Whole Fish in Banana Leaves

Whole barramundi wrapped in banana leaves made on the BBQ

• CuisineIndian
• CategorySeafood
• CourseMains

Ingredients

• 2.4 kgWhole wild barramundi
•  
• 10Dried red chillies
• 6Fresh green chillies
• 1 bunchFresh coriander
• ½ cupGrated coconut
• 6Curry leaves
• 2 tbspMalt vinegar
• 2 tbspSugar
• 2 tbspYoghurt
• 2 tbspOil
• 6 tbspGarlic
• 3 tbspGinger
• 2 tbspFresh turmeric
• 1 tbspPepper
• 2 tbspGaram masala
• 2 tspSalt
• 2 tbspLemon juice

Preparation

1. Soak dried red chillies in hot water for 15 minutes
2. Roughly chop green chillies, ginger, garlic and fresh turmeric
3. Grind all ingredients in batches, except the grated coconut, adding a little water if needed
4. Add the grated coconut and mix
5. Clean and butterfly the fish
6. Pass banana leaves over an open flame to make them pliable
7. Lay aluminium foil and lay enough banana leaves to wrap the fish
8. Put ground paste inside the fish and cover it with more paste
9. Wrap banana leaves around it and tie with string
10. Wrap aluminium foil around
11. Place in a BBQ at around 200°C and keep till the internal temperature reaches 60°C
12. Increase BBQ flame keep for 3 minutes
13. Turn over and keep on the high BBQ flame for another 5 minutes
14. Rest for 10 minutes and open and serve

I used a whole wild barramundi that weighed around 2.4kg before it was cleaned. My friendly fishmonger scaled and cleaned the fish before butterflying it so that it can be spread without separating the two halves.

I fired up the BBQ and put the hood down. Turn enough burners on - four out of six in my case - and let the temperature go to about 200-250°C. While the fish is being prepped, the BBQ can warm up.

Start by finding a flat area of the kitchen counter that can hold the fish and then some. Lay down cling wrap covering a large area. There is a reason that similes for bad smells usually zero in on fish. On top of the cling wrap, lay one or more sheets of aluminium foil large enough to eventually wrap the whole fish with a lot of overlap.

Take large pieces of banana leaf and pass it over an open flame till the color changes slightly to a shiny green. This makes them more pliable and will stop them from splitting too easily. This will not prevent splitting completely so have enough overlap.

Here is the banana leaf all laid out. Have a close look at the piece on top. In order to show the change in colour, only the right half has been passed over a flame. This changes the colour from a matte green to a darker shiny green.

Place the fish on top. You can make shallow cuts on both sides though I did not get around to it.

The fish has been butterflied. Just flip it open.

Smear the inside evenly with the ground paste.

Close the two halves and smear the paste on top.

Carefully turn the fish over and smear the paste on this side as well.

Wrap up the banana leaves around the fish.

Carefully tie up the leaves shut using string.

Remember the foil you laid down before you started this? Wrap up the whole fish using this foil, covering all of it and squeeze out the air.

Pop the fish on the grill. Shut off all burners directly underneath and let it cook with indirect heat. Push the thermometer probe into the thickest part of the fish about halfway through.

Close the hood and maintain the BBQ temperature at 200-250°C. I have set the probe target temperature to 60°C at which point it will start beeping.

The fish, in my case, took about 45 minutes to reach the desired temperature from the 10°C the fish started with from being in the fridge for a long time.

Once the fish reaches a temperature of 60°C, open the hood and light the burners directly under the fish. Keep it for 3 minutes. Turn it over and keep it there for another 5 minutes.

Lay the fish on a large platter.

Cut through the foil with a pair of scissors. There was a nice amount of charring on the outside of the leaves.

Using the scissors, cut the string and remove it. Then cut through the banana leaves. It was good to see a slight amount of charring on the fish itself - the grill marks are clearly visible on that patch. It may not win a beauty contest but it sure tastes great.

This is best served with a thin flatbread like chapatis.