Lettuce Wraps
In high school my best friend and I used to go for special lunches to P.F. Changs. We would order 1 appetizer, 1 entree, and 1 dessert…which was perfect to get to have a little of everything. While we would try different entrees, we always stuck with the same appetizer and dessert. The appetizer was always their lettuce wraps and for dessert we would have the fried bananas (ah-mazing, by the way).ย And last week when I was cleaning out my freezer I found a bunch of ground turkey from when it was by one get one free. So first we had stuffed peppers, then we had Greek Burgers, and then I was at a big loss. Until I was flipping through Food & Wine and I saw their version of lettuce wraps. It reminded me of all the great times we used to have, so I ended up makingย them for dinner that very night! Jorge and I sat on the floor and ate them while watching Big Bang Theory. It was perfect! ๐
I ended up not following Food & Wine’s version at all, but I would like to say that they inspired me! I actually tossed this recipe together by what I had in my kitchen at the time…and what tasted good flavor wise. This was a perfect dinner for us, but would also make a great appetizer as long as you have lots of napkins on hand! And even better, it saves extremely well! We had a good amount of leftovers, so Jorge took them for lunch and he said they were just as good the second time around!
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
1/2 cup chopped cashews
1 teaspoonful seasoned rice vinegar
1/4 cup hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 1/2 teaspoonful garlic chili sauce
small handful of cilantro, chopped
butter lettuce leaves (or your favorite lettuce), for serving
Directions:
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!
A Novice Chef Blog Original
I love lettuce wraps- yours look great!
wraps look good,..
P.F. Changs lettuce wraps are the only fast food (well, chain restaurant) I can say that I actually like. I made them at home a while back, and although they were good they were also a lot of work.
I made lettuce wraps once upon a time.
They didn’t come looking nearly as good as these!
Ok….I lurveeee PF Changs. They recently opened up two branches in Dubai and I’m their best customer ๐ Will gladly be trying these out at home!
Unfortunately I’ve never been to P.F. Chang’s..we don’t have them around here. But regardless, your lettuce wraps look great!
P.F. Chang’s is the only place I have had lettuce wraps.. I have been wanting to recreate them for a while. This combination of flavors looks great! I can’t wait to make these… probably replacing the turkey with lentils for a meat free version.
yes! must make these for lunch soon! deeeeelicious ๐
Lettuce wraps are so delicious. The Splendid Table’s cookbook How To Eat Dinner also has a great lettuce wrap recipe. One of my favorite.
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!
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 ๐
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!
LOL I love that it’s ass friendly! This looks amazing. I may have to cook and bake my way through your blog…
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!
Ohhhhh yum! This looks tasty!!
Mary xx
Delightful Bitefuls
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!
I haven’t tried the lettuce wraps but I’ve had their fried bananas and yum YUM yum!! These look fantastic!
I love your photo, is so green and it’s inspiring a healthy snack :X
This looks so so delish! Love the combination of flavors.
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.
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! ๐
Lovely recipe! I am so in love with this. Thanks a lot. I am definitely going to try this one.
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!
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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. ๐ 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 and took them to work as lunch. Very yummy!
I don’t know if I missed something (it’s likely), but when do we put the cashews in?
Thanks!
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. ๐ 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! ๐