2 Way Thai Betel Leaf Wraps
To those that know me personally, it's no secret I love recipe creating. I've been dabbling, exploring and improving different takes on dishes from all over the globe for as long as I can remember. It all started though, watching my late father in the kitchen with his huge stack of recipe cards "what would you like for dinner tonight my darling?... Mexican or Italian?"... I loved that even though he grew up with a very old English way of dining, that meat and two veg wasn't going to cut it. The man wanted diversity!
I would sit on our old wooden kitchen bench (they weren't cool back then) and watch him scroll through his rolodex of diverse cuisines. I watched in awe as he would throw about all the different ingredients, trying to find substitutions for the things he didn't have on hand, and that even though he had never made this particular dish before, he still tackled it with confidence.
I would however feel very sorry for my mum, who definitely wasn't the cook in our household, but always left with the dutiful task of cleaning up after dad who would be sure to use every possible pot, pan and wooden spoon we had in the house.
It's no wonder when I moved into my own place and later married a chef, that food creation became such a strong passion of mine. Mine and my ex husbands styles were very different, him coming from an Italian background and myself who was never a real fan of meat from a young age, opting for more plant based and very asian fusion influenced. Regardless I loved having his mother teach me how to make their traditional dishes and if you asked my daughter especially what she would like to eat breakfast, lunch or dinner, it would be 'red pasta' aka Napoli. As man and wife, we would make a competition out of a dinner party at who made the preferred dish of the evening and now as ex's we still call each other up on how to make something the other randomly created and see if we can make it better again. I usually win... just saying.
Thai food is probably my favourite. Theres something just incredibly fresh and light about the ingredients and the way they cook. Very clean way of eating and fresh herbs are my favourite thing too work with. Why anyone would choose dry or packet over them if they have the option astounds me.
I first tried betel leaf wraps about 10 years ago at a gorgeous restaurant in Melbourne called 'Long grain', its still there and last time I went it was still pretty fabulous. The burst of flavour in my mouth after the first sample of one of those leafs left its mark on me, and I had so much fun coming up with different combinations, trying to find the right balance.
I think I've got them pretty well set and you can make these with either fried tofu if vegan or vegetarian, or with prawn (Ive even done with scallop and crab meat)
For this dish its all about fresh ingredients, a lot of which you will find at your asian grocery.
You'll need
Ingredients
1 bunch of betel leaves
250g of fresh tiger prawns, scallops, crab meat
or *50-100g fried tofu
✖️For the sauce
1 lime grated rind and half a lime of juice
2-cm piece lemongrass (white part), grated
1tbsp of palm sugar, grated
3 cm-piece ginger, grated
1 red bird’s-eye chilli, finely chopped
Few leaves of Thai basil, mint and coriander
1 clove of garlic, crushed
150ml of water
1 tbsp of XO sauce
or *red curry paste (for vegan)
✖️For the topping
½ cup shredded coconut, toasted
1/4 cup unsalted roasted peanuts, roughly chopped and toasted
1/4 small red onion, finely chopped
1 red bird’s-eye chilli, finely chopped
1/4 fried shallots
Few leaves of Thai basil, mint and coriander and kaffir lime, finely chopped
✖️For the rice noodles
100g of thin rice noodles
200ml coconut cream
1 tbsp of XO sauce
or *red curry paste (for vegan)
Method
To make sweet sauce, crush and mix all the ingredients except the water, with a mortar and pestle or processor to create a paste. Add to a pan, add water and simmer for a few minutes or until reduced by two-thirds.
Baste prawns, tofu of other chosen topping then baste again before barbecuing.
Boil water and add rice noodles and cover until soft. Drain then add and stir in coconut milk and sauce then drain again after a few minutes and set aside.
Slightly brown coconut and peanuts in oven or pan and set aside.
Finely chop remaining topping ingredients and separate into piles on a platter or add straight onto your betel leaves by layering with the noodle, tofu or flesh, remaining sauce and then toppings.
Great party meal where everyone can make their own. To assemble, place a little of each onto centre of leaf, wrapping tightly to enclose.
Full of flavour, everyone with love. Lemon rind or even dried baby shrimp are other toppings you can try with this dish. Love to hear what you think.
xB
