Easy Chicken Lettuce Wraps

If you’re craving something light, fresh, and bursting with bold flavor, these Chicken Lettuce Wraps are about to become your new favorite weeknight dinner. Juicy ground chicken is sautéed with crisp vegetables, water chestnuts, and a savory-tangy sauce, then tucked into tender lettuce leaves for the perfect balance of crunch and flavor.

They’re ready in 20 minutes, totally customizable, and a crowd-pleaser whether you’re serving them as a quick lunch, appetizer, or family-style dinner. Think PF Chang’s classic lettuce wraps, but better, healthier, and easier.

Enjoy a light, delicious, and filling homemade dinner when you make Chicken Lettuce Wraps! Butter lettuce serves as the base for heaping servings of ground chicken that’s made flavorful as can be with bold ingredients like grated ginger, garlic, and more. Plus, the mouthwatering sauce that accompanies these wraps is unbelievably good! Serve with a heaping pile of Coconut Rice for a complete dinner.

Ingredients For Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Here’s what goes into these irresistible chicken lettuce wraps. For the full ingredient list and instructions, see the recipe card below.

• Ground Chicken – Lean and mild, ground chicken soaks up all the savory sauce flavors. Ground beef or ground turkey make great substitutions.
• Oil – For sautéing and adding depth, olive oil, canola oil or peanut oil all work well.
• bell peppers – Use red bell peppers, yellow peppers, or a mix for sweetness and color.
• Onion – Sweet onions or yellow onions build flavor as it caramelizes.
• Garlic – Fresh garlic cloves are a must for depth and aroma.
• Mushrooms – Minced Mushrooms adds a meaty texture and flavor profile. White mushrooms, baby portabella or cremini mushrooms all work for this recipe.
• water chestnuts – Don’t skip the water chestnuts, I’m not usually a fan but they add the most irresistible crunch.
• ginger – Fresh ginger root brings a fresh, zesty kick. Mince finely or grate for the best, most amplified flavor.
• butter lettuce or romaine lettuce – Butter lettuce or romaine lettuce is ideal for soft, sturdy wraps. Avoid iceberg, which tends to break easily.

Optional Garnishes: Green onions, sesame seeds, chopped peanuts, or a sprinkle of black pepper.

Pro Tip: Add 1–2 tsp hoisin sauce for a sweeter, restaurant-style flavor, or swap it for tahini entirely. A drizzle of sriracha on top adds a spicy kick.

Variations to Try

• Hoisin sauce is a popular choice in Asian-style wraps, however, it has a very strong flavor. You can start with adding just 1-2 teaspoons as an addition to the sauce or substitute tahini with hoisin instead.
• The sauce is enough to coat 1 lb of ground chicken nicely, but feel free to increase all the ingredients 1.5 times if you like more sauce. You may need to use 2 lettuce slices for each wrap, in this case, to hold up the filling.
• Hot sauce such as Sriracha is another great addition to the sauce or for drizzling on top of the assembled wraps. The filling itself is not spicy.
• Ground chicken is my favorite protein of choice for these wraps, but you could opt for ground turkey, ground beef, ground pork, or even a plant-based ground meat substitute or ground tofu for a vegetarian meal.

Best Lettuce for Wraps

• Butter lettuce: Soft, tender, and perfectly shaped for wrapping.
• Romaine: Crisp and sturdy, with a bit more crunch.
• Little Gem: A mini romaine that’s great for appetizer-sized wraps.

Avoid iceberg lettuce, it’s too fragile and tears easily.

Storage and Reheat Leftovers

Freeze: The Lettuce Wrap filling freezes well for up to 2 months. Thaw overnight before reheating.

Store: Keep the cooked filling in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

Reheat: Warm the chicken in a skillet over medium heat or in the microwave in 30-second intervals.