Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (Better than P.F. Chang’s)!
Posted Feb 29, 2016, Updated Jul 19, 2024
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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.
These Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps wraps are one of my favorite dinners (along with this cashew chicken stir fry). They are quick and easy and my whole family loves them. Even my kids eat them, and have tons of fun doing it!
Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps: Ingredients & 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! You can also use ground turkey or ground beef!
- 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!
How to Make Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Let’s walk through the process of making this chicken lettuce wraps recipe step-by-step. Don’t forget to watch the video too!
Make the Sauce
The first step in this lettuce wrap recipe is making the sauce. The sauce is the key to the flavor of this recipe. I do not suggest tampering with the sauce. It is the part of this recipe that took me years to perfect, and is absolutely delicious as-is.
It’s really simple to make! Just whisk all the ingredients together. If you use a thicker peanut butter that is solid at room temperature, you may need ot warm it slightly before using it to make this Asian lettuce wraps recipe!
Make the Lettuce Wrap Filling
Begin by cooking the onion, minced garlic and ground chicken until the chicken is lightly browned.
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.
Next, add the vegetables and cook until they are soft.
Finely Dice Vegetables
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!
Then, add the sauce and cook until slightly thickened.
Serve
I prefer to enjoy this recipe the traditional way – as lettuce wraps! However, I usually serve these Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps to my kids over noodles or rice, or with a side of our favorite homemade fried rice, because it’s much easier for them to eat with a spoon than wrapped in a piece of lettuce.
They’re also a great appetizer, along with these spring rolls dipped in peanut sauce, to some of our favorite Asian meals, like cashew chicken, vegetable stir fry, Asian quinoa salad, and this baked crispy tofu.
Store
Store any leftover lettuce wrap filling in an airtight in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Store leftover lettuce separately in the refrigerator, because storing them together will make the lettuce soggy.
Freeze
The lettuce wrap filling can be frozen for up to 2 months in an airtight container. Thaw it by warming it in a pan on the stovetop over low heat.
Lettuce Wraps Recipe FAQs
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!
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!
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Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps (better than P.F. Chang’s)!
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground chicken
- 1 Tablespoon peanut oil
- ½ onion (finely diced)
- ½ Tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 cup red or green pepper (finely diced)
- 8 ounces water chestnuts (drained & finely diced)
For the Sauce:
- 3 Tablespoons soy sauce*
- 3 Tablespoons hoisin sauce**
- 1 Tablespoon sesame oil
- 1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
- 1 Tablespoon peanut butter
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- 2 teaspoons sweet chili sauce
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon 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 Tablespoons peanut oil in a frying pan. Once hot, add ground chicken, onion and minced garlic.
- Cook until chicken browns and the onions are translucent, cook for 5 to 10 minutes.
- Add the peppers and water chestnuts and cook about 5 minutes or until peppers are slightly soft.
- Add the 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!
Video
Notes
- 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.
- *be sure to choose a gluten-free soy sauce to keep this asian lettuce wraps recipe gluten-free, like this one.
- Hoisin sauce: **be sure to choose a gluten-free hoisin sauce to keep this recipe gluten-free, like this one.
- Peanut Butter: If you have a peanut allergy any nut or seed butter could work here, but peanut butter definitely gives the best results!
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Laura any suggestions on a substitute for sesame oil? We have sesame allergies in the family
You can use peanut oil!
Sometimes I can’t believe how snarky some people can be. There is a nice way and a bad way to make a comment. Perfection is in the taste of the beholder. Your comment left a bad taste, period!!!!!!
Sometimes I can’t believe what I am reading. You took years, yes years, to perfect this recipe and you ended up using garlic and ginger powder?
Perhaps for a true authentic Asian taste, much fresher taste as well, use fresh ginger and garlic. Nearly all Asian food starts with a quick early fry of the fresh ginger and garlic. (Powder? must be a lazy American thing.)
I made mine both ways and trust me, you took years to perfect yours, well it wasn’t perfect, mine with real ginger and garlic was. Try it.
Hey Col! I actually agree with you on switching to fresh garlic and ginger if you have those ingredients readily available. Fun fact – I’ve spent the last 12 years having babies and nursing and of those years a solid 10 of them I couldn’t stand the taste of garlic in anything – hence why many of my older recipes call for powders, because I could handle that. So, thankfully during my last and final pregnancy I fell in love with fresh garlic, onions and ginger again. So those are definitely great substitutes for powdered as I state in the recipe. Also, if you’re cooking for kids powders are sometimes better!
Hate garlic growing up and l’m Asian. I use garlic powder all the time when cooking. Some difference to me. All good when cooking is concerned. It’s universal.
What a gracious reply to Col! You are a true lady. Anyhow, I really love this recipe and the powdered garlic and ginger was fine! I also added fresh garlic in addition to the powdered. I didn’t have fres ginger. It turned out perfect and I’ve made this 3 times! We love it!
Not necessary. Kindness always works better than snarky.
Why be rude? Sometimes people don’t have time. You can definitely add useful notes without being a jerk.
Anyhow, this is a great recipe – I really enjoy it and I’ve made it both ways!
rude, col. i’d be terrified to bring a dish to your place at Thanksgiving – – you’d send me out the door with my tail between my legs!
this meal was delicious, and i’m noy saying if i used powdered or fresh ginger and garlic 🙂
LOL!! I’m just here for this comment thread. 😉
I didn’t make these yet but I just needed to reply to this comment because I am LAUGHING. You took the time to write this. You scrolled to the bottom of this page and took the time to put down someone’s highly rated meal that they decided to share with the world. Where’s your cooking blog, Col? Do you have one? Or are you just busy “perfecting” everyone else’s? I’ve never seen anything negative on a recipe before, just alterations or suggestions. I hope you choke on your fresh ginger. How bout that! (not real threat)
5-Star rating based on following the recipe EXACTLY! It was delicious and flavorful. My husband and I were even more impressed with the flavor of the leftovers the next day.
That said, some changes I will try next time based on my own preferences: I am going to try substituting a pound of chopped mushrooms in place of the ground chicken. It won’t have the same texture, but I don’t enjoy the sight and smell of raw ground chicken as it cooks. I will also reduce the sweet ingredients (honey, sweet chile sauce, etc) slightly, and increase the savory ingredients (soy sauce, garlic, etc) slightly, because I prefer savory over sweet in most dishes.
Wonderful recipe! I am so glad I discovered it on your page and have recommended it to friends. Thank you!
Try using chopped pecans with the mushrooms!!! Its amazing . Agree with decreased sugar and honey!!!
Cooked this recipe for dinner since it’s too hot today! My hubby loved it so much he practically ate the whole thing! My previous recipe had a dipping sauce on the side…I was surprised to see this didn’t have any! But, since the sauce is already incorporated with the chicken, there’s really no need to have it. I preferred to eat mine with the crushed peanuts, on the contrary, my hubby prefers them without. I couldn’t find the water chestnut so as a substitute I used thinly sliced carrots. To add crunch,I also julienned the cucumber & added the thinly cut carrots as part of the garnish along with the crushed peanuts. It was perfect! Wanted to post my photo but can’t find the button to attach.
I loved it too! I didn’t use peanuts though are used cashiers for the top just a personal favorite and the kids ate it up. I made it tonight for the second time and instead of ground chicken egg used ground pork and it was just as good
Cashews are a great choice!
My boyfriend and I made these wraps for lunch and OMG they are soo good!!! DEFINITELY better than P.F. Chang’s 🙂 I will for sure being using this recipe again!
Thank you Chloe! I’m so glad you both enjoyed them!
I just fixed this for dinner. I followed the sauce recipe exactly. It was so Delicious I threw my old similar recipe in the trash. This is a mouthwatering taste and so addictive that it served 3 vs the 6 servings. I did substitute peanut oil to coconut oil (EVOO has a lower burn point) and minced celery for water chestnut, This is a MUST try dish and a keeper.
I’m so glad you love this recipe as much as we do! 🙂
Hello! I’m excited about making this for an upcoming girls weekend at the lake. Does it work to make it ahead, and either reheat or eat cold?
Sounds perfect for this hot Texas weather.
Thank you!
I only have skippy peanut butter. Is that ok to use in this recipe or should I use a natural peanut butter instead?
You can use skippy!