Thai-Style Minced Chicken Lettuce Cups
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my full disclosure policy.
Based on the popular Thai dish Larb Gai, this is a quick, easy, and flavorful weeknight dinner.
This recipe is based on Larb Gai, the popular Thai dish made from minced chicken, fish sauce, lime juice, chilies, and fresh herbs. You can have it on the table in 30 minutes, and it can be served in lettuce cups or over rice.
What you’ll need to make Thai Minced Chicken Lettuce Cups
As you can see from the photo, the recipe is inexpensive to make with ingredients found at your local supermarket. One of the key ingredients is fish sauce. Contrary to what you might expect, it doesn’t add a “fishy” taste, but rather a salty, savory, umami flavor. If you’ve never cooked with it, I’ll warn you that it smells pretty bad (my kids RUN out of the kitchen when I use it), but please don’t let that deter you — it absolutely makes the dish! If possible, buy a brand imported from Thailand or Vietnam, and don’t worry about buying a large bottle; it keeps forever.
Step-by-Step Instructions
For the chicken, begin by cooking the onions and ginger in oil until soft.
Add the minced garlic and cook one minute more.
Add the ground chicken and use a wooden spoon to break the meat apart.
Add the fish sauce, soy sauce, lime zest, lime juice, brown sugar and red pepper flakes, and cook until the chicken is done.
Off the heat, add the fresh cilantro, mint, scallions, and nuts.
Stir to combine.
Spoon into lettuce cups and serve with finely sliced carrots, herbs and Sriracha sauce.
You may also like
- Thai Red Curry Chicken
- Vietnamese Summer Rolls
- Asian Chicken Noodle Salad with Ginger-Peanut Dressing
- Kung Pao Chicken
- Panang Curry
Thai-Style Minced Chicken Lettuce Cups
Based on the popular Thai dish Larb Gai, this is a quick, easy, and flavorful weeknight dinner.
Ingredients
- 1 large head iceberg or butter lettuce
- 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 large red onion, chopped
- 2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh ginger (you'll need a thick 2-inch piece) (see note)
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 pounds ground chicken (not all breast meat)
- 1½ tablespoons soy sauce (use gluten-free if needed)
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- ¼ cup light or dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons lime zest, from 2 limes
- 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice, from 1½ limes
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 large scallions, white and green parts, finely sliced
- ½ cup chopped fresh cilantro
- ¼ cup chopped fresh mint
- ¼ cup chopped cashews or peanuts
Optional For Serving
- Sriracha
- Finely sliced carrots
- Lime wedges
- Cilantro and/or mint sprigs
Instructions
- If using iceberg lettuce: fill a large bowl with cold water. Place the head of lettuce on a cutting board; cut off the stem, then cut around the inner core of the lettuce and remove (do not cut all the way through the lettuce; just deep enough to remove the core). Discard the flimsy, ragged outer leaves and then place the head of lettuce in the bowl of water. Gently pull apart the leaves, then place them on a paper towel to dry. Cut any large leaves in half. Chill the lettuce cups in refrigerator until ready to serve. (If using butter lettuce, you won't have any issues pulling apart the leaves so this step is not necessary.)
- Heat the oil in large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onion and ginger and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 4-5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more.
- Add the ground chicken and turn the heat up to high. Cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, until partially cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add the soy sauce, fish sauce, brown sugar, lime zest, lime juice and red pepper flakes and continue cooking, stirring frequently to break up the meat, until the chicken is cooked through, 5-6 minutes more. Off the heat, stir in the scallions, cilantro, mint and nuts. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary. Spoon into lettuce cups and serve with optional garnishes.
- Note: Check out easy guidance on how to peel, grate, and chop fresh ginger here.
- Freezer-Friendly Instructions: The meat mixture can be frozen in an airtight container for up to 3 months and reheated in the microwave om on the stovetop until hot.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
Powered by 
- Per serving (4 servings)
- Calories: 580
- Fat: 33g
- Saturated fat: 7g
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Sugar: 20g
- Fiber: 4g
- Protein: 45g
- Sodium: 1565mg
- Cholesterol: 195g
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
See more recipes:
Comments
Add a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
Amazing! First time making this recipe and it won’t be my last! Did not measure the cilantro or mint but did everything else exactly as written. I used 1 lb lean ground chicken breast and 1 lb ground thighs and breast. Jenn you rock! All your recipes that I’ve made deserve more than 5 stars! It all started with your Thai Crunch Salad and Has only gotten BETTER!
I have made this several times and we LOVE IT- you are amazing and every recipe I try of yours is perfection…💜💜💜
💗
If I were to add shiitake mushrooms in when would you suggest to do this?
Hi Marsha, I’d suggest sauteeing them in a little oil first, setting them aside while you go through the other steps, and then adding them in at the end. Please LMK how it turns out with the shiitakes!
A lot of prep, but oh so good and worth it!! a home run!!
I’ve always had a favorite lettuce wrap recipe that uses many of these same ingredients, but tonight we decided to branch out and try Jenn’s instead. This one was even more delicious, which is unsurprising given our love of everything Once Upon a Chef. We can’t wait for the new cookbook!
💗
This was so delicious and so easy. I accidentally only had one pound of chicken, so my spices were doubled but the flavor was so good.
Oh my – this is better than our local Thai restaurant – and I live in Asia! It is so packed with flavour. The first time I followed the recipe exactly, but the second time when I went to get the scallions, onion, cilantro, mint and limes at our local market, the clerk threw in a couple of stalks of lemon grass – so I added it. Very subtle difference but still delicious. I’m so glad I found you – I’ve done several of your recipes and they are 5 star all the way. Easy to get ingredients and your directions are so easy to follow. I can’t wait to try your recipe for seared beef tenderloin with the red wine sauce. We’ll be doing that for our Chinese New Year meal! THANK YOU Chef Jenn!!!
Love this recipe! Always looking for new recipes to fit into our dinner rotation and this is a hit! Full of flavor and low-carb.
A staple! Sometimes we eat in in lettuce cups and other times when we need a little warm comfort, we have it over rice. Tastes pretty authentic (at least compared to our mom and pop Thai restaurants in the SF bay area)
This recipe is now a dinner staple at home. When I first read the ingredients I must be honest that I was tempted to leave out the “fish sauce” but since you encourages us to leave it be and since you have never steered me wrong! I added not just the ingredient but the amount in the recipe and my family loves it! Granted you do have to endure the fishy smell but nowadays everyone knows what’s for dinner hahah! And they eagerly come to the dinner table!