Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Remember that ground chicken in my freezer I've been working my way through?  This recipe marks the last of it!  Don't get me wrong, I really do love cooking with ground chicken...I just had soooo much of it!

I love Asian food and I've been looking for some lighter recipes to fit into my husband's new-found desire to shed a few pounds.  I threw this together for dinner last night, and- if I do say so myself- it turned out wonderfully.  Tasty, light, fresh, flavorful...this one would be super-easy to adapt with other veggies you have on hand, or even to turn into some kind of Asian soft taco if you don't feel like sticking with the lettuce wrap concept.  Personally, I like how light and fresh the lettuce wraps are but sometimes nothing beats a hearty tortilla full of goodness :-)

I started by sautéing the garlic and ginger, then added in the broccoli and bell pepper.  Once the veggies had begun to soften I added the ground chicken and seasonings and cooked everything together until the chicken was cooked through.

I piled the chicken mixture onto romaine lettuce leaves (the perfect shape for holding a bunch of fillings), topped them with diced cucumber and peanuts, then drizzled with the dressing.  I chose to leave the dressing rather thin, but you could easily thicken it with a little cornstarch if you wanted to.

Absolutely amazing- my husband was even taking pictures of his dinner and sending them to his coworkers to brag about his meal, no better compliment than that!

Enjoy, and feel free to play around with the recipe to suit what you have on hand!

Thai Chicken Lettuce Wraps

For Dressing:

3 Tbsp lime juice

1 1/2 Tbsp sesame oil

1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce

1 1/2 Tbsp sriracha

2 tsp fish sauce

For Filling:

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp minced ginger

1/2 C sliced green onion

1/2 red bell pepper, diced

1 crown broccoli, chopped small

1 lb ground chicken

1/2 C chopped fresh cilantro

3 Tbsp soy sauce

1 Tbsp sriracha

1 Tbsp lime juice

2 tsp rice vinegar

1 tsp fish sauce

1 tsp sesame oil

1 tsp dried mint

1/2 tsp onion powder

8 large romaine lettuce leaves, washed

1 C cucumber, peeled and diced small

1/2 C shelled peanuts

1. Whisk together all dressing ingredients and set aside.

2. Heat olive oil in pan.  Add garlic and ginger, sauté for 2 minutes over medium heat.  Add green onion, bell pepper, and broccoli; sauté 3 minutes or until veggies begin to soften.  Add ground chicken, cilantro, soy sauce, sriracha, lime juice, rice vinegar, fish sauce, sesame oil, dried mint, and onion powder.  Stir to combine and cook until chicken is cooked through.

3. Fill a lettuce leaf with chicken mixture.  Top with cucumber and peanuts.  Drizzle with dressing.  Serve.