Banana leaf rice meals;Sri Lankan' s favourite banana leaf rice meals

If you are a Sri Lankan you must have eaten banana leaf rice meals and you must have obsessed that taste and smell.

Do you know I'm impatient to have my lunch today.Also at this moment I am reminding of something and my mouth is watering when reminding about it.It is nothing else, it's my banana leaf rice parcel, I prepared in the morning.So an idea came up to make a post about this great Sri lankan meal.

It can't just use banana leaf without preparing  for having meals.Firstly we have to steam  banana leaf.The reason for that  is to prevent tearing when the banana leaf is bent to make parcel.

This banana leaf smells very good when steamed.It smells good enough to endure . That fragrance further develops the desire to eat. So we Sri Lankans do not need appetizers.

The aroma and taste of this rice packet wrapped in banana leaf has the potential to alleviate the anorexia  of pregnant womens and patients suffering from certain diseases.So it is a good custom among the people of Sri Lanka to prepare a meal for a person who suffering from anorexia.So most of peoples prepare rice meals and wrap the meals by a banana leaf before send meals to people who suffering from anorexia.

As Sri Lankans, our staple food is rice and a rice meal is often taken for lunch.So if a Sri Lankan takes a meal from home for work, that person often carries a parcel of rice.Now a days most of people use artificial papers to prepare rice parcels.Some of the people use banana leaves to wrap rice meal and prepare the parcel.People are really lucky to be able to eat a parcel of rice wrapped in a banana leaf every day.as well as some people use lotus leaves to prepare rice parcels. I will write about lotus rice parcels another day.In fact, there is a process with some steps of wrapping a rice parcel.If the process is done properly, a very perfect rice parcel can be made without scattering the rice and without tearing the paper.

As you can understand  from my post, this banana leaf rice meal is one of the most popular food serving and eating habits among Sri Lankans.So pictures  of banana leaf rice meals or parcels are constantly shared as foodie photos on social medias in Sri lanka.So today I saw such a picture and I also had a desire to eat banana leaf rice.

So in the morning , I spread the hot rice and hot currys on the  banana leaves and wrap that banana leaf as a parcel and leave the rice and curry until cool down.This is because it takes some time for the flavor and aroma of the banana leaves to be absorbed into the food.Using hot food to make the parcel makes it even easier and more effective.

The health benefits of banana leaf;

• There is a kind of wax on the banana leaf.  Spreading hot food on it causes the wax to melt and absorb into the foods wrapped in banana leaf or spread on banana leaf, creating a taste and aroma in the food.
• These waxes have anti-microbial properties and help control food spoilage.
• As the heated food spreads on the banana leaf, the nutrients in the banana leaf are absorbed into the food.
• Banana leaf also contains antibacterials ,vitamins , citric acid and carotene.
• Banana leaf contains antioxidants that are even more potent than the antioxidants found in green tea.
• The chlorophyll compound in banana leaves heals intestinal ulcers and skin lesions
• Foods on banana leaf can also cleanse the blood and prevent kidney and bladder stones and facilitate digestion.
• It also stimulates the immune system, heals sunburn skin, heals sore throats and keeps hair healthy.
• Also, due to the properties of banana leaves, it is used in indigenous medicine in Sri Lanka to cure diarrhea, treat dandruffs and treat skin infections and skin cancers.