Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Ground chicken tossed in a sweet-and-spicy sauce, and served on "butterhead" lettuce leaves. A delightfully refreshing appetizer or main course.
Servings: 16
Ingredients
For the sauce:
- 3 tablespoons Thai Sweet Chili Sauce
- 3 tablespoons Hoisen sauce
- 3 tablespoons Tamari sauce
- 1 tablespoon Sambal Olek
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced (or, use 4 teaspoons garlic paste)
- 1 tablespoon fresh, minced ginger
For the filling:
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 6 scallions, the white and green parts separated and finely sliced
- 2 cloves minced garlic (or 2 teaspoons garlic paste)
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
- 1/2 lb mushrooms, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup canned diced water chestnuts, drained
- 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
For the lettuce:
- 1 or 2 heads "butterhead" lettuce, the leaves separated, cleaned, and patted dry.
Instructions
- Whisk together the sauce ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Warm 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the ground chicken and about 2 tablespoons of the sauce. Cook, while breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until the chicken is brown and cooked through. Remove chicken to a plate.
- Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the skillet. Then add the scallion whites, garlic, ginger, mushrooms, water chestnuts and bell pepper. Saute until the mushrooms release their liquid -- about 5 minutes. Stir in the scallion greens, and saute for about 1 minute. Off heat, return the chicken and all of the remaining sauce to the skillet. Stir to combine. Spoon the mixture onto lettuce leaves.