Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (better than P.F. Chang’s)! A quick (less than 30 minutes), easy, and healthy dinner that tastes delicious! Gluten and dairy-free!
I know that’s a pretty bold claim…Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps you can make at home that are better than the beloved dish from P.F. Chang’s?! It may be bold, but it’s true! This Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps recipe is one that took me years of trial and error, and lots of taste-testing, to get it just right.
I’ve already discussed my love for Asian food here and here. These Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps wraps are one of my favorite dinners. They are quick and easy and my whole family loves them. Even my kids eat them, and have tons of fun doing it!
How to make Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Brown the ground chicken! This recipe is very straightforward! There is, however, one very important step and that is to brown the ground chicken. Making sure the chicken is nice and crispy and brown is essential to the overall flavor and texture of this dish!
- Use a Wok, Sauté pan, or a cast iron skillet. For traditional Asian recipes I love pulling out my wok. But as you can see in the photo above, a regular sauté pan or cast iron skillet works perfectly!
- Dice the vegetables very small. This is one of the keys to making sure every bite is bursting with both texture and flavor! Sometimes I even let my food processor do the chopping for me!
- The sauce! Oh please, I bet you, do not tamper with the sauce. That is the part of this recipe that took me years to perfect, and is absolutely delicious as-is!
What lettuce is best for wraps?
There are three varieties of lettuce that I recommend to use when making these chicken lettuce wraps:
- Butterhead lettuce
- Green Leaf Lettuce
- Romaine Lettuce
Just be sure to choose a head of lettuce that has large and flexible enough leaves to use as a wrap!
How do you cut lettuce for lettuce wraps?
It’s actually very simple! Just cut the bottom part of the head of lettuce off. Then carefully peel away each lettuce leaf! Don’t forget to wash and dry the lettuce leaves before serving!
Serving Suggestions
I prefer to eat them the traditional way…as lettuce wraps! 😉 However, to be totally real with you all (because that’s the only way to be), I usually serve these Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps to my kids over noodles or rice, because it’s much easier for them to eat with a spoon than wrapped in a piece of lettuce!
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps: Substitutions
As always I recommend making this recipe exactly as it’s written! Like I said, I tested and retested this recipe more times than I can count to achieve lettuce wrap perfection! However, here are a few potential substitutions!
- Ground chicken: Finely diced chicken breasts are a great substitute for ground chicken!
- Peanut Oil: Any oil can be used here if you don’t keep peanut on hand or if you have a peanut allergy. I recommend olive oil or avocado oil!
- Soy Sauce: If you have a soy allergy you can substitute coconut aminos for the soy sauce.
- Peanut Butter: If you have a peanut allergy any nut or seed butter could work here, but peanut butter definitely gives the best results!
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Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (better than P.F. Chang's)!
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (better than P.F. Chang's)! A quick, easy, and healthy dinner that tastes delicious! Gluten and dairy-free!
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 TBS peanut oil
- ½ onion minced
- 1 cup red or green pepper diced
- 1 8 oz can water chestnuts drained and minced
For the Sauce:
- 3 TBS soy sauce*
- 3 TBS hoisin sauce**
- 1 TBS sesame oil
- 1 TBS rice vinegar
- 1 TBS peanut butter
- 1 TBS honey
- 2 tsp sweet chili sauce (Trader Joe’s!)
- ½ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp powdered ginger
To serve
- ¼ cup peanuts crushed.
- Lettuce or your favorite Asian salad
Instructions
- Whisk together sauce ingredients until well combined. If you use a firmer peanut butter you may need to microwave the mixture for 30-60 seconds in order to melt it and ensure everything is well-mixed.
- Heat 2 TBS peanut oil in a frying pan. Once hot, add ground chicken.
- Cook until some pieces are starting to brown. Add onion and cook for 5 minutes or until the onion is becoming translucent.
- Add the peppers and water chestnuts and cook about 5 minutes or until peppers are becoming soft.
- Add sauce and simmer on low heat until the chicken and veggies are evenly coated and everything is heated through.
- Serve in lettuce leaves, on top of your favorite Asian salad, or over noodles or rice!
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
*be sure to choose a gluten-free soy sauce to keep this asian lettuce wraps recipe gluten-free, like this one.
**be sure to choose a gluten-free hoisin sauce to keep this recipe gluten-free, like this one.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!
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Kim
I just have to rave about this recipe, specifically the sauce! After making a number of Asian inspired recipes and always being disappointed with the sauce (either completely lacking flavor, being too salty, etc), my expectations were low. BUT, this sauce is literally perfect in every way. Your years of perfecting it paid off because it is the BEST!
Bridget
Hi! Made these tonight and they are wonderful! One question though do you think this could be made ahead and frozen?
Susan
Can this be made ahead and frozen?
Sandy
Going to make this tonight! When you serve it for dinner, what else do you serve with it?
Laura
Hey Sandy! I ususally serve it just in wraps for Ritch and I! For the kids I serve it with rice or noodles!
Vicki
Delicious! A little sweet for my taste so I may leave the honey out next time, but still very very good. Even very picky hubby who has never touched a lettuce wrap loved them. Thanks for the great recipe!
Laura
LOL! I always think of Ron Swanson from Parks and Rec when I make salad for my husband. When asked if he wanted salad he replied, “Since I am not a rabbit, no, I would not. LOL! I’m so glad you both enjoyed these!
Jessica
I made this recipe last night for my boyfriend and it was perfect!
Simple, Fun, and hands down delicious.
I pre-made the sauce and replaced the soy with coconut amino s; and pre-choppped the veggies for a quick and easy assemble for when we were ready to eat.
I added finely chopped carrots and mushrooms, green onion, and chopped cashews for a crunch on top.
I simply loved your recipe, thank you for sharing! 🙂
Laura
I’m SO glad you enjoyed it Jessica!! Love your additions too!!
Sandy
I like your additions. Those would extend the meat a bit more. I also like how you did the veggie chopping ahead. I doubled the recipe, but found it took more than double the time due to all the chopping. I’m used to that, and to recipes that usually say they take less time than they do.
It was delicious. I had some collard greens I needed to use up, so I used those for the wraps. My husband preferred using knife and fork, the second night I stir fried the rest of the collards with the swiss chard I served alongside, made some quinoa, and served the veggies and meat on top of the quinoa. Delicious! A little sweet, so I may leave out the honey in the future, or at least reduce it.
Good for breakfast, too!
Laura
Have you tried chopping your veggies in a food processor? It cuts down prep time significantly! 🙂 I’m glad you enjoyed it, I love the idea of using collard greens too!
Sandy
No, I have not tried a food processor for chopping veggies. Good idea!
Elizabeth
Amazing!!! Made it for the boyfriend, he loved it! I love the peanut butter in the sauce. Our usually lettuce wrap recipe isnt as good as this one, thank you thank you!
Laura
YAY! So glad you loved them Elizabeth!
Rebecca Meredith
These are by far the best lettuce wraps I have tried, and I will definitely make them again. My family all loved them as well. Thank you so much:)
Laura
YAY! I love hearing that Rebecca! Thanks for stopping by to let me know you loved them!
Kristie
This review is just for the sauce: I tried out your blend for sauce on my take of a healthy turkey lettuce wrap and oh my goodness, the sauce is INCREDIBLE! Definitely a keeper in my books for regular meal prep rotation. Thanks so much!! In case anyone is curious, my meat filling includes 1lb of Jenny-O low fat ground turkey, 1 medium zucchini diced, 1 cup of diced mushrooms, 3 thinly sliced green onions, 1/2 cup of shredded carrot, and an 8oz. can of water chestnuts (drained and chopped). Most of the prep work is taken care of by my vegetable chopper/dicer (around $15-20 on Amazon). To bump up the spice, I also serve this with some Sambal Oelek on the side to add as you eat!
Laura
Thank you Kristie! I’m SO glad you enjoyed them!
Laura
Thank you Kristie! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Megan
Made this recipe the other night and it was delicious! Will definitely be making it again!
(Just left out the water chestnuts because *blech*)
Laura
LOL to each their own! 😉 You can always add a different ingredient for a little crunch!
Laura
These were delicious!! We will be making them again!
Laura
Thank you Laura!
Penelope
This recipe is AMAZING!!!! In fact, we are enjoying it twice this week. Thank you so much for sharing!! I totally agree when it comes to the sauce—do not alter, it is perfect and oh so tasty!! I’m not too fond of the messiness of lettuce wraps (but LOVE the flavor!) so we shredded the lettuce the first night, and had chow mein noodles the second time. Both delicious! Try this recipe—-you will LOVE it!!!
Laura
Thank you SO much Penelope for stopping by to let me know how much you love it!!
Tricia Bou
Mom of three age three and under from Cincinnati, OH. I’ve been making these for two months now and I’m obsessed!
I double the batch, add two chopped zucchini, 2 red bell peppers, 1 large diced carrot and about a pound of sugar snap peas. My kids and husband eat with rice and I eat over spinach and romaine. So yummy! Thanks for the recipe, love sharing it with family and friends.
A.
Hi there!
I LOVE this recipe, I made yours this summer, and loved it. Then tried a few others out there, and this is the winner for sure. However, I was just looking it up again to make for my parents this week, I noticed that you call this a gluten-free recipe. For the record, Hoisin Sauce is NOT gluten free. You can find G-free hoisin sauce out there, but as a rule, the basic stuff you buy in the store is not g-free.
Just wanted those that don’t know that sneaky little detail not to officially call it a G-free thing at a potluck – you’ll hurt the celiacs out there without knowing it.
Doesn’t change the fact that I love this recipe and make it all the time…
Thanks thanks!
Laura
Hey there! That is true! I made sure to note that in the recipe card!
Kari H
I made these lettuce wraps today and they are delicious. I did not change a thing in the recipe and I couldn’t stop eating them. I use a small food processor to chop up the onion, red pepper and chestnuts very small. I served in Boston lettuce leaves. Soooooo good!!!
Laura
Thank you Kari!! I’m so glad you loved them!
Sarah Alexander
These are the best lettuce wraps I’ve ever made. Absolutely delicious. The whole family loved them.
Laura
Thank you Sarah!! I’m so glad you enjoy them! They’re a favorite around here for sure!
Meredith K
Hi! Looking forward to making these for dinner. The recipe calls for 1T of oil but the detailed directions say to heat 2T. Which one is your recommendation? Thanks!
Laura
I’d start with 1 and add more as needed!
Deborah J Maxwell
I was nervous about this because I haven’t tried anything like this before. They were amazing. My husband loved them, too. I used different meat/veggies, but followed the sauce directions. If anyone is interested–I used shrimp, carrot, and green onion. Thank-you!
Laura
YAY! I’m so glad you and your husband enjoyed this recipe Deborah!
Amy
I have made these a few times but have never told you how much I enjoy them! I have made several versions of PF changs lettuce wraps but this sauce is to die for. I don’t use the honey anymore (it’s plenty sweet IMO from hoisin and sweet chili sauce), but the peanut butter just makes it awesome. I also like to add equal parts minced mushrooms to the ground turkey…it’s a good way to get my kids to eat them without noticing. Thanks for a great recipe!
Carla Denise Mitchell
Just made these tonight and it was delicious! I’m counting carbs and was just wondering how many lettuce wraps equal the 24 carbs? I know the recipes says it serves six people but how much is one serving?
Thanks so much!
Laura
Hey Carla! I checked out the nutrition facts and they did not seem right to me! I recalculated them and updated them and now they are 100% correct! I calculated the info for 1/6 of the recipe (1 lettuce wrap)! I think I may have previously calculated the nutrition info based on it serving 4. If you are ever curious about the nutrition breakdown of a recipe, you can always add the ingredients into this website and calculate based on exactly what you used….Spark Recipes
Sandi Good
Favorite new recipe! This will be in regular rotation at our house. Thanks so much! Don’t mess with the sauce. It’s perfect.
Laura
YAY Sandi! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Kim
We made the lettuce wraps tonight! They were soooo good:) I love finding new recipes that my family actually likes:) Thank you for this recipe. The sauce is absolutely perfect!
Kim B.
I just made this for my daughters basketball team meal. I made it exactly as written except for these two things:
1) I used ground turkey because the store didn’t have enough ground chicken and didn’t want to mix meats.
2) Ran out of sesame oil so used 1 tbsp olive oil to make up the difference.
I quadrupled this recipe, 😳 feeding a team of 10 plus coaches. Using romaine. Do NOT change a thing about the sauce, it’s perfect!
Nancy
For the Rice Vinegar, do you use seasoned or unseasoned Rice Vinegar?
Laura
Either one works well! I have used both with great results. Right now this Genuine Brewed Rice Vinegar is what I have in my pantry and just used it to make these a few days ago! 🙂
Heather Schiess
I’m hosting an open house style function and would like to prepare this recipe, any suggestion as to how much I should make for about 50 people (mostly women)? I could see more than 50, but I think that’s a pretty safe guesstimate as not everyone attending will eat, I’m sure. I appreciate the input. The recipe sounds delicious and easy to make.
Brent
Outstanding. Made it in 30 min. Added some shredded carrots and celery minced finely. Got five stars reviews from 15 yr old son wife and I. 12 yr daughter on other hand…..well some of you know how that goes. Great Recipe!!!!!!!thumbs up. Good job Laura!!!
Laura Rodriguez
Made this tonight for my husband and 10 year old son! We all loved it so much! My son said I should enter a cooking contest. Then when I gave you credit, he said that you should enter a cooking contest. 🙂 Thank you for sharing this with us!
Andrea G Spivey
Really good! Especially the sauce!
Denise
Loved this recipe! I went to a Super Bowl party so wanted a finger food that was easy to grab and eat so served the filling in endive leaves perfect! The whole platter disappeared in a few minutes
Thank you !
Mike
Everyone in my family loved this recipe. What is your suggestion to add some heat to it? Thanks!