessary. I like mine sweet and hot, so sometimes I'll add more sugar and peppers.

Rice Cream Cone

1 C Thai basmati rice

1 C coconut milk

1 C water

1 heaping tsp. brown sugar

tiny tab of butter

about 20 Thai basil leaves

pinch kosher salt

Follow the directions to cook the rice and substitute half the water/stock suggested with coconut milk. Wrap your banana leaf in a conical shape and spoon the rice into it.

Yum. The dish is sweet, salt, spicy, hot, herbacious, and in general everything that you'd expect in a Southeast Asian dish. And believe it or not, the banana leaves really did make themselves known. The bites where the leaf flavor popped were those that weren't covered by the paste. The "rice cream cone" was very good and provided some thickness, sweetness, and starch to a somewhat thin and spicy dish. I was trying to create a "boat" out of the leaf for plating but left my stapler at work, so I tried something I'd never seen before and just wrapped that puppy up. The basil went great with the coconut in it and the dipping sauce complemented the flavor as well.

All in all, I was happy with the dish. It's very flavorful and I didn't feel like a fat mess afterward, which was a nice reprieve from most dishes I make. I think next time I really want to experience banana leaf, I will cook the fish plain (with a little salt) and then serve it with a Chinese oyster/hoisin type of sauce.

Next post: Apple snails