My Vietnamese grilled chicken in banana leaves.

My Vietnamese grilled chicken wrapped in banana leaves. I cut the chicken breast through into fillets. I used garlic, chilli, lime zest, lime juice, shallots and kaffir lime leaves. Finely chopped the garlic, chilli, shallots and kaffir lime leaves. Using a mortar pestle crushed up all these together. Add fish sauce, brown sugar,sesame oil, rice bran oil ( or any neutral oil), sea salt and cracked white pepper. Combine it all well and marinade the chicken for at least 2 hours. Then after that wrapped them in bananas leaves. Brushed all around the leaves( to prevent from sticking) take a grill pan and coat with cooking spray. And grill them onto both sides! You don't have to use bananas leaves. You can just grill them normally like that if you want that really char-grilled marks on the chicken breast!! They both worked well! And still taste delicious! Served with lettuce,tomato,cucumbers picked carrots salad and steamed brown rice or white with green onion oil and Vietnamese fish sauce( nouc mam) .

Ingredients:
* 3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
* 1 red chilli, roughly chopped
* 1/2 of a lime juice
* 1 whole lime zest
* 1 shallot, minced
* 3 kaffir lime leaves finely minced
* sea salt and cracked black pepper
* 1 1/2 tbsp of fish sauce
* 1 tbsp of brown sugar
* 1 tsp sesame oil
* 1 tbsp of olive oil or ( peanut oil, rice bran oil and etc)
* 550 grams of free range chicken breasts ( Cut through the chicken breast into fillets)
* Banana leaves ( you can buy them at Asian grocery supermarkets. This is optional you don't have to use it.)

Method:

Prepare the ingredients. Using a motor and pestle, crushed the garlic, chilli, lime zest, lime juice, kaffir lime leaves, shallot,fish sauce ,sugar,sesame oil and olive oil until it forms into like a chunky paste marinade. Marinade the chicken for about 2 hours in the fridge.
Once it is well marinated. Brush the banana leaves with some oil all over the surface. Place the chicken into the center. And start folding it in like an envelop. Tie it with the string and heat up a grill pan brushed with oil and grill into both sides for about 7 min on each side. Once it is done, let it cool in the pack for 5 min and serve. You don't have to use the bananas leaves. You can just grill them like that in the grill pan for that char-grilled marks. They are both delicious either way! I live them both! And then served with mixed salad( lettuce, cucumber,tomato, and pickled carrots) and steamed rice with green onion oil and of course vietnamese nouc nam . DONE! Enjoy :)