These P.F. Chang’s inspired turkey lettuce wraps are bursting with fresh ingredients and loads of tangy, Asian-style flavor. Ready in under 20 minutes, this easy lettuce wraps recipe is the perfect appetizer idea for your next dinner party!
Turn these juicy turkey lettuce wraps into a meal with a side of homemade potstickers and a starter of wonton soup. And if you love the flavors in this recipe, try this crockpot sesame chicken, next.
Want to save this recipe?
We'll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Lettuce wraps are a nostalgic favorite of mine. When I was in high school, my best friend and I loved to hit up our local P.F. Chang’s together. Without fail, our go-to appetizer was their Asian lettuce wraps. They had spicy, tangy, juicy ground meat tucked into a crisp lettuce cup, served with a side of sauce. Little did I know I’d be sharing my love of lettuce wraps with my hubby and kids in the future! Whenever I make these homemade turkey lettuce wraps, it brings me right back to that place and time with my bestie.
Why You’ll Love These Turkey Lettuce Wraps
- Lean and juicy ground turkey. These lettuce wraps are not an exact copy of P.F. Chang’s wraps, which were made with ground chicken. I use lean ground turkey instead, but you can easily change up this recipe to use ground chicken or even ground beef if you prefer.
- Quick and easy. These savory ground turkey lettuce wraps are light, fresh, and super easy to make. Cook the turkey and sauce in a skillet, and you’re ready to serve in 20 minutes.
- Great for entertaining. These wraps are low-carb, gluten-free, and dairy-free, so they’re a great option for feeding a crowd. I love making these for football and Super Bowl parties!
Key Ingredients
There are a few staple Asian ingredients you’ll need to recreate these restaurant-worthy lettuce wraps at home. It’s a great reason to pay a visit to your local Asian supermarket! You’ll also find most of the below in the international aisle at major grocery stores. Stock up, and you can use many of these ingredients in more recipes like teriyaki stir fry and peanut noodles!
Check out my notes here, and scroll to the recipe card for the printable ingredients list with the full recipe amounts.
- Canola oil – Or another cooking oil, for browning the ground meat.
- Lean ground turkey – You can use any ground meat you’d like. Turkey, chicken, beef, pork… all of these will taste great in this recipe. Just keep in mind that the fat content and flavor will vary slightly depending on which protein you use. I include some easy variation ideas further in the post.
- Shallot – Yellow onions or sweet onions, like Vidalia, will also work.
- Garlic – Freshly minced. You can substitute ¼-½ teaspoon of garlic powder per fresh clove if needed.
- Scallions – These are green onions. You’ll want to slice the pale green part just above the stem, and save the dark green ends as a garnish.
- Lemongrass – Lemongrass is a type of stalky, citrusy-flavored herb that’s popular in stir-fries, soups, and curries. When preparing lemongrass for cooking, use only the pale, tender inner core. If you can’t find it where you are, a good substitute to brighten up this dish is fresh lemon zest.
- Chopped cashews – You can also use peanuts or pecans. You can also leave these out to make the turkey filling nut-free.
- Rice vinegar – Other options are mirin (Japanese cooking wine), white wine vinegar, or apple cider vinegar.
- Hoisin sauce – Hoisin is a dark, sweet-salty Chinese sauce that packs lots of umami into recipes like my sweet and sticky shrimp. If you don’t have it, substitute additional soy sauce (or sweet soy sauce) or miso paste.
- Soy sauce – I like to cook with low-sodium soy sauce. You can use tamari or coconut aminos if needed.
- Garlic chili sauce – Choose your favorite chili garlic sauce from the store, or another hot sauce, like Sriracha.
- Cilantro – Freshly chopped, for garnish.
- Butter lettuce leaves – You can use other kinds of lettuce but I think this variety is best for wraps. See below!
The Best Lettuce for Lettuce Wraps
Butter lettuce leaves are my greens of choice for lettuce wraps. They’re naturally cup-shaped, crisp, and sturdy, but not tough. Another good option is Boston Bibb leaves. If you use super crisp lettuce like iceberg, it may crack, and greener leaves like arugula and spinach are too flimsy to stand up to our filling.
How Do You Cut Lettuce for Wraps?
All you have to do if you’re using one of the lettuce types I recommended is cut off the bottom of the head of lettuce. Then, simply peel away the lettuce leaves to separate them. Be sure to wash the leaves with warm water and dry them before assembling your lettuce wraps.
How to Make Turkey Lettuce Wraps
You can probably imagine how thrilled I was when I realized how crazy-easy it is to make one of my all-time favorite Asian appetizers at home! These ground turkey lettuce wraps take all of 20 minutes and one pan to make. Follow the steps here, and scroll down to the recipe card for the printable directions.
- Sauté the ground turkey. Start by sautéing the garlic, shallots, and ground turkey in a large wok or skillet over medium heat. Break up the meat as it cooks through. If needed, drain the excess grease afterward.
- Add the rest of the ingredients. Add your scallions, lemongrass, and cashews to the wok along with the rice vinegar, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and garlic chili sauce. Toss everything together with the turkey to coat, and fry for another 2-3 minutes.
- Serve. Wash and dry your lettuce leaves. Then, add a sprinkle of cilantro over the turkey filling, and spoon that into the lettuce cups. Enjoy! See below for easy serving ideas.
Tips and Variations
- Use pre-cooked protein. These Asian turkey lettuce wraps are a great way to use up leftover turkey. You can also use shredded chicken or rotisserie chicken. The texture will be different and the sauce won’t cling to shredded meat in quite the same way, but it’ll still be delicious!
- Make it spicy. Add extra chili sauce, crushed chili flakes, or fresh chilies to the filling to make it spicier. Or, drizzle over your favorite hot sauce when serving.
- Add more veggies. Bring more veggies into the mix like shredded carrots, corn, mushrooms, or peas. Just make sure they’re bite size.
- Change up the sauce. Make General Tso’s lettuce wraps with shredded broccoli, red peppers, and General Tso’s sauce. You could also swap out the sauce in this recipe for teriyaki sauce (like the one I use with my teriyaki salmon).
- Go completely off script! I’ve seen Buffalo chicken, crack chicken, and bacon cheese burger lettuce wraps! There’s really no wrong way to adapt this recipe. I even have a Mexican variation of lettuce tacos called salpicon de res that you can try. Seriously, I’m drooling just thinking about it.
Serving Suggestions
If you’re wondering how to eat lettuce wraps, it’s super easy: fold up the filling inside the lettuce leaf and dig in just like a taco! I love pairing these turkey lettuce wraps with more Asian-inspired appetizers, like Chinese BBQ pork (char sui), spring rolls, and scallion pizza for a fusion-style “grazing” dinner. Or, I’ll serve them as a starter alongside kung pao, bourbon chicken, or pan-fried noodles. Wash things down with a cool Thai iced tea!
Proper Storage
- Refrigerate. Store extra filling in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
- Reheat. You can reheat the filling in the microwave until warmed through. I recommend storing any extra lettuce leaves separately so that they stay crisp and ready to make into more lettuce wraps.
More Easy Appetizer Ideas
Turkey Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon canola oil
- 1 lb extra lean ground turkey, or any other ground meat
- 1 medium shallot
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 3 scallions
- 2 large stalks lemongrass-tender pale inner core only, minced
- ½ cup chopped cashews
- 1 teaspoonful seasoned rice vinegar
- ¼ cup hoisin sauce
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 1 ½ teaspoonful garlic chili sauce
- small handful of cilantro, chopped
- butter lettuce leaves, or your favorite lettuce, for serving
Want to save this recipe?
We’ll email this recipe to you, so you can come back to it later!
Instructions
- In a large wok (or non stick skillet), heat oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and shallot and cook for 15 seconds, then add ground turkey. Break up the meat with a spoon, tossing/stirring often, until meat is cooked through.
- Once the turkey is cooked through, check and see if there is a lot of grease left over in the bottom of the pan. If there is, drain the meat, and then re-add to the wok. If not, skip to the next step.
- Add the scallions, lemongrass, cashews, rice vinegar, hoisin sauce, soy sauce, and garlic chili sauce. Toss well to ensure everything is coated. Allow to cook for another 2-3 minutes and remove from heat and sprinkle with cilantro.
- To serve, separate leaves of lettuce and wash with warm water; pat dry. Spoon the turkey mixture into the center of a lettuce leaf and eat like a taco! Enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Categories:
Post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Where’s the receipe for the dipping sauce?
In the photos that is hoisin sauce that I put on the side for dipping, if desired. They are sauce-y enough on their own you really don’t need a dipping sauce though!
The recipe was delicious, our lettuce kept breaking but we even ate it with a spoon! YUM
I found your recipe for these back in 2011 and still make them…except for the lemongrass because we’re just too lazy to keep it in the house. 🙂 Thanks for all the great recipes!!
Wow Allie! This is an oldie! I’m glad you still enjoy them, I really need to make them again for dinner soon! 🙂
I don’t know if I missed something (it’s likely), but when do we put the cashews in?
Thanks!
Made these and took them to work as lunch. Very yummy!
Okay, I’ve been blog stalking your site for a while now and I just have to say these have become a favorite of ours!! They’re delicious and SO easy to make, I can’t help but crave them once a week. 🙂 Thank you!!!!
Awesome! I am so glad you like them so much! …and thanks for reminding me about these babies. I haven’t make them in way too long!
Made these two nights ago. They turned out so yummy! Definitely reminded me of the PF Chang lettuce wraps. Couldn’t find fresh lemon grass any where, so had to go with out it but it was delicious none the less! Thank you for the inspiring and amazing recipes, I follow your blog religiously! Making the Turkey and cheese stuffed pasta shells for my family Sunday : )
Thanks!
Lovely recipe! I am so in love with this. Thanks a lot. I am definitely going to try this one.
I will definitely be making this for my mom…she LOVES the ones at P.F. Chang’s, so these will be a huge winner!
@sandi, Let me know what your Mom thinks! 🙂
Mmmm… lettuce wraps from PF Chang’s are awesome! Ever since I moved to Europe I haven’t seen any lettuce wraps on menus, although I have to say that I wasn’t really looking. I guess I’ll have to start…. or make my own! They are so delicious.
This looks so so delish! Love the combination of flavors.
I love your photo, is so green and it’s inspiring a healthy snack :X
I haven’t tried the lettuce wraps but I’ve had their fried bananas and yum YUM yum!! These look fantastic!
I’ve made lettuce wraps once before, but these seem to be a little more “true” to the PF Changs version than mine were. Will have to give these a try!
Ohhhhh yum! This looks tasty!!
Mary xx
Delightful Bitefuls
I was such a fan of PF Changs when I lived in boston (their tower of chocolate…also amazing). But there really aren’t any in NYC so I haven’t been in YEARS. I’m so glad you posted this because it would be such a great throw-back to my good old college days!
LOL I love that it’s ass friendly! This looks amazing. I may have to cook and bake my way through your blog…
I’ve never been to PF Changs, but we love love love lettuce wraps. In particular, the DH can’t get enough of them.
These look great!
So bookmarking this one. I enjoy PF Changs lettuce wraps (though trying to get the BF to order anything but dumplings is near impossible). These look great 🙂
I made lettuce cups once but your recipe sounds tastier than the one I used, I think I’ll have to try making them again!