
Prized for its minty, licorice-y flavor profile, perilla is the big cousin to the smaller shiso, a leaf that is a tad more familiar to American diners. Perilla’s larger size makes it an ideal wrap for both meat-centric and plant-forward dishes, and lends a world of possibility in that realm. At Moon Rabbit, an upscale Vietnamese restaurant in Washington, D.C., the larger size of perilla leaves serves as a perfect carrier for its Stuffed Leaf dish, perilla leaves filled with a globally inspired combination of Wagyu beef, labneh, fermented honey and pickled shallots.
Flavors on the Edge is an ongoing series that explores emerging ingredients poised to become high-impact flavor builders.