Pork Lettuce Wraps (San Choy Bow)

⭐ Why This Recipe is a Star

1. Quick: If you discount the soaking of the dried mushrooms, it takes under 30 minutes to prepare this delicious pork recipe!
2. Healthy: these pork wraps are a great way of upping your veggie intake!
3. Delicious: if you like Chinese food, you'll love this dish! (or these Thai Basil Chicken wraps if you prefer Thai.) Plus, it's simple enough to get right the first time.

What is San Choy Bow?

San Choy Bow, or Sheng Cai Bao 生菜包, is a popular Cantonese recipe in which meat is wrapped in lettuce. The Chinese name is a homonym for "rising in fortune" so, like abalone, this is considered an auspicious dish to eat.

It's a healthy(ish) and lucky dish for your Chinese New Year table!

Note: click here for what to serve with pork lettuce wraps.

🥘 Ingredients

You will need a few simple ingredients (pantry staples) for the filling:

• ground pork, with a decent amount of fat: You can also use 300g/ 10 oz ground chicken. (Please use ground chicken thigh meat, as the breast will make for a very dry dish.) If you want to use up leftover turkey, please mix it with some pork as ground turkey on its own is dry. Some high-end Chinese restaurants even stir-fry leftover Peking duck meat to make a filling for this dish.
• Dried Shiitake Mushrooms: Less is more here. Do not use more than 3 for this quantity of meat. (I tried with 5, and the shiitake mushroom flavor overpowered the other ingredients.) Break off the stems (when dry)- these can be kept for soup stock. Wash the caps, then soak in hot water for at least 30 minutes to soften, before mincing. If all this is too much hassle, substitute with 3-5 fresh shiitakes.
• Water chestnuts: You can find canned water chestnuts at the Asian grocery store. If you don't have it, omit it, but the lettuce cups won't be authentic.
• Fresh Garlic 2 cloves
• Fresh Ginger ½ inch, minced (about ¾ teaspoon)
• Fresh Onion: Any color will do but a red onion (or shallots) will lend a pleasing sweetness. Use ½ small onion.
• Carrots: Mince 1 small carrot into small pieces.
• neutral vegetable oil: You will need 1 Tablespoon for frying. For more flavor, you can also use peanut oil. Don't use olive oil.

For the all-important sauce, you will need:

• oyster sauce: You will need 2.5 Tablespoons of this Chinese sauce.
• Shaoxing wine: You need 2 Tablespoons of this Asian cooking wine. If not, dry sherry or sake is a good substitute. (If you use mirin, you can omit the sugar, as mirin is a little sweeter.)
• dark soy sauce: Add ½ Tablespoon of dark soy sauce to give the filling a more attractive color. You can substitute with sweet soy sauce (and omit the sugar.)
• light soy sauce: Use 1.5 Tablespoon regular light soy sauce, not use low-sodium. This adds the flavor. We want the seasoning to be strong, so that it won't be diluted by the lettuce later (especially if you dont' dry your lettuce properly and it's still a bit wet!) If you don't have any, use fish sauce.
• white sugar: just 1 teaspoon makes the filling more flavorful.
• sesame oil: ½ Tablespoon of toasted sesame oil/ Chinese sesame oil makes the sauce more fragrant.
• water: 3 Tablespoons for the cornstarch slurry
• cornstarch: You will need 1 teaspoon, or maximum 1 ¼ teaspoon. Don't use more than that as we don't want the sauce to be goopy.

To Wrap:

• lettuce: I like Butterhead lettuce. Boston lettuce, Bib lettuce, or Romaine lettuce also work- the latter will form more of a boat shape- and will be bigger than your palm, so difficult to eat in a bite, but it's sturdy enough to hold up the filling. I don't recommend iceberg lettuce as it tends to be quite stiff, and will usually break when you try to wrap it. (The juices run everywhere and make a mess.) In addition, the pale green color makes the dish less appetizing. However, it gives the best crisp lettuce cups, followed by Romaine. (To make it more pliable, you can soak it in ice water before using.) Alternatively, just use your favorite lettuce.

Suggested Toppings

• Sliced spring onions
• Peanut Powder
• Crispy shallots (optional)
• lightly toasted sesame seeds
• Sliced red chili peppers

Variations

• For Spicy Pork Lettuce Wraps: Add red pepper flakes, chili garlic sauce, hot sauce, or Sriracha sauce (obviously, we've veered away from the authentic Chinese recipe here.)
• Salmon Lettuce Wraps: You can substitute the pork with salmon and the oyster sauce mix with Teriyaki.

🥡 How to Store

You can store the filling on its own in an airtight container in the fridge for 2-3 days. (Once assembled, it's best to eat the pork lettuce wraps straightaway.)

Note: washed lettuce leaves tend to spoil more quickly, so eat them all up!

Reheating

Simply stir-fry the filling till piping hot when you want to reheat. Add 1-2 Tablespons of water so the meat doesn't dry up. (Leftover filling can also be eaten with just white rice.)