Paleo Chicken Lettuce Wraps – Fresh, flavorful, and FAST, these easy chicken lettuce wraps will be on the table in no time. They’re a major crowd pleaser!
I read the French Kids Eat Everything book
Perhaps the most dreamy concept in the book was the idea that French kids eat well (and politely) in restaurants. Try as I might, I just can’t imagine it at the moment. The idea is that it’s a training process–you go enough times and practice enough that everyone gets it, which makes perfect sense.
Well, as grad school students, we only go out to eat about once a month (if that), and I just can’t bear the idea of wrestling and wrangling two tiny people while I’m at a restaurant trying to enjoy a meal I paid for someone else to make. Instead, I opt for making our “take out” meals at home and saving the meals out for date nights with Michael. I’m also sure that as we keep practicing (and the kids get older) that our dining out experiences will get better and better.
Lettuce wraps and egg drop soup are two of our favorites. We’ve got an egg drop soup recipe we’re happy with, but I was still trying to get the lettuce wraps just right. We finally did it!
These little gems are so delicious and savory. There’s lots of flavor, (thanks to ginger, garlic, scallions) and they’re perfect for scooping into little lettuce leaves. Just a really great combination of textures and flavors. Just what I love in a lettuce wrap.
Best of all, these fit perfectly into our dietary restrictions, and there aren’t any mystery additives in them. Yum!
Notes on These Chicken Lettuce Wraps:
Not a chicken fan? LOTS of readers have made these with ground pork or turkey over the last few years without any trouble! I just don’t care for ground turkey (it’s too strong-tasting to me). You can also grind your own chicken, like we did. We ground our own chicken using a 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs and our food processor. Worked like a charm!
Fit your own diet. If you don’t have any dietary restrictions, you can use soy sauce for this recipe. If you need something gluten free, we go with tamari, and if you need something paleo, coconut aminos works beautifully.
Like this post? You might also like…
- Slow Cooker Butter Chicken (Paleo & Whole30)
- Chicken Zucchini Poppers (Paleo & Whole30)
- Pumpkin Taco Soup (Paleo & Whole30)
Chicken Lettuce Wraps (GF, DF, Paleo, Whole30)
- Yield: 4 1x
Print Recipe
Pin RecipeDescription
For a dipping sauce, we mixed together equal parts dijon mustard and coconut aminos/tamari. You can also add a little chili oil or Sriracha if you like it hot!
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 1 lb ground chicken (we ground raw chicken thighs or chicken breast in our food processor)
- 6–8oz button or baby bella mushrooms, finely minced
- 1 (8oz) can water chestnuts, drained and minced
- 2 green onions, sliced
- 2 tsp fresh ginger, minced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil (olive or coconut oil would work well too)
- 1/4–1/3 cup coconut aminos, GF tamari, or soy sauce
To serve:
- Lettuce leaves (romaine hearts or iceberg lettuce work well)
- Cilantro
Instructions
- Prepare the filling by heating the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add chicken and cook until lightly browned and cooked all the way through.
- Add mushrooms, water chestnuts, green onions, ginger, and garlic. Cook until fragrant and cooked through. Add 4 Tbsp coconut aminos or tamari and stir to coat chicken mixture.
- Add additional sauce as desired (remember you don’t want it too wet, or it will make eating your lettuce wraps a very messy, soggy experience).
- Scoop mixture onto lettuce leaves. top with cilantro, if desired, and your favorite dipping sauce.
Notes
Not a chicken fan? LOTS of readers have made these with ground pork or turkey over the last few years without any trouble! I just don’t care for ground turkey (it’s too strong-tasting to me). You can also grind your own chicken, like we did. We ground our own chicken using a 1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs and our food processor. Worked like a charm!
Fit your own diet. If you don’t have any dietary restrictions, you can use soy sauce for this recipe. If you need something gluten free, we go with tamari, and if you need something paleo, coconut aminos works beautifully.
Emily Helgeson says
September 9, 2014 at 10:38 amThese look so good! I’ve only had lettuce wraps once before, but can’t wait to try these. It’s one of those moments when I wish I could reach through the screen and eat one.
Tara says
September 24, 2014 at 4:23 pmWe made these with ground pork last week and they were delicious! My little ones got a kick out of getting to fill up their lettuce cups themselves, and my husband requested that we make it a regular in the dinner rotation. Thanks so much for sharing!
beth says
January 7, 2015 at 4:38 pmI really enjoyed this recipe. My husband is on Paleo and trying to make recipes that please us both. This clearly fit the bill.
I added a few items; snow pea pods, hoisin sauce, yellow peppers and shredded carrots. Delicious. Thanks for sharing!
★★★★
Suzi says
September 9, 2017 at 7:50 pmLove the additions….since I don’t like mushrooms I must try!! Minus hoisin for Whole30
★★★★★
Andrea says
January 8, 2015 at 2:35 pmYum. We have a tofu lettuce wrap recipe that we love, but I will definitely be trying this one!
Emily M. says
January 12, 2015 at 3:54 pmSo good, Emily! I’m going gluten free just because this month and have fallen in love with all things lettuce wrap. This meal was a cinch and I added onions and bell peppers to add a few veggies (and to make it a one pot meal). This is definitely going to be repeated this month and whenever I don’t really want to make anything that takes more than ten minutes…ok twenty minutes.
★★★★★
emily says
January 12, 2015 at 5:22 pmOh, I’m SO glad you liked it! I can’t wait to hear what you think after a month! Good luck, friend!
Michael says
December 28, 2018 at 4:27 amWhat is the sauce that u are putting on them
Emily says
December 28, 2018 at 5:38 amIt’s in italics in the description section of the recipe card. 🙂 I do equal parts dijon mustard and coconut aminos or tamari. You can also add chili oil or sriracha if you like it hot!
Jennifer says
February 24, 2015 at 1:42 pmHuge mistake thinking that your kids will suddenly take to eating in restaurants when they’re older. Although you have to be prepared to get up and walk around or bring distractions (we were big on places with patios), children come to accept as normal what they’re brought up with. When my son was two I took him wherever I went to eat and ordered appetizer sized portions of duck, vegetables, whatever. Most restaurants were very accommodating about it. He is now 14 and is better about trying things than I am. I can take him with me for injeera at an Ethiopian restaurant or sweetbreads at a French restaurant and it’s all good. Honestly, it was a small price to pay so that we could (and can) enjoy meals together throughout his childhood.
emily says
February 24, 2015 at 1:58 pmJennifer – I’m glad that worked for you! My daughter has autism and struggles with the sensory overload of restaurants–everything from the noise (lights, sounds of people chewing, din of the room), to the visual stimulation (fluorescent lights, unfamiliar textures of foods etc), and the social stimulation (lots of people, lots of noise). It’s something we’re working on in therapy, but we hope to be where you are someday. Thanks for the comment.
Rhonda says
August 20, 2015 at 8:56 pmEmily, I commend you on your gracious response to the “huge mistake… ” comment. I’m amazed when I hear someone quickly and directly tell another that they are doing something wrong without even knowing the particulars of their situation. That seems a breach of basic courtesy to me.
emily says
August 21, 2015 at 7:15 amThank you, Rhonda! Such a happy comment to start my day.
Wendy says
March 16, 2015 at 2:17 pmI just made these for my 15 year old son’s after school snack, and he loved them! Yay, trying to lose weight and go Paleo over here. Thanks for this recipe.
Sarah says
July 2, 2015 at 5:10 amWould this still be good without the water chestnuts? 🙂
emily says
July 2, 2015 at 11:45 amSarah – Yes! The water chestnuts just lend a little crunch. You could skip them entirely, or sub something else crunchy (carrots, toasted almonds, etc.)
Leesa says
April 4, 2017 at 7:21 pmYou don’t have to use water chestnuts. I used Riced frozen carrots and cauliflower instead and it worked out beautifully.
Meg says
July 29, 2015 at 4:46 pmYum!! These were such a hit! I can’t believe how delicious coconut aminos and Dijon as a dipping sauce is. Holy cow. I used 1/2 turkey and 1/2 pork. I thought about coming home to these leftovers all day. These will definitely be a frequent guest at our table!! Thank you so much for sharing.
★★★★★
emily says
July 29, 2015 at 7:15 pmMeg – I’m so glad that you loved them! We made them when my mom was in town last week and I LOVE THEM!
Jennifer says
November 22, 2015 at 6:21 pmHey friend, I know it’s been a year, but I have to contribute a couple thoughts. We take our FOUR kids ages 5 months, 2.5 years, 3.75 years, and 4.9 years (as of Nov 2015) out to dinner ALL the time. They rock it. Sure, things knock over, but we’ve had $100+ dinners at nice restaurants here in Seattle, and we’ve taken them all. I was a test kitchen for Karen le Billon’s second book because she transformed MY life with her first. I didn’t eat well, let alone consider that my kids could. We have regular dinner parties (every Friday) where our kids join us at the table, albeit more briefly, and they only eat what we eat. Beets and all (but not liver because I’m not there yet myself). Do try it! Whatever we instill early, we don’t have to fight later…
Lindsey says
January 6, 2016 at 8:06 amI made this last night and it was so yummy. Brought the little leftovers for lunch today, thank you for sharing!
Emily says
January 6, 2016 at 1:09 pmI’m so glad! They’re one of my very favorite recipes.
Nicole says
January 22, 2016 at 8:09 pmMade these for dinner tonight and I loved them! Definitely will be making these again especially since I am left with yummy leftovers.
★★★★★
Erin says
February 22, 2016 at 9:22 amMaking these tonight! Although I’m subbing out the chicken for shrimp and adding a few more veggies! My husband is stoked to try it.
SC says
April 6, 2016 at 11:21 amOh, wow. This looks delicious! Besides the dijon mustard coconut aminos, any other recommendations for sauces to go with this?
Emily says
April 6, 2016 at 11:33 amIf you’re not doing Whole30, you can dip them in something like hoisin sauce, sweet chili sauce, or whisk together some ginger, garlic, and tamari/soy sauce/coconut aminos. Hope that helps!
Debbie says
May 18, 2016 at 10:11 amThese are delicious, is there a way to know how many calories they are per serving?
★★★★★
Emily says
May 18, 2016 at 12:17 pmDebbie – I’m so glad you liked them! I don’t have nutrition facts available on my site, but you can plug them into a recipe calculator online. My favorite one is MyFitnessPal (the site or the app). You can import recipes straight from the web!
Casey says
June 17, 2016 at 10:23 amThis recipe is AMAZING! Healthy, super flavorful, and filling. Next time I’ll try it with half the amount of soy sauce, just to cut some of the saltiness out (since I didn’t use coconut aminos). Thanks for posting this!
Emily says
June 17, 2016 at 11:02 amCasey – I’m SO GLAD to hear how much you enjoyed the recipe. It’s one of my favorites! I make it all year long!
Shawna says
January 4, 2017 at 5:25 pmWe had them tonight for dinner! They were DELICIOUS! Will fix again.
★★★★★
Emily says
January 4, 2017 at 6:50 pmI’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Lisa Amador says
January 15, 2017 at 11:56 amGreat Recipe. I swapped out the coconut amino for Whole Foods brand Teriyaki sauce. It’s what I had! It worked well. I did not need to make any other sauce to go with it. Thanks!
★★★★★
Denise says
January 15, 2017 at 3:17 pmYum! Used leftover chicken ( just chopped it up) and lettuce I bought at farmer’s market yesterday. Whole family loved it! Wish there were leftovers, but every bit eaten:) Thank you for a delicious, fresh, healthy recipe.
★★★★★
Emily says
January 17, 2017 at 5:23 amDenise – I’m so glad you enjoyed them!
Elizabeth Delahunty says
January 19, 2017 at 12:14 amThis recipe is delicious! Made many versions of lettuce wraps previously without a recipe, but I liked the addition of water chestnuts and mushrooms in this one. I did not have coconut aminos or cilantro but added seasame seed oil, Chinese five spice, and red peper flakes. Also I used ground beef. So surprised we didn’t even need the soy sauce or substitute! Very tasty and an easy yet strict paleo meal. Oh and always made so much better with fresh Boston Bib lettuce.
★★★★★
Emily says
January 19, 2017 at 5:32 amYum! Those adaptations sound delicious!
Sarah Taylor-Green says
April 4, 2017 at 10:32 pmHi Emily,
Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe. It is exactly what I was looking for, simple, healthy, and without any rich, sugary jarred sauces. I will definitely make it again, probably very soon. I think I’ll try your brownie recipe next😁
Emily says
April 5, 2017 at 6:00 amI’m so glad you enjoyed it! And I hope you LOVE the brownies!
Marianna Jarrett says
April 14, 2017 at 3:58 pmI made these tonight and they were a huge hit with my 2 teens and hubby. I did chicken and venison. YUM!!! I loved the simplicity and delicious flavor.
★★★★★
Emily says
April 14, 2017 at 7:21 pmSo glad to hear that Marianna! I just LOVE them!
Lisa G says
June 15, 2017 at 4:12 pmThis was delicious and so easy! I had to omit the mushrooms due to an allergy, but they were not missed!
Emily says
June 15, 2017 at 7:07 pmSo glad you enjoyed them Lisa!!!
jill says
June 30, 2017 at 3:24 pmWe are making these again. I passed the recipe to my college kids too. Such a easy healthy meal.
I substitute jicama for the water chestnuts and it was so good. Thanks again!
Emily says
July 1, 2017 at 5:27 amOoh! I still need to try that!
Carleeh says
July 3, 2017 at 8:44 amYour peanut sauce is delicious, it tastes just like my favorite dressing! I add tahini, sesame oil, and sesame seeds sometime when I top soba noodles in a power bowl. Thanks for sharing, I am so happy to home make it now!
★★★★★
Emily says
July 3, 2017 at 11:20 amOoh yum!
Melissa says
August 22, 2017 at 4:45 pmWhere is the recipe for the ginger dipping sauce?
Emily says
August 22, 2017 at 7:16 pmMelissa – If you look in the recipe card (under the title) our dipping sauce recipe is written in italics. “For a dipping sauce, we mixed together equal parts dijon mustard and coconut aminos/tamari.” You can make as much or as little as you like.
If you don’t want to go that route, you can simply mince up a little ginger (about 1 tsp) and stir it into 1/4 cup or so of some tamari/soy sauce/coconut aminos. Hope that helps!
Valerie says
August 31, 2017 at 8:15 pmThese are great. How many calories per serving.
Emily says
September 1, 2017 at 9:58 amValerie – Thanks for your comment! I don’t have nutrition software yet, so nutrition facts aren’t yet available for my recipes on my site (hopefully soon!). You can plug the recipe ingredients into any free online calculator. My favorite is My Fitness Pal (the free site or free app) since you can import recipes directly from the web!
Valerie says
September 2, 2017 at 8:21 amThank you!
Emily says
September 2, 2017 at 4:37 pmMy pleasure!
Angela says
September 17, 2017 at 9:29 amWell I found this recipe yesterday and bought a few bits I was missing but what are the coconut amino for? I love the sound of this recipe and the changes and adaptions from others in the comments. This is going to be made tonight/ tomorrow and am looking forward to it.
★★★★★
Emily says
September 17, 2017 at 10:43 amIf you follow a paleo diet or avoid soy, you use the coconut aminos in place of the soy sauce/tamari. It’s just lovely!
Rachel says
January 11, 2018 at 8:13 amDo you grind the chicken in the food processor while raw or after it has been cooked?
Emily says
January 11, 2018 at 9:41 amBefore! It’s ground raw chicken 🙂
Leah says
January 14, 2018 at 10:13 pmHi! THis looks delish! I want to try this out and I’m wondering what the sauce you’re using in the pics. Any whole 30 approved sauce recipes? Thank you.
Emily says
January 15, 2018 at 3:15 pmLeah – I mixed together a little coconut aminos, dijon mustard (Annie’s brand is compliant), and some garlic. That’s it! It reminds me of the chili oil, hot mustard, and soy sauce mixtures they serve at PF Changs.
Susie says
January 19, 2018 at 5:04 pmMade this tonight. Very good flavor and the food processor makes it a breeze! Next time, I would salt the chicken and add tapioca starch at the end to thicken that yummy juice.
★★★★
Emily says
January 19, 2018 at 7:06 pmOoh, great tip! Thanks!
Maria says
January 21, 2018 at 4:57 pmThis was so tasty! I made it with all items listed plus some shredded carrot. Hubby (who is not following paleo or AIP, but wants to be supportive) REALLY loved it! We’ll definitely be repeating this! Thank you!
Emily says
January 21, 2018 at 6:54 pmOh, I’m SO happy to hear that! It’s always such a win when your family enjoys it too!
Bridgett says
February 1, 2018 at 5:50 pmThis was so good!!!
★★★★★
Emily says
February 2, 2018 at 7:08 amSO glad you loved them! I can’t get enough!
Amy Affre says
February 24, 2018 at 8:12 pmThis was Amazing! I made a side sauce with almond butter, coconut aminos, lime juice, red pepper flakes and water. Similar to a peanut sauce. It was so crazy good. Thank you!
Emily says
February 25, 2018 at 6:52 pmWow! Thank you so much for sharing this with me! That sauce sounds DELICIOUS! I’ll try it!
Elizabeth Sullivan says
March 30, 2018 at 7:42 amWould this work in an instant pot or crockpot?? Looks delicious!
Emily says
March 30, 2018 at 7:50 amElizabeth – That’s a great question! If I were doing it in the IP, I don’t think it’d be done any faster since it’s just a few quick minutes of cooking (and you’d be doing that in the IP on the saute setting). As for slow cooker, I think it’d probably be too much cook time.
Suzanna says
May 7, 2018 at 9:15 pmMy roommate and I did whole30 last month and this is hands down our favorite discovery from the experience! We subbed chopped cashews for the water chestnuts and added shredded carrots as well. So delicious! Love that it’s light, healthy, and easy to make. We will be making this again and again 🙂
★★★★★
Emily says
May 8, 2018 at 5:26 amOh, I’m SO glad to hear this! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!!!
Amanda says
June 19, 2018 at 4:34 pmHi!
I am making this tonight! 🙂 I just started the keto diet so I’m wondering if the nutrition facts above are for one serving? So one lettuce wrap with filling has 12.5 g of carbs? Just want to be sure I know.
Can’t wait to try these!
Amanda
Emily says
June 19, 2018 at 7:38 pmYes! They’re for one serving 😊
Anonymous says
June 24, 2018 at 12:29 pmI love this! I just started Paleo today and had this for a late lunch. I added extra ginger (because I love all things ginger!). The only thing I would change is the amount of soy sauce (I used liquid aminos), a little on the salty side, but who doesn’t like salt 😊 Thanks for sharing
★★★★★
Emily says
June 24, 2018 at 3:42 pmI’m so glad you liked them! 🙂
Jules says
August 19, 2018 at 5:14 pmWe are new to paleo, but love PF Chang’s lettuce wraps. These were quick to put together with most everything going into the food processor (except the green onions.) My husband seriously kept going back for more — I think 4-5 times! He said, “This is like PF Chang’s except all you can eat!” A winner here for sure!
★★★★★
Emily says
August 19, 2018 at 7:31 pmThat’s exactly what my husband did the first time we made them! (That feeling has never gone away–we can’t get enough!) I’m so glad you love them!
Kaylee says
October 15, 2018 at 9:40 amOh my gosh. SO. FREAKING. GOOD. I just started Paleo today and this is the first recipe I made and I’m so so glad I found it. They are so delicious and my two year old even enjoyed them. Only negative for me is that I Wish I would’ve made a bigger batch!!!!! Will be making this again weekly!!!! Thank you for the yummy recipe 😊
Emily says
October 15, 2018 at 3:31 pmI’m SO HAPPY to hear that Kaylee!!!
Michael says
December 28, 2018 at 3:59 pmJust made these for my wife and I. They wss ere amazing. Wish I knew the calories etc. But this is a definate keeper. Thank you for sharinh
★★★★★
Emily says
December 29, 2018 at 5:17 amSo glad you enjoyed them!!! The nutrition facts are at the bottom of the recipe card. 🙂
Jennifer says
January 20, 2019 at 8:41 pmYou stated you made a dipping sauce. Could you please share the recipe?
Emily says
January 21, 2019 at 5:41 amJennifer – It’s right in the description of the recipe card under the title 🙂 I use equal parts Dijon mustard and tamari/coconut aminos. You can also add chili oil or Sriracha for some heat!
Rachel Rothenberg says
February 24, 2019 at 12:10 pmDo you think this would taste good with ground organic turkey?
Emily says
February 25, 2019 at 5:04 amI don’t care for ground turkey myself, but LOTS of folks have made and liked it with ground turkey! Other readers have also tried it with ground beef and even ground pork.
Katy says
March 25, 2019 at 7:35 pmJust want to say thanks for this recipe. I make it all the time!
Emily says
March 26, 2019 at 5:24 amThank you so much for leaving this comment Katy! You made my day!
Kara says
May 6, 2019 at 5:22 amThese are really good! We made our own sauce using Dijon mustard, honey, sweet-and-sour sauce And a hot sauce
★★★★
Emily says
May 6, 2019 at 9:03 amThat sounds AWESOME!