ASIAN CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS

I realize that is a truly strong case… Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps you can make at home that are better than the darling dish from P.F. Chang's?! It might be intense, however, it's actual! This Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps formula is one that took me long stretches of experimentation, and bunches of taste-testing, to get it on the money.

These Asian Chicken Lettuce wraps are one of my preferred meals (alongside this cashew chicken sautéed food). They are brisk and simple and my entire family adores them. Indeed, even my children eat them, and have some good times doing it!

HOW TO MAKE ASIAN CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS 

CHECK THIS VIDEO

Let’s walk through the process of making this chicken lettuce wraps recipe step-by-step. Don’t forget to watch the video too!

MAKE THE SAUCE

The first step in this lettuce wrap recipe is making the sauce. The sauce is the key to the flavor of this recipe. And I beg you not to tamper with the sauce. It is the part of this recipe that took me years to perfect, and is absolutely delicious as-is!

It’s really simple to make! Just whisk all the ingredients together. If you use a thicker peanut butter that is solid at room temperature, you may need ot warm it slightly before using it to make this Asian lettuce wraps recipe!

MAKE THE LETTUCE WRAP FILLING

·      Brown the ground chicken! This recipe is very straightforward! There is, however, one very important step and that is to brown the ground chicken. Making sure the chicken is nice and crispy and brown is essential to the overall flavor and texture of this dish!

·      Use a Wok, Sauté pan, or a cast iron skillet. For traditional Asian recipes I love pulling out my wok. But as you can see in the photo above, a regular sauté pan or cast iron skillet works perfectly!

·      Dice the vegetables very small. This is one of the keys to making sure every bite is bursting with both texture and flavor! Sometimes I even let my food processor do the chopping for me!

WHAT LETTUCE IS BEST FOR WRAPS?

There are three varieties of lettuce that I recommend to use when making these chicken lettuce wraps:

1.   Butterhead lettuce

2.   Green Leaf Lettuce

3.   Romaine Lettuce

Just be sure to choose a head of lettuce that has large and flexible enough leaves to use as a wrap!

HOW DO YOU CUT LETTUCE FOR LETTUCE WRAPS?

It’s actually very simple! Just cut the bottom part of the head of lettuce off. Then carefully peel away each lettuce leaf! Don’t forget to wash and dry the lettuce leaves before serving!

SERVING SUGGESTIONS 

I prefer to eat them the traditional way…as lettuce wraps!  However, I usually serve these Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps to my kids over noodles or rice, or with a side of our favorite homemade fried rice, because it’s much easier for them to eat with a spoon than wrapped in a piece of lettuce!

ASIAN CHICKEN LETTUCE WRAPS: INGREDIENTS & SUBSTITUTIONS

As always I recommend making this recipe exactly as it’s written! Like I said, I tested and retested this recipe more times than I can count to achieve lettuce wrap perfection! However, here are a few potential substitutions!

·      Ground chicken: Finely diced chicken breasts are a great substitute for ground chicken! You can also use ground turkey or ground beef!

·      Peanut Oil: Any oil can be used here if you don’t keep peanut on hand or if you have a peanut allergy. I recommend olive oil or avocado oil!

·      Soy Sauce: If you have a soy allergy you can substitute coconut aminos for the soy sauce.

·      Peanut Butter: If you have a peanut allergy any nut or seed butter could work here, but peanut butter definitely gives the best results!

Ingredients

·      ½ onion minced

·      1 cup red or green pepper diced

·      1 lb ground chicken

·      1 TBS peanut oil

·      1 8 oz can water chestnuts drained and minced

For the Sauce:

·      3 TBS soy sauce*

·      3 TBS hoisin sauce**

·      2 tsp sweet chili sauce 

·      1 TBS peanut butter

·      1 TBS honey

·      ½ tsp garlic powder

·      ¼ tsp powdered ginger

To serve

·      ¼ cup peanuts crushed.

·      Lettuce or your favorite Asian salad

Instructions

·      Whisk together sauce ingredients until well combined. If you use a firmer peanut butter you may need to microwave the mixture for 30-60 seconds in order to melt it and ensure everything is well-mixed.

·      Heat 2 TBS peanut oil in a frying pan. Once hot, add ground chicken.

·      Cook until some pieces are starting to brown. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes or until the onion is becoming translucent.

·      Add the peppers and water chestnuts and cook about 5 minutes or until peppers are becoming soft.

·      Add sauce and simmer on low heat until the chicken and veggies are evenly coated and everything is heated through.

·      Serve in lettuce leaves, on top of your favorite Asian salad, or over noodles or rice!

Notes on ingredients: 

·      Ground chicken: Finely diced chicken breasts are a great substitute for ground chicken!

·      Peanut Oil: Any oil can be used here if you don't keep peanut on hand or if you have a peanut allergy. I recommend olive oil or avocado oil!

·      Soy Sauce: If you have a soy allergy you can substitute coconut aminos for the soy sauce. 

·      *be sure to choose a gluten-free soy sauce to keep this asian lettuce wraps recipe gluten-free, like this one.

·      Hoisin sauce: **be sure to choose a gluten-free hoisin sauce to keep this recipe gluten-free, like this one.

·      Peanut Butter: If you have a peanut allergy any nut or seed butter could work here, but peanut butter definitely gives the best results!