Table of Contents[Hide][Show]
With a large family and a business to run, I’m a big fan of easy meal ideas. Lettuce wraps are a simple lunch idea for those of us staying away from bread and grain. This Asian chicken lettuce wrap recipe is full of flavor and only takes a few minutes to throw together.
How to Make Healthy Asian Chicken
Many Asian-inspired recipes call for a lot of sugar or other ingredients that I like to stay away from. This one only uses ingredients I feel good about serving to my family.
- Chicken – I like to use chicken from animals raised on pasture for the best quality and taste.
- Sesame oil – A much better choice than rancid vegetable oils and adds a sesame flavor that makes the dish pop.
- Coconut aminos – I use coconut aminos instead of soy sauce to avoid soy and additives.
- Honey – a natural sweetener in place of refined sugar for a bit of sweetness.
- Lots of healthy veggies!
This recipe is easily made in one pan, making it a quick clean-up meal. To make the filling for this dish, start by heating the oil. Add the chicken and cook until browned and starting to get crispy.
Then you can add in the onion to cook for a few minutes. Next add in water chestnuts and green onion as well as the hoisin sauce, coconut aminos, garlic, vinegar, sesame oil, peanut butter, honey, and chili sauce. Once your filling is prepared you can add it to the lettuce wraps!
How to Make Lettuce Wraps
When you’ve ditched grains like my family has, you have to get creative with ways to serve traditional finger foods. Lettuce wraps are one of my favorite ways to replace grains. They’re pliable and work well as wraps or taco shells, but also offer an additional vegetable to the meal.
But they can also be tricky to master.
To make a great lettuce wrap, start with the right kind of lettuce. Boston, bibb, or butterhead are the best choices since the leaves hold together well, but are also tender and delicious. Swiss chard can work too, though you need to remove the stems. Iceberg lettuce works well as a lettuce cup, but wrapping can easily break it. I don’t usually use iceberg since it doesn’t offer much nutritional value.
My family likes these tasty wraps with a drizzle of homemade yum yum sauce.
Asian Lettuce Wraps Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 2 TBSP toasted sesame oil (divided)
- 1 large onion (finely chopped)
- 1 (8 oz) can water chestnuts (drained and finely chopped)
- 1 bunch green onions (chopped)
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- 3 TBSP coconut aminos
- 2 cloves garlic (minced)
- 1 TBSP rice wine vinegar
- 1 TBSP honey
- 1 TBSP peanut butter
- 1 dash Asian chili sauce (or to taste, optional)
- 16 leaves Boston, Bibb, or butter head lettuce (washed)
Instructions
- In a large skillet heat 1 tablespoon of the toasted sesame oil over medium high heat.
- Add the ground chicken and cook until browned completely and starting to get a little crispy.
- Add the chopped onion and cook another 5-7 minutes until the onion is translucent and starting to brown.
- Add the chopped water chestnuts and green onions and stir until heated.
- Stir in the hoisin sauce, coconut aminos, garlic, vinegar, honey, peanut butter, chili sauce if using, and remaining sesame oil.
- Cook until green onions start to wilt.
- To serve, spoon ¼ cup of the chicken mixture into the center of a lettuce leaf and eat it like a taco.
Notes
If you can’t find butter lettuce, you can use a tender leafy green lettuce.
Try drizzling the lettuce wraps with yum yum sauce!
Nutrition
Looking for More Asian-Inspired Recipes?
I love the sweet and savory flavors of Asian food. Here are some of my favorite healthy variations:
- Thai Chicken Curry – This recipe is an easy and inexpensive version of a restaurant favorite. It even fits my criteria for a quick weeknight meal!
- Chinese Chicken Stir-Fry – This stir-fry is so quick and easy to make, it’s one of my favorite meals for busy nights.
- Mandarin Chicken – I used to live on Chinese take-out food (though “live” is kind of an overstatement). Since I started eating healthier I decided I need to create a healthier Mandarin chicken recipe. This one uses almond flour for breading and only fresh oranges and honey for sweetness.
- Grilled Thai Shrimp Recipe – I love shrimp, and this recipe makes it so amazingly flavorful it feels like a treat.
- Asian Color Burst Salad – This salad is a great way to add more vegetables to the diet. I like to serve it with some of the other dishes on this list for a rounded meal.
For a quick but tasty meal, I also will make ahead sauces, like this Asian garlic ginger sauce and just pour it over steamed or sauteed veggies and leftover chicken.
What are your favorite quick lunch ideas?
Thank you…I’m going to try this. My son loves lettuce wraps.
It looks absolutely delicious! I cannot wait to try it out. And what do I say about the Thai Chicken Curry? It has fed me on so many nights when I have gone out so to be able to make it at home would be an amazing experience. Thank you so much!