Chicken Lettuce Wraps

These chicken lettuce wraps are fresh, exciting and full of intense and spicy flavors from soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes. A terrific appetizer that’s fast and easy to make.

This is a recipe I’ve been making for years and it’s an adaptation from America’s Test Kitchen. I love everything about it, it’s savory, a little bit spicy, very satisfying and takes little effort to put together.

How to make lettuce wraps:

Prep the chicken:

Step 1. Cut 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast into 2-inch cubes and put in the freezer for 10 minutes to make it easier to process. Transfer the chicken to the food processor.

Step 2. Pulse the chicken a few times to grind.

Make the marinade:

Step 3. In a small bowl, whisk together 2 teaspoons rice vinegar, 2 teaspoons soy sauce, 1 teaspoon sesame oil and ½ teaspoon corn starch. (The corn starch helps to keep the meat tender during the frying process later, a technique called velveting.)

Step 4. Mix the ground chicken into the marinade, cover and chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.

Prep the sauce:

Step 5. While the chicken is marinating, finish the prep work for the sauce:

In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together:

• ¼ cup sake
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 minced or pressed garlic cloves
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• ½ teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon corn starch (to thicken the sauce)
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

Prep the vegetables:

Step 6. Set the sauce aside and get 5 shiitake mushrooms, 4 green onions and 1 celery stalk ready.

Step 7. Dice the vegetables, then set aside.

Step 8. Drain the chicken from the marinade.

Fry the chicken:

Step 9. Heat a bit of vegetable oil in a non-stick pan and fry the chicken until cooked through.

Fry the vegetables:

Take the chicken out of the pan, then fry the vegetables (no need to clean the pan in between). 

Cook the sauce:

Add the chicken back in, then pour in the sauce and cook until it starts to thicken.

Step 10. Transfer the filling into lettuce leaves and drizzle with hoisin sauce.

How to eat the wraps:

Spoon the filling into fresh lettuce leaves, drizzle with a bit of hoisin sauce and eat with your fingers.

Recipe tips and common questions:

More delicious light chicken dishes:

• Mediterranean Chicken Salad
• Marinated Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad
• Sumac Chicken with Broccolini and Brown Butter Almonds
• Spicy Pulled Chicken (Oven Baked)

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5 from 3 votes

Chicken Lettuce Wraps

These chicken lettuce wraps are fresh, exciting and full of intense and spicy flavors from soy sauce, rice vinegar, sesame, garlic, ginger and red pepper flakes.

Prep Time:20 mins

Cook Time:15 mins

Marinating Time:10 mins

Total Time:45 mins

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Chinese

Keyword: chicken lettuce cups, chicken lettuce wraps

Servings: 2

Calories (estimated): 320kcal

Author: Recipe adapted from America’s Test Kitchen.

Ingredients:

For the marinade:

• 8 ounces boneless, skinless chicken breast (2 medium-sized breast halves)
• 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 2 teaspoons soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon corn starch

For the sauce:

• ¼ cup sake
• 3 tablespoons soy sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
• ½ teaspoon sesame oil
• ½ teaspoon sesame seeds
• 1 teaspoon corn starch
• ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 5 medium–large shiitake mushrooms
• 4 green onions
• 1 celery stalk
• vegetable oil for frying

For the wraps:

• lettuce leaves*
• hoisin sauce

Instructions:

For the marinade:

• Cut the chicken into 2-inch cubes and place in the freezer for about 10 minutes (this will make it easier to process).
• Grind the chicken in the food processor, then set aside. 
• Whisk vinegar, soy sauce, oil and corn starch together in a bowl large enough to hold the processed chicken. 
• Mix the chicken into the marinade and chill in the fridge for 10 minutes.

For the sauce:

• Whisk sake, soy sauce, garlic, ginger, oil, sesame seeds, corn starch and pepper flakes together in a bowl. Set aside.
• Dice the shiitake mushrooms, the green onions and the celery stalk. Set aside.
• Heat a bit of vegetable oil in a non-stick pan on high heat.
• Drain the chicken out of the marinade and fry it in the oil until it is cooked through. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
• Add more oil to the pan and fry mushrooms, green onions and celery until they start to soften.
• Add the chicken back into the pan, then add the sauce and cook until it thickens and turns translucent.

For the wraps:

• Fill the lettuce leaves with the chicken mixture.
• Drizzle with hoisin sauce and eat with your fingers.

Notes:

*I recommend you use butter lettuce for this recipe because it tastes great and has the perfect size and shape to make individual wraps.