Ginger Turkey Lettuce Wraps
Savoury minced turkey with ginger, garlic and water chestnuts, spooned into cold lettuce cups.
Minced turkey is dry when it is treated like beef and excellent when it is not. The trick is a hot pan, very little stirring at the start so it browns rather than steams, and a sauce added only at the end so it glazes instead of boiling the meat. Cold crisp lettuce against the hot filling is most of the appeal.
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How to make Ginger Turkey Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
Quantities scale automatically. Cooking times stay the same.
Filling
Sauce
To serve
Equipment
- Large skillet or wok
- Fine grater
- Wooden spoon
Method
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1
Mix the sauce first
Stir the soy sauce, vinegar, hoisin, sesame oil, honey and chilli together in a small bowl. Once the pan is hot there is no time to measure.
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2
Brown the turkey
Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high until it shimmers. Add the mince with the salt, spread it flat and leave it undisturbed for 4 minutes. Letting it sit is what gives you browned crust instead of grey crumbs.
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3
Break it up
Break the meat into pieces with a wooden spoon and cook 3 to 4 minutes more, until no pink remains and some of the liquid has cooked off.
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4
Add the aromatics
Push the meat to one side, add the garlic, ginger and spring onion whites to the clear space and stir for 45 seconds, until fragrant but not coloured, then combine everything.
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5
Glaze with the sauce
Add the water chestnuts and pour in the sauce. Cook for 2 minutes over medium-high, stirring, until the liquid has reduced to a glaze that clings to the meat rather than pooling in the pan.
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6
Serve into cold leaves
Stir in the spring onion greens. Spoon the hot filling into the chilled lettuce cups at the table, and finish with sesame seeds, herbs and a squeeze of lime.
Cook’s tips
- Keep the lettuce in iced water until the moment you serve, then dry it. The contrast between cold leaf and hot filling is the point of the dish.
- Do not stir the mince for the first few minutes. Browning is where the flavour comes from, and turkey gives you very little of it otherwise.
- Reduce the sauce until it glazes. A wet filling will collapse the lettuce and run down your wrist.
Variations
- Use chicken, pork or plant mince, or crumbled firm tofu pressed dry for a vegan version with tamari in place of the hoisin.
- Serve the filling over rice or rice noodles instead of lettuce for a more substantial dinner.
- Add a diced red pepper or a cup of shredded cabbage with the water chestnuts for more vegetables.
Storage and make-ahead
The filling keeps 3 days in the fridge and freezes for 2 months. Reheat it in a hot pan rather than the microwave so the glaze tightens again, and prepare the lettuce fresh each time.
Nutrition per serving
| Calories | 326 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 34 g |
| Carbohydrates | 14 g |
| Fat | 15 g |
| Fibre | 3 g |
| Sugar | 8 g |
| Sodium | 720 mg |
Nutrition is estimated from ingredient averages and will vary with brands and portioning.
