This copycat of PF Chang’s chicken lettuce wraps recipe is the perfect weeknight meal. It’s simple and healthy and it comes together in less than 30 minutes. PF Changs is one of the few restaurants that my entire family can agree on. Every family member has a favorite menu item and everyone agrees on our favorite appetizer…lettuce wraps! My original version of this copycat recipe had a long list of ingredients similar to PF Chang’s version. It was perfect for a weekend. I tried a weekday version with a few simple ingredients and to my surprise, everyone loved it.
These 30-minute PF Changs lettuce wraps are now on regular rotation in our home during sports seasons, when we need quick, healthy dinners.
Toppings
When I’m trying to get dinner on the table quickly, the last thing I want to do is make a separate veggie. To make these 30-minute PF Changs lettuce wraps as simple as possible, I add a few quick toppings. They’re optional and not exactly traditional Chinese flavors…more of an Asian fusion combining Chinese and Thai flavors.
- Shredded carrots – You could sauté them along with the onions but I prefer to add them raw as a topping. The added crunch is fresh and delicious. I suggest buying the pre-shredded and washed bag of carrots to keep it easy.
- Fresh Basil – Add whole leaves as a topping for fresh flavor.
- Fresh Mint – Just like the basil, you can add whole leaves. The mint compliments the basil in the best way possible for a delicious flavor addition.
Variations of 30-Minute PF Changs Lettuce Wraps
- Gluten-free – Simply swap out the soy sauce for tamari sauce or coconut aminos. You can find both tamari and coconut aminos in the Asian section of the grocery store right near the soy sauce. They’re in bottles very similar to soy sauce and the taste is similar.
- Vegan or Vegetarian – This recipe is excellent with tofu. I use extra-firm tofu. Remove the tofu from the fluid it’s stored in and pat it dry with a paper towel or kitchen towel. Crumble the tofu by adding the dried block to a large bowl and use a fork or a potato masher to break the block into crumbles. Add the tofu to the pan in place of the ground chicken.
For the health nuts!
These lettuce wraps are already pretty healthy but if you’d like to make them even healthier, here are a few variations to try.
- Use ground chicken or ground tuerkey with the highest percentage of lean meat. The percentage listed on the front of the ground chicken or ground turkey package is called the lean point and it refers to the percentage of lean meat compared to fat. If the lean point is 93/7 that means that 93% percentage of the meat comes from lean meats and 7% comes from fat.
- Substitute low-sodium soy sauce for regular soy sauce to decrease the sodium content.
- Add vegetables into the ground meat mixture along with the onions. Chopped fresh mushrooms, shredded carrots and shredded cabbage are all delicious in this recipe.
- Substitute the crispy rice noodles or Chow Mein noodle topping with shredded carrots and/or fresh herbs like basil and/or mint.
What’s in 30-Minute PF Changs Lettuce Wraps
- Olive oil
- Onion
- Ground chicken or ground turkey or ground beef or ground pork
- Soy sauce – Substitute with Tamari sauce to make this recipe gluten free. Tamari sauce has a similar taste to soy sauce but contains little or no wheat.
- Honey or brown sugar
- Water chestnuts
- Green onions
- Crispy rice noodles, Chow Mein Noodles or shredded carrots for a gluten-free option
- Butter lettuce, bib lettuce or romaine lettuce
30-Minute PF Changs Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ medium onion chopped
- 1 lb ground chicken or ground turkey or beef
- ½ cup soy sauce Substitute with Tamari sauce to make this recipe gluten free.
- 1 tablespoon honey or brown sugar
- 8 ounces sliced water chestnuts drained and chopped
- 3 green onions sliced thin
- 1 cup crispy rice noodles or Chow Mein Noodles or shredded carrots
- Butter lettuce leaves bib lettuce leaves or romaine lettuce leaves for serving
Instructions
- Sauté the chopped onion in the olive oil for 3 minutes in a large skillet on medium heat.
- Add the ground turkey, chicken or beef and cook until it's no longer pink.
- Add the soy sauce (or Tamari sauce) and honey or brown sugar to a medium bowl and mix using a whisk.
- Add the soy sauce/honey or sugar mixture, the water chestnuts and the green onions to the pan, stir and simmer on medium-high heat until most of the soy sauce mixture has been absorbed.
- To serve, place a large spoonful of the chicken mixture into a lettuce leaf. Top with a few crispy rice noodles or shredded carrots.
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