Any time kids can eat with their hands instead of a fork, you up your chances of full bellies.
And who doesn’t love taking a break from all the manners and getting a little messy?
These Asian chicken lettuce wraps are the perfect middle-of-the-week dinner and are full of flavor and fun to eat.
This recipe checks a lot of the boxes required for pulling off weeknight family dinner: You make it in one pan; it takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish; most of the ingredients are pantry staples, so no trip to the store required (once you make this, canned water chestnuts are bound to become a staple); the Asian flavors are exciting to the palette; it’s a nice change from the usual chicken options, and finally, everyone will love it.
If you are not into the lettuce cup idea, this dinner works well served over rice; there is a lot of sauce, which the rice captures in every spoonful. If you have little ones, this recipe is a great way to help them broaden their horizons since Hoisin sauce is sweet, making it an easy sell. They will enjoy a variety of textures, from the water chestnuts to the red pepper to the ground chicken, and they won’t even know how healthy they are being.
Just set a big bowl in the middle of the table and serve the dish family style, enjoying a little international flair in your kitchen. Your family will be pleasantly surprised and grateful to taste a new recipe in the rotation.
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 Tablespoons sesame or olive oil
1 lb. ground chicken
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and finely minced
½ red bell pepper, finely diced
4 ounces water chestnuts, drained
½ cup soy sauce
3 Tablespoons hoisin sauce
4 scallions, trimmed and sliced
12 whole Bibb lettuce leaves
Sprigs of cilantro and fresh mint for garnish
Directions:
In a large sauté pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until shimmering over medium-high heat. Add ground chicken, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until cooked through, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a bowl.
Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in the sauté pan over medium heat and, when hot, cook the garlic and ginger for about 1 minute (or less) until garlic is light brown, stirring to prevent burning.
Add the pepper and cook about 5 minutes, until the pepper softens.
Return chicken to pan, stir in chestnuts.
In a small cup, whisk the soy sauce and hoisin with ¼ cup of water. Pour into the pan, add the scallions, and simmer for 1 minute, stirring to mix.
Remove the chicken mixture from the heat and spoon the it into the iceberg or Bibb lettuce leaves.
Garnish with sprigs of cilantro and mint as desired.
