Savory Chinese lettuce wraps with ground turkey are a flavorful, fast and healthy meal made all in one wok! Turkey and fresh vegetables fill each wrap.
I love a big one-pot meal, especially when it calls for breaking out my wok! These delicious Asian lettuce wraps with ground turkey have been a weekday go-to recipe for us because it’s got everything you could want; healthy, quick, easy with a flavor kaboom that will make your taste buds rejoice.
After ordering these chicken lettuce wraps far too many times at restaurants, I knew that I needed to recreate a similar flavorful recipe at home. So here it is, you’ve been warned that they are pretty darn addicting and in the best way possible.
Chinese stir-fry cooking is fun because there are so many ingredients you can play with to make your seasonings and sauces spectacular. If you haven’t tried hoisin sauce before, now is the time! Don’t be shy, once you have these ingredients in your pantry, you’ll be inspired to make even more Chinese dishes.
So I can’t tell you how tasty this recipe is; the lean turkey is seasoned with soy sauce, hoisin, ginger, garlic, chili flakes, and shallots. The meat is then tossed with crunchy carrots, water chestnuts, and bamboo shoots and fresh Shiitake mushrooms. There is so much going on, but everything jives together just right.
The fun part is building your own lettuce wraps. Filling each cup with the savory meat and topping it with sliced green onions, cashews and, even more, tasty hoisin sauce, drool city! I can seriously take down at least four to five of these wraps myself. If you need a little more carbs for your meal, brown rice is my other go-to, you know, to keep the healthy theme going.
Some of my other favorite Chinese recipes that you should give a try, especially with Chinese New Years coming up are my steamed custard bun recipe, Cantonese char siu pork or add the leftover meat into some steamed pork buns, nom nom nom!
More appetizer recipes
What is Hoisin Sauce?
In Chinese cooking, it’s all about the sauce! Hoisin sauce is a flavor parade, made up of soybean paste flavored with garlic, sugar, chilies, and other spices. It is dark brown in color and pretty thick in viscosity, and has a nice balance of sweet, salty and slightly spicy flavors. You can use it on its own as a dipping sauce to add more flavor to each bite or use it in glazes on meat to enhance the flavor and complexity of your dish. No matter what you do, it will make each meal, even more, yummy!
Turkey Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, divided
- 1 teaspoon sesame oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup shallots, minced
- 2 teaspoons ginger, minced
- ¼ teaspoon dried chili flakes
- ½ cup water chestnuts, finely chopped
- ½ cup bamboo shoots, finely chopped
- 1 cups shiitake mushrooms, stems removed and chopped
- 1 cup carrots, finely diced
- 1 ¼ pounds ground turkey
- 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce, plus more for serving
- 2 teaspoons low sodium soy sauce
- kosher salt, for seasoning
- black pepper, for seasoning
- ¼ cup scallion, thinly sliced, for garnish
- ¼ cup cashews, chopped, for garnish
- 1 head butter leaf lettuce, separated, washed and dried
Instructions
- Heat a wok or large sauté pan over high heat.
- Add 1 tablespoon vegetable oil and 1 teaspoon sesame oil and heat until hot.
- Add garlic, shallots, ginger and chili flakes. Stir-fry for 2 minutes.
- Add the water chestnuts, bamboo shoots, mushrooms and diced carrots, stir-fry for 4 minutes.
- Transfer vegetables to a medium-sized bowl, and set aside.
- Return the wok to the stovetop and heat over high heat.
- Add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil to the wok and then add the ground turkey. Stir-fry until the meat is no longer pink, about 4 minutes.
- Add the hoisin and soy sauce, and then stir to combine.
- Add the stir-fried vegetables and pepper. Season mixture with more salt and pepper as needed.
- Spoon meat and vegetable filling into each lettuce cup, sprinkle with chopped cashews and sliced scallions. Top with additional hoisin sauce if desired.
Recipe Video
Equipment
Nutrition Facts
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000-calorie diet. All nutritional information is based on estimated third-party calculations. Each recipe and nutritional value will vary depending on the brands you use, measuring methods, and portion sizes per household.
Sandra says
Very delicious!!! My family really enjoyed
Tania says
This was sooo delicious, thank you for the recommendation! My husband and I were looking for something different than the regular stir fry. 🙂
Jessica Gavin says
I’m so happy to hear that you guys enjoyed the recipe Tania!
Shikha says
I will definitely try this, Thanks for sharing your delicious recipes Keep it up with your delicious recipes.
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you Sikha!
Jennifer says
This was so good. My 3 year old had 3 helpings and is kind of a picky eater. Great recipe for taking a more healthy approach. Thank you
Jessica Gavin says
Yay Jennifer! That’s a big kid win for sure 🙂 I’m so happy that the whole family enjoyed the recipe!
Zoy Kocian says
I made this last night. It was delicious and my family went back for seconds. I quickly put away the leftovers so I would have some for lunch.
Jessica Gavin says
So happy the whole family enjoyed the recipe Zoy! It’s so yummy for leftovers, I bring it to work with me and some extra lettuce leaves 🙂
Tom Cwikla says
Made this last night–delicious! I added come cilantro with the cashews at the end but otherwise did the recipe as written. One of the best, Jessica.
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you for your feedback Tom! Love the addition of the cashews and cilantro, great idea!
Carol says
This sounds amazing! It’s going on my must-make list.
Jessica Gavin says
Thank you Carol! Please let me know what you think 🙂
carey says
Hi,
I need to triple the servings, is is possible to make this a day in advance and reheat?
thank you
Jessica Gavin says
Hi Carey- Yes you can reheat the next day. Just add the cashews before serving.