Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Carb-Friendly Chicken Lettuce Wraps!

We have just recently discovered that we can make chicken lettuce wraps that taste a hundred times better than anything you could order at PF Changs,  Yardhouse or any other chain that offers this item on their menu!

It is a super carb-friendly meal and you don’t have to feel guilty about having lots of it!  It’s a super easy recipe with just a few ingredients and prep time is nothing!

This recipe will feed two easily with leftovers galore.

BUY: 

  • 2 small chicken breasts, halved, and minced.  DO NOT buy already ground chicken, the consistently is too soft.  But if you are short on time, this is an easy substitute
  • Small can of water chestnuts (chopped into small pieces)
  • 1 bag of shredded cabbage (green & purple).  You can get a small bag of coleslaw mix (with carrots) from the local grocery store
  • 1 head of butter lettuce (any lettuce will work, but we love butter lettuce!)
  • Fresh cilantro (as much as you want of this stuff)
  • Green onions (a few stalks, chopped)
  • Fresh Garlic (3-4 cloves minced) – you can use the already minced garlic in a jar but the fresh stuff really works better here
  • Fresh Ginger root (1/2 tsp) minced finely – again, you can use a powder, or already prepped ginger, but the fresh ginger root will make this dish special!
If you don’t already have these in the pantry, you need to buy:

  • Oyster flavor sauce (2 tbsp)
  • Maggi or regular soy sauce (1 tbsp)
  • Thick soy sauce (1 tsp)
  • Sesame oil (few drops to coat nonstick pan)
  • Garlic powder, onion powder and white pepper
  • Cayenne pepper ( a few sprinkles)
For the sauce:

  • Equal parts dumpling sauce, citrus soy sauce
  • A few drops of soy sauce or Maggi, a drop of sesame oil, half tsp of Asian chili sauce, a few pinches of fresh ground black pepper, squeeze of lemon or lime and mix with a fork

This can be made ahead of time or right before serving 

PREP:

  • Mix minced chicken meat in bowl with garlic powder, onion powder and white pepper and the think soy sauce (this sauce is mainly for color) and mix thoroughly.  Set aside to briefly marinade while you cut the rest of your veggies
  • Wash and prepare water chestnuts, green onions, fresh garlic, fresh ginger root and set aside
  • Wash butter lettuce and set aside

CUC:

  • In a nonstick pan, add sesame oil, minced garlic and ginger and sauté until garlic turns golden brown, NOT BURNT!
  • Add chicken and continue to saute on med-high heat until almost cooked.  (The minced meat cooks faster than whole breasts so keep a close watch, 5-7 mins should be plenty of time in the pan)
  • Add chopped water chestnuts, oyster flavor sauce, maggi or soy sauce, cayenne pepper and mix in pan
  • Add cabbage (slaw mix) at the end, toss and turn heat off.
  • Garnish with fried onions and cilantro and serve with Butter Lettuce leaves
They are super light and has less than 4g of carbs per serving!  Enjoy and stay fit!