Turkey Lettuce Wraps

These Asian-inspired Turkey Lettuce Wraps are ultra fresh, flavorful, and fast. Make these to celebrate the Chinese New Year before it ends!

If you didn’t already know, I have an ongoing relationship with one of my favorite food brands, Kikkoman. They recently asked me to create a recipe in celebration of the Chinese New Year, which ends later this week. The first thing that came to mind was lettuce wraps, which are one of my favorite Asian-inspired party foods because they are approachable and quick yet bursting with flavor.

A quick Google search to make sure lettuce wraps were an appropriate Chinese New Year fare led me to this little tidbit of information: the Cantonese word for “lettuce” apparently sounds like the word for “rising fortune,” so lettuce wraps are considered a lucky food. I’m really trusting Google on this one since I clearly can’t speak a lick of Cantonese. Either way, these lettuce wraps are the perfect low-key party food that you can make ahead of time and that your guests can serve themselves. Although ground turkey is inexpensive and low-fat, it is so unarguably bland. I added lots of garlic, ginger, red chili paste, soy sauce, hoisin sauce, and rice vinegar to effortlessly amp up the flavor.

Recipe Rundown
Taste: So refreshing yet savory and flavorful. The ground turkey is like a blank canvas for flavor!
Texture: Meaty, crunchy, juicy, tender. I love the texture of these babies!
Ease: Super quick and easy.
Appearance: So vibrant and adorable.
Pros: Fresh, flavorful, fast.
Cons: None at all! You can even make the turkey mix ahead of time and reheat to serve later.
Would I make this again? Absolutely.

*This post is sponsored by Kikkoman. All opinions provided are my own.

5 from 2 votes

How to make

Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Yield: 4 -6 servings

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

These Asian-inspired Turkey Lettuce Wraps are ultra fresh, flavorful, and fast. Make these to celebrate the Chinese New Year before it ends!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons peanut oil
• 1/2 red bell pepper, finely chopped
• 4 ounces canned water chestnuts, drained and chopped
• 1 1/4 pounds ground turkey
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh minced ginger
• 2 teaspoons red chili paste (more or less depending on taste)
• 3 tablespoons Kikkoman hoisin sauce
• 3 teaspoons Kikkoman low sodium soy Ssuce
• 1 tablespoon Kikkoman rice vinegar
• 12 Boston or butter lettuce leaves

Directions

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the red bell pepper and water chestnuts and sauté until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the turkey, garlic, green onions, ginger, and red chili paste and cook, stirring and breaking up the turkey into small crumbles, until no longer pink. Drain any liquid or fat. Add the hoisin, soy sauce, and vinegar, stirring to combine.
2. Remove the turkey mixture to a serving bowl. Serve alongside lettuce leaves.

Recipe Notes

If you're serving a crowd or want leftovers, you can easily double this recipe.

Course : Appetizer

Recipe by Tessa Arias

Author: Tessa Arias

I share trusted baking recipes your friends will LOVE alongside insights into the science of sweets. I'm a professionally trained chef, cookbook author, and cookie queen. I love to write about all things sweet, carb-y, and homemade. I live in Phoenix, Arizona (hence the blog name!)