Korean Chicken Lettuce Wrap (30 min)

6 Korean Chicken lettuce wraps on a white plate.

5 from 1 vote

Korean Chicken Lettuce Wrap (30 min)

Korean chicken lettuce wraps are an easy, healthy, quick, and delicious Asian Appetizer, side dish, or low carb main. I've tested these Asian lettuce cups with both Korean Gochujang chicken thighs (stir fry) and ground chicken- scroll down to see which one works better! (short marinade.) Leftovers can be mixed with greens to make Gochujang Chicken Salad or chicken fried rice/ noodles.

Prep Time20

Cook Time10

Course: Appetizer, Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine: Fusion, korean

Servings: people

Calories: 261kcal

Author: Zen

Equipment

1 Salad spinner to dry the leaves. you can also pat dry with paper towels.
1 Wok or large skillet
1 heat proof spatula
1 Knife & chopping board

Ingredients

Foe the lettuce cups

butterhead lettuce such as Bibb or Boston lettuce (for the right-sized lettuce cups) Substitute: romaine lettuce or iceberg lettuce (for something sturdier but the leaves may be too big) Wash and dry the leaves before serving.

For the chicken filling

1.32 lb chicken thigh, skinless, boneless 600g. remember to remove the skin- if not, your filling will be very oily! If your chicken has a lot of fat, either remove it or use less cooking oil.
4 Tablespoons Gochujang paste You want the gochujang in the tub (usually a red tub) and not the gochujang sauce in the squeeze bottle. If you can't get Korean Gochujang where you live, click through for a homemade recipe.
2½ Tablespoons Mirin Although this is a Japanese condiment, I use it for its sweetness. If you want to be authentically Korean, use soju and increase the amount of white sugar added.
1½ Tablespoons Light Soy Sauce You can substitute with fish sauce but not with salt, sweet soy or dark soy.
1 Tablespoon White Sugar
½ Tablespoons Sesame oil
1 teaspoon Gochugaru these Korean red chili flakes are optional, to make the dish more spicy, you can add some Korean chili powder. Go sparingly though as it can be very spicy (the spiciness varies from harvest to harvest)- start with ½ teaspoon, taste, and increase to 1 teaspoon if necessary.
vegetable oil Neutral oil for stir-frying
5 cloves Fresh Garlic peeled and minced
1 inch Fresh Ginger Peel off the skin with the back of a spoon then mince

Optional Garnish

Scallion Sliced
1 Tablespoon white sesame seeds dry toasted

Instructions

Remove the chicken from the fridge, cut into 1 inch chunks.
Mix the gochujang, soy sauce, sugar, mirin, sesame oil, and gochugaru chili well.
Add the chicken into the gochujang mixture, ensuring each piece is well-coated and leave for 20 minutes. (You're simultaneously marinating and letting the chicken come back to room temperature.)
Add vegetable oil to the pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot, carefully add the ginger and garlic. Stir fry.
Once fragrant, add the chicken chunks and stir fry till cooked. (About 7-10 minutes for me.)
To assemble: place a Tablespoon or two of chicken filling in each lettuce (depending on the size of the lettuce) and garnish with sliced scallions and sesame seeds.
Note: you can serve assembled or have a DIY style party and let your guests make their own. For the latter, serve the chicken filling and lettuce wraps in separate platters.

Notes

Storage: Store leftover filling and leftover lettuce leaves separately for no more than 2 days. Intact lettuce heads can be stored as is, wrapped in paper towels to absorb moisture in the crisper compartment.

Make sure the chicken filling is thoroughly heated before serving.

Note: the marinated chicken can actually be used for Korean BBQ (or cooked on a grill pan) if you're not a fan of lettuce wraps.

Nutrition