I am crazy about lettuce wraps. They are the perfect option when you’re wanting a low carb meal and you can indulge without any guilt. Also, this meal can be ready in less than 20 minutes making it the ultimate week night meal. It’s also easy to make ahead of time and store in the fridge for a healthy grab and go lunch.
I make my own asian sauce for this recipe and it’s super easy and only requires a few ingredients. The main ingredient is hoisin sauce. Hoisin sauce is a thick, sweet-savory sauce normally used in Chinese cuisine as glaze for meat. It has so much flavor is sure to transform your dishes. Hoisin is jarred and can be found in the asian isle at your local market.
For the asian sauce, in a medium-sized bowl whisk together the hoisin, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic and ginger, set aside. Heat oil in large non-stick skillet, add diced onion and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until onion is translucent. Remove onion from skillet and add ground chicken. While the chicken is cooking thinly slice green onion, drain and chop water chestnuts, and then add to cooked chicken mixture in skillet. Add onion back in chicken mixture and asian sauce and stir to combine. Allow to cook for a few minutes. Add chicken mixture to lettuce cups, sprinkle with green onion and crushed peanuts if you desire and enjoy!
- 1½ pounds ground chicken or turkey
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 3 green onions, thinly sliced
- 1 (8 oz) can sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 3 tbsp hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp lower-sodium soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice vinegar
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or 1 tbsp. minced garlic from a jar
- ½ tsp ground ginger or 1 tbsp. ginger from a tube
- 12 Boston lettuce leaves
- Crushed peanuts, optional
- In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together the hoisin, soy sauce, rice vinegar, garlic and ginger.
- Heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add diced onion to the pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes until onion is translucent. Once cooked transfer cooked onion into a small bowl and set aside.
- Add ground chicken to pan and cook for about 7 minutes or until chicken is browned.
- Meanwhile thinly slice green onion, drain and chop water chestnuts and add to cooked chicken mixture in skillet.
- Add cooked onions and asian sauce and stir until sauce completely coats the chicken mixture and allow to heat for a few minutes.
- Add chicken mixture to each lettuce cup and serve.
- Garnish with sliced green onion and crushed peanuts if desired.
This recipe tastes just as good with either ground chicken or ground turkey. You can even use chicken breasts and cut into strips. If using chicken strips, allow to marinade in asian sauce for up to 30 minutes. If using ground chicken or turkey add the asian sauce once the meat is fully cooked.
*I prefer using Boston lettuce leaves because they are the perfect size and hold the chicken in the cup.
