Miang kam is a tasty snack often sold as street food. It involves wrapping little tidbits of several items in a leaf, along with a sweet-and-salty sauce. Chewing the delicious mix of ingredients together is like a party in your mouth– from the rich, roasted flavours of coconut and peanut, to the tanginess of lime with zest and the pungent bursts of diced ginger and chillies. It makes a great party food, so is perfect for bringing something new to this year's Boishakhi!
Ingredients:
1 or 2 bunches of bai cha plu (wild pepper leaves), or substitute large leaves from 1-2 bunches of spinach; or 1 head of leafy lettuce, tear leaves into 3- to 4-inch round or square pieces.
Filling -
    ½  cup unsalted roasted peanuts
    ¼ cup small dried shrimp
    ½  cup roasted unsweetened shredded coconut
    1/3 cup diced ginger (about the size of a pea)
    1/3 cup diced shallots or onion the same size as the ginger
    1 lime, cut into small peanut-size wedges, each with both peel and juice sacks
    4 heads pickled garlic, stem removed and bulb cut into peanut-size pieces
    6 serrano peppers, cut into thin half circles; or use Thai chillies (prik kee noo), cut into thin rounds
    1/3 cup cilantro leaves
Sauce –
¼ cup finely ground dried shrimp
½ cup roasted shredded coconut
¼ cup unsalted roasted peanuts
¼ cup palm sugar or coconut sugar (can be substituted for jaggery or gur)
2 tbsp fish sauce (nahm bplah), or to taste
½ cup water
Preparation:
Wrapping: Arrange the spinach or lettuce leaves on a large serving platter.
Filling: To roast the coconut, put unsweetened fresh or dried shredded coconut in a dry cast iron pan over medium heat. Stir frequently until the coconut shreds are evenly a golden brown and very fragrant.
Pickled garlic is available in jars from markets.
Sauce: Grind the dried shrimp, roasted coconut and peanuts separately and as finely as possible in a clean coffee grinder. (For the dried shrimp, measure out ¼ cup after the shrimp is ground.) Place in a small saucepan together with the palm sugar, fish sauce and water. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer, stirring frequently to make sure all the ingredients are well blended and the sauce as smooth as possible. Cook about 10-15 minutes, or until the mixture has thickened to the consistency of light batter. Transfer to a sauce bowl and allow to cool to room temperature before using. The sauce will thicken more as it cools.
Add the filling ingredients and a bowl of the sauce onto the leaf platter then take a spinach or lettuce leaf, fill it with a little bit of everything, top with a dab of sauce, roll or wrap up, stuff the entire leaf packet into your mouth and chew everything all at once. Enjoy the explosion of flavours!
Why should this dish be happening in your kitchen?
-    Cilantro
Cilantro, or coriander is a powerful herb containing dietary fiber, vitamins and minerals like calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium. Aside from being used in cooking, coriander leaves and seeds strengthen the stomach, reduce fever and lower cholesterol levels. Recent studies have shown it can be used in treating anxiety, depression and panic attacks due to its anxiolytic and sedative effects. It also contains an essential oil that can help detoxify the liver and increase the appetite.