This is Dee Ann trying out something new at the robata grill. It's just the beginning, introducing the concept of cooking on leaves. This one is dried. We actually used ti leaves and may use banana leaves eventually.
I was thinking, what other leaves could I use that, when heated, will emit a nice aroma and can be used as the cooking vessel? We soak the leaves in water, lightly oil the surface, place a sauce on the leaf, and then add whatever you want to cook. At first we placed it directly on the grill, then tried placing it on a hot plate on the grill.
This particular leaf comes from Japan where they do this. In old Hawaii, they used a similar method to cook called lawalu where you wrap the entire contents and place it on hot rocks; this method is a little different.
~AW