Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps Recipe
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This Asian chicken lettuce wraps recipe is fresh, flavorful, and honestly better than P.F. Chang’s, and way easier to make at home! Savory ground chicken, crunchy water chestnuts, and a gorgeous ginger dressing get spooned into crisp lettuce cups for a meal that’s light and satisfying. Bonus: everything comes together in about 30 minutes, start to finish!
If you love lettuce wraps, you’ve gotta try Southwest Shrimp Salad Stuffed Avocados and Southwest Stuffed Poblano Peppers.
Why This Recipe Works
Restaurant-style flavor at home! These Chinese chicken lettuce wraps are packed with sweet, savory, and slightly spicy flavors thanks to the ginger dressing! If you’ve ever had lettuce wraps at P.F. Changs, you know that the sauce you drizzle on top makes all the difference. So I made my own, and it is SO good!
Ground chicken keeps things quick and flavorful. Using ground chicken means this recipe cooks fast, making these ground chicken lettuce wraps ideal for weeknight dinners or an easy appetizer. These come out surprisingly impressive to serve, if you ask me!
Packed with texture. Crunchy water chestnuts and scallions balance the chicken perfectly. Not to mention the lettuce wraps themselves! They are so crunchy and refreshing. That perfect contrast is what takes these lettuce wraps from basic to seriously good.
It’s flexible and crowd-friendly! Swap chicken with turkey or pork, and make them as spicy or as savory as you want. Whether you’re serving picky eaters or hosting friends, you can adjust this recipe for your audience to really make it a hit.
Ingredients
- Hoisin sauce: The backbone of the chicken lettuce wraps sauce, adding sweetness and depth.
- Soy sauce: Brings salty umami flavor! Low-sodium works great here.
- Rice wine vinegar: Balances the sauce with a bit of acidity.
- Sriracha: For a bit of heat! Adjust to taste.
- Toasted sesame oil: Adds nutty aroma.
- Oil: For sautéing! Any neutral oil works.
- Ground chicken: Lean, juicy, and perfect for soaking up flavor. You can opt for ground turkey or ground pork if you prefer.
- Onion: Adds sweetness to the filling.
- Kosher salt: Add more to taste!
- Garlic & Ginger: Essential for flavor!
- Water chestnuts: Provide signature crunch. I use canned water chestnuts, drain them and chop them up!
- Scallions: Add freshness and mild onion flavor.
- Lettuce: Butter lettuce, Bibb, or iceberg all work well.
- Ginger Dressing: For the dressing, combine rice wine vinegar, oil, minced ginger, soy sauce, honey, dijon mustard, and garlic powder! It is the cherry on top of these lettuce wraps!
Substitutions & Variations
- Meat: Swap ground chicken for ground turkey with no other changes. Or, use ground pork for richer flavor!
- Spicy: Make it spicier with extra sriracha or chili garlic sauce!
- Lettuce: While the filling is technically made to be served in lettuce, you can skip the lettuce and serve the filling over rice or noodles instead.
Here’s How to Make It
- Make the Sauce: To make the chicken, first whisk together the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sriracha and toasted sesame oil. Set aside.
- Brown the Chicken: Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan, wok or skillet over a medium high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken, onion and a pinch of salt. Cook until the onion is soft and the chicken is cooked through and slightly browned, breaking up the chicken with the spatula or spoon as you go.
- Add Aromatics & Sauce: Add garlic and ginger, and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the stir fry sauce, and cook for a few more minutes until it starts to thicken.
- Stir in the Veggies: Add the water chestnuts and the scallions, stirring until the sauce has reduced and become slightly sticky.
- Make the Dressing: Whisk together all the ginger dressing ingredients.
- Serve & Enjoy: Serve the chicken with the lettuce cups and the dressing in a bowl on the side to be added to the cups as people eat.
Expert Tips
- Brown the chicken in a large pan! I recommend using a wide pan so the ground chicken browns properly instead of steaming. Browning adds flavor and improves the texture of your ground chicken lettuce wraps!
- Add garlic and ginger only after the chicken has cooked. This keeps them from burning and ensures a fresher, more aromatic flavor.
- Taste test! Always taste the chicken lettuce wraps sauce before adding it to the pan. Adjust sweetness or heat now, since flavors concentrate as the sauce reduces.
- Serve the lettuce cups cold and crisp. The contrast between warm filling and cool lettuce makes these Asian chicken lettuce wraps especially refreshing.
FAQs
Butter lettuce and Bibb lettuce are ideal because they’re flexible and naturally cup-shaped. Iceberg lettuce is also a great option if you prefer extra crunch.
Absolutely. Making ground chicken lettuce wraps at home lets you control sodium and sugar, making this an easy recipe for chicken lettuce wraps that’s lighter than most restaurant versions.
They pair well with steamed rice, fried rice, or a chopped Asian salad. For a full spread, I like to serve it with Chinese beef and broccoli or pork lo mein! So good!
More Recipes to Try
- Teriyaki Chicken Tacos – sweet, sticky chicken meets taco night!
- Baked Coconut Shrimp – crispy, coconutty, and baked— not fried.
- Bang Bang Chicken Kabobs – juicy skewers with bold, creamy heat!
- Honey Sriracha Chicken – sweet, spicy, and seriously addictive!
- Easy Chinese Cashew Chicken – takeout vibes with crunchy cashews, made easy.
- Easy Baked Chicken Meatballs – These are the best, super simple, juicy and flavorful homemade meatballs!
When you make this recipe, snap a photo and tag me on social – I love connecting with you and seeing what you’re up to in the kitchen!
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
For the Chinese Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp rice wine vinegar
- 1 tbsp sriracha
- 2 tsp toasted sesame oil
- 2 tbsp oil
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 small brown or white onion, finely chopped
- kosher salt, to taste
- 2 tsp crushed garlic
- ½ tsp minced ginger
- 1 x 8 oz can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
- 4 scallions, trimmed and finely sliced
- lettuce, to serve
For the Ginger Dressing
- ¼ cup rice wine vinegar
- ¼ cup oil
- 2 tbsp minced ginger
- 2 ½ tsp soy sauce
- ½ tsp honey
- ½ tsp Dijon mustard
- ½ tsp garlic powder
Instructions
- To make the chicken, first whisk together the hoisin sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sriracha and toasted sesame oil. Set aside.
- Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan, wok or skillet over a medium high heat. Once the oil is shimmering, add the chicken, onion and a pinch of salt. Cook until the onion is soft and the chicken is cooked through and slightly browned, breaking up the chicken with the spatula or spoon as you go.
- Add garlic and ginger, and cook for 1-2 minutes until fragrant. Add the stir fry sauce, and cook for a few more minutes until it starts to thicken.
- Add the water chestnuts and the scallions, stirring until the sauce has reduced and become slightly sticky.
- Whisk together all the ginger dressing ingredients.
- Serve the chicken with the lettuce cups and the dressing in a bowl on the side to be added to the cups as people eat.
Notes
- This recipe will work equally as well with ground turkey.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Thanks for letting us know up front about Packaged seasoning. Some of us are not friendly terms with packaged or processed foods. Saved me from a great looking recipe.