Grilling Packets
By Derrick Riches, About.com Guide, http://bbq.about.com

Long before the advent of aluminum foil people found it beneficial to wrap food up in packets of leaves. Whether it's banana leaves, grape leaves, corn husks or whatever you might find growing in your neck of the woods, it's just a great cooking tool to use. Of course, back then they used a live fire and got not only the great flavor of their foods but also the smoky flavor of the fire. The leaves help hold in moisture, flavors the food, and keep foods it burning and falling apart in the fire. The most common type of food cooked in leaves is fish.

Packet cooking is a simple and great way to use your grill to put together side dishes or whole meals. By taking all the ingredients of a dish, wrapping them tightly in leaves or foil you can steam and roast up everything from a simple potato side dish to Halibut with vegetables. And best of all you don't need to worry about foods falling apart.

Making Packets:

To prepare packets for the grill, take a sheet of heavy aluminum foil large enough to fold over the food you want to put inside. Place food in the center and fold up the ends. Make a double fold where the ends meet. Then fold up the sides to form an airtight packet. There should be room inside for the juices and heat to circulate. The idea here is that the food inside the packet will cook in it's own juices.

As far as cooking with leaves, it is very similar to cooking foods wrapped in foil, except that you won't get an airtight seal. However, because leaves usually have their own moisture, this isn't a problem. Always work with leaves that are large enough to fit your needs. You can cut the food to fit and simply cook more packets. Fish can be prepared whole or in pieces depending on your needs.

To wrap fish in leaves, start with a clean leaf, brush lightly with oil to prevent sticking and wrap firmly but not too tight. Leaves can tear so you don't want too much tension. Experts can typically wrap up a fish fillet in such a way as to not need anything to secure it with, but you can use kitchen twine or toothpicks to secure your leaves. Threading a toothpick or skewer through the package will help it hold up while it's being flipped on the grill.

Packet Ingredients:

Because of the way packets cook you need to make sure that you have enough liquid inside to create the steam that will cook the food. A drizzle of water, wine, fruit juices, vinegars all work to create this steam. By choosing something with flavor you can enhance the taste of the foods. If you add dry spices to the packet, make sure you compensate with more liquid to keep the packet from drying out. When the packet has been cooked the steam inside can be very hot, so make sure you carefully open one end or puncture the packet with a fork before you take out the contents. Remember that steam can be considerably hotter than boiling water so it won't take much to burn you.

Grilling Packets:

On the grill food inside packets can burn. The direct heat of a burner is more than enough to burn foods quickly and since you can't see inside while the food is cooking you can to be very careful. Packets need to be turned regularly and watched constantly. If you start to see charring on the outside of the packet then you probably have burning on the inside. Keep packets away from a high direct heat. Upper racks and cooler areas of the grill are best. You can also take some precautions in the way you assemble the packets. Try layering sliced onions on below and above foods so that the onions can absorb some of the extra heat and prevent the food you want to eat from burning.

Packets are great for more than just side dishes. Whole meals can by put together to allow easy preparation and to blend flavors. Try packing fish fillets, onions, lemon slices, and vegetables together with herbs and spices to make an individual meal for all your guests. You can even serve up the packets right on a plate for people to open and enjoy. Because of the sealed environment you don't have to worry as much about foods drying out, but be careful not to puncture the packets while they are cooking.

Recipes:

*Scallops Wrapped in Grape Leaves
Grilled Teleme in Chard Leaves
*Roasted Corn on the Cob - grilled in its own hucks
*Baked Onions w/ Sherry - in foil
*Roasted Baking Potatoes in Foil - when we were young we used to throw these right in the coals of the fire
*Potato & Onion Packets - in foil
White Fish in Grape Leaves
Caribbean Baked Bananas w/ Ice Cream - bananas cooked in their own skin