Street food is something that brings back memories of college days for most of us. No matter which part of the World you are from, street food usually holds a special place in your life. It is an amalgamation of tastes; sweet, salty, sour, spicy, umami! With the simplest of ingredients and techniques, the street hawkers manage to bring out a burst of flavor. I am always amazed by this fact. I think I can safely say that Asia has the best street food markets! I was recently watching a documentary on Vietnam and its food. One thing that intrigued my interest was grilled meat wrapped in beetle nut leaf. We call the betel nut leaf paan in India. I used to only have it as a mouth freshener. The possibility of making something else with it was fascinating. So I decided to give it a go. I bought some Vietnamese ingredients, created this Vietnamese inspired recipe and the results were mouthwatering! This meat wrapped in paan leaf left an earthy aroma when grilled! I will be making this more often, especially since barbeque season is upon us! 🙂
What you will need:
Ingredients | Quantity |
---|---|
Beetle Nut Leaves | 12 |
Black Pepper Powder | 1/2 teaspoon |
Cilantro/ Coriander Leaves | 1/4 bunch |
Dark Soya Sauce | 1 tablespoon |
Fish Sauce | 1/2 teaspoon |
Garlic | 1/2 bulb |
Ginger | 1 inch |
Lemon Grass Paste | 1 1/2 teaspoon |
Minced Chicken (or any meat of your choice) | 1 pound |
Oil | 2 tablespoons |
Salt | 1/2 teaspoon |
Shallot | 1 large |
Thai Chilies | 2 |
Vinegar | 1 teaspoon |
How to make it:
- Wash and dry the betel nut leaves. Remove the stalk from the back.
- In a food processor, add the shallots, garlic, Thai chilies, ginger, coriander leaves. Also add the fish sauce, soya sauce, vinegar, salt, and pepper. Pulse until finely chopped.
- Add these chopped ingredients to the minced meat along with salt. Mix well.
- Place a little bit of the minced meat mixture on the betel nut leaf. Wrap as shown below.
- Line 3-4 wrapped leaves together. Secure with skewers as shown.
- Brush with oil. Grill until the meat is cooked. Turn frequently.
- Serve with dipping sauce of your choice.