Bò lá lốt
Vietnamese Lemongrass Beef Wrapped in Betel Leaves aka Bò lá lốt
There’s nothing like the smell of grilled lemongrass beef wrapped in betel leaves! The beautiful herby & sweet aroma that permeates the air is so distinctive that once you’ve had it you’ll never forget! It's the combination of the charred beef and fragrance that is released from the leaf that makes these tasty morsels so addictive! It's no wonder it's a popular Vietnamese snack & also goes so well with a glass of cold beer.
Growing up I would help my mum makes these for the family, we would literally roll hundreds! She taught me how to roll these tiny parcels by using the stem of the leaf to secure the rolls in place. Alternatively you can use water soaked bamboo skewers and slide a few rolls onto the stick to hold it together instead. These are great for parties because you can make it in advance the night before and then keep in the fridge until you’re ready to cook it the next day.
There are a few versions of this recipe out there, some utilising beef mince but I prefer mine with thinly sliced beef. I also like mine to be small and bite size so it has the perfect meat to leaf ratio.
How to cook them? Nothing beats grilling any meet over over a charcoal bbq, otherwise on a gas bbq or under the oven grill.
You can find betel leaves from your local asian grocery store. Can't get your hands on some betel leaves? No problem, just make grilled lemongrass beef instead!
Ingredients
- 500g beef skirt steak (or flat iron, tenderloin, rump), thinly sliced into small pieces
- 2 tbsp lemongrass, finely minced
- 1 tbsp garlic, finely minced
- 1 tbsp red or French shallot, finely minced
- 2 tsp white sugar
- 1 tsp table salt
- 1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup peanut oil or vegetable oil
- Approx 80 small (or 40 large) betel leaves, leaving 1 cm stem cut on an angle
- My Nouc Mam Recipe - use as dipping sauce
- In a bowl add beef, lemongrass, garlic, shallot, sugar, salt, pepper and thoroughly combine. Pour in all the oil and mix again. Set aside in the fridge covered for 30 minutes so the flavours marinade.
- To make the rolls lay out the betel leaves on the bench shiny side down. Starting at the pointy tip and add about 1 heaped tsp of meat mixture to the top third of the leaf and form a thin sausage (about 1 cm thick) across the leaf until the meat just reaches the edges and roll into a cigar. Then using the stem (cut on an angle) poke a hole into the roll to seal (or secure a row on skewers)
- Repeat step 2 until the remaining leaves are done.
- To cook:
- BBQ - over low/medium heat for about 3-4 minutes, turn frequently to avoid burning the leaves until its slightly shrivelled and charred around the edges.
- Under oven grill - cook on the top rack on a wire tray under medium heat for about 2 minutes on each side until its slightly shrivelled and charred around the edges.
- Serve with dipping sauce.
- Enjoy!
Cook's Notes:
- They are great to eat on their own as a snack, or turn it into a complete meal by serving it with vermicelli noodles or Banh Hoi & drizzling nuoc mam over the top, or as a filling for your rice paper rolls or banh mi! Whatever you decide make sure it is accompanied with a bunch of fresh Vietnamese herbs & pickled carrot or daikon. Yum!
- Depending on the size of the betel leaves this mixture makes approx 80 small rolls or 40 large rolls. If you've run out of leaves you can make mini meat patties and cook it the same way.
- Cooking times may vary based off the size of your rolls, so keep an eye on them so the leaves don't burn.
- The oil in the marinade may seem like a lot but its necessary to keep the meat moist whilst grilling, the excess oil will drip away as it cooks.
- Instead of poking the stem to secure the leaves you can secure a stack on metal or bamboo skewers. Makes it easier for large quantities if cooking over bbq.
