Best for: Weeknight fish dinners that feel like a trip — each diner opens their own fragrant parcel at the table.
Across Southeast Asia, fish has been folded into banana leaves and grilled for as long as there have been fires to grill over, and this version borrows that method with gratitude: a coarse paste of lemongrass, ginger, garlic, chile, and lime smeared over firm white fish, wrapped in a glossy green leaf, and grilled until the parcel steams and perfumes the whole table. The leaf is the cooking vessel and the serving dish at once — it keeps the fish moist, carries the aromatics straight into the flesh, and makes opening dinner part of the pleasure. Banana leaves keep, frozen, at most Asian markets; foil works in their place, a little less fragrant but still good.
Grill: Direct, medium heat (about 375–400°F), lid closed. Equipment: Banana leaves, wooden picks or short bamboo skewers, food processor. Course: Main dish.
Ingredients
Rest: 3 minutes. Total: 35 minutes.
- 4 firm white fish fillets (about 6 ounces each), such as mahi-mahi, snapper, or halibut
- 2 stalks lemongrass, tender inner parts only, chopped
- 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 small shallot, chopped
- 1–2 fresh red chiles, seeded for less heat
- 1 teaspoon lime zest
- 2 tablespoons lime juice
- 1 tablespoon fish sauce
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1/4 cup cilantro leaves
- 4 large banana leaves, thawed if frozen
- Lime wedges, for serving
Directions
Pulse the paste together. Put the lemongrass, ginger, garlic, shallot, chiles, lime zest, lime juice, fish sauce, and brown sugar in a food processor and pulse to a coarse, fragrant paste.
Soften and cut the leaves. Soften the banana leaves so they fold without splitting: pass each leaf briefly over a flame or a warm grate, or dip it in hot water, until it turns glossy and pliable. Cut four squares about 12 inches across and wipe both sides clean. (Two layers of heavy-duty foil will stand in for a leaf — the fish will be a little less perfumed, but the paste still does its work.)
Fold and pin the parcels. Set a fillet in the center of each square, spread a quarter of the paste over the top, and scatter with cilantro. Fold the leaf up and over the fish like an envelope and pin it closed with wooden picks.
Grill seam-side up. Heat the grill for direct, medium heat (about 375–400°F). Set the parcels on the grate seam side up, close the lid, and grill for about 6 minutes.
Turn and cook through. Turn the parcels once and grill 5–6 minutes more, until the fish flakes easily and reads 145°F at the thickest part. Open one parcel to check — fillets vary, and the leaf hides the evidence.
Rest, then serve folded. Rest the parcels for 3 minutes. Serve them still folded, with lime wedges alongside, and let each diner open their own; steamed jasmine rice catches the juices nicely.
Grilling tip: Buy frozen banana leaves whenever you see them — they keep for months in the freezer and thaw in minutes. The leaf itself isn’t eaten; it’s the wrapping, the steamer, and the perfume all in one.
