Korean Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce

Craving a quick, flavorful dinner that doesn’t skimp on taste? These sweet and spicy Korean Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce and ground chicken (or turkey!) are the perfect weeknight meal for two, ready in 25 minutes!

Imagine this: It’s a busy weeknight, you’ve just wrapped up a long day, and the last thing you want to do is spend time in the kitchen. Enter the hero of tonight’s dinner—the 25-minute Korean Lettuce Wraps! These little bundles of joy are here to save the day (and your evening) with a flavor-packed punch that’ll leave you wondering how something so simple can taste so good.

We’re talking tender ground chicken or turkey, perfectly seasoned with a sweet and spicy Korean pan sauce tossed with sauteed bell peppers and water chestnuts, all wrapped up in crisp lettuce leaves. And don’t even get me started on the peanut sauce—it’s creamy, a little sweet, a little spicy, and irresistible. It’s the kind of meal that makes you feel like a culinary genius, even if you’re still in your work clothes and have yet to decide whether or not to Netflix and chill.

Perfect for two, these wraps are the answer to “What’s for dinner?” when you want something quick, easy, and ridiculously delicious. So grab your skillet, your lettuce, and your favorite person, and let’s get wrapping!

What you'll need

Get ready for saucy, flavor-packed Korean chicken or turkey that’ll have you craving these crisp lettuce wraps every week! While you could grab a jar of peanut sauce from the store, trust me—this homemade version is a game-changer and so easy to whip up, you’ll never look back. The ingredient list might look long, but don’t worry—this is your wrap, so pick and choose your favorite veggies and toppings to make it just right for you.

• Korean lettuce wrap protein – I opt for the white meat of ground chicken or ground turkey.  Both work really well in these lettuce wraps with peanut sauce and sweet and spicy Korean sauce.
• coconut oil or peanut oil
• onion (finely diced)
• Fresh garlic and ginger – these are the aromatics that will season the ground meat.
• red or green pepper 
• water chestnuts 

See recipe card for quantities.

Sweet and Spicy Korean Pan Sauce Ingredients

• Tamari or soy sauce – I use Soy sauce and tamari interchangeably in recipes, but there are a few differences in flavor and texture. Due to its higher concentration of soy, tamari has a richer and smoother taste, it’s a little thicker than soy sauce, and it’s gluten-free.  
• Hoisin sauce – also a gluten-free ingredient.
• Sesame oil
• Rice vinegar
• Honey or brown sugar -  mixing honey together with gochujang creates a balanced depth of flavor.  It’s the sweet of the spicy in this Korean sauce.
• Gochujang chili paste – a staple of Korean cooking. Gochujang is made from red chili pepper flakes, glutinous rice, fermented soybeans, salt, and sugar, and it has a complex flavor profile. Because it's pungent, we will often be mixing it with other ingredients to tone down its intensity.  Use the paste (which comes in a tub) and not the sauce which is bottled.

Peanut sauce ingredients

This homemade peanut sauce is super easy and SO good.  Make extra to make this dish extra saucy and to use throughout the week on other dishes like this spring roll in a bowl recipe.   It’s that good!  If you are short on time, you can always use store bought peanut sauce.

• natural-style creamy peanut butter
• Granulated sugar - I often swap out the granulated sugar and will use honey. In fact, I have even used brown sugar. All work well.
• hoisin sauce
• soy sauce or tamari
• freshly grated ginger
• chili-garlic paste or gochujang paste - if you use gochujang paste, I would add a clove of garlic to the peanut sauce to mimic a chili-garlic paste.
• dark sesame oil
• Juice of 1 lime
• Water - to help with the consistency of the sauce.

For serving

• Lettuce for lettuce wraps - Boston, Bibb, or Butter Lettuce leaves work best for these lettuce cups. Romaine or iceberg will also work, providing more crunch but wrapping up the filling is a bit more difficult.
• Chopped Peanuts
• Chili crisp – make sure to check out this fun ingredient. While, totally optional it's like having the salty, crackly pleasure of potato chips with a bit of tingling chile heat added to your lettuce wraps. I buy Mr. Bing but Trader Joe’s has a version as well. 

How to make peanut sauce for lettuce wraps

I make my own peanut sauce for these Korean Lettuce Wraps as it’s  an easy dump and blend recipe.  If you are short on time, you can always use store-bought peanut sauce.  But if you can manage it – I promise you will find taking 5 minutes to make homemade peanut sauce is so worth it!  

Natural-style creamy peanut butter, sugar (or honey), hoisin sauce, soy sauce, ginger, gochujang or chili-garlic paste, sesame oil, lime juice and water are the ingredients that make this sauce sing!

Simply combine all the ingredients into the hand blender beaker or blender bowl and give it a blitz until it’s smooth and creamy.  I add more water to help thin the sauce if necessary.

Give it a taste and add more honey or sugar to sweeten it up. Too spicy? Add more soy and hoisin to balance the spicy without making it too sweet. 

You can thank me later but this peanut sauce recipe is a keeper!

How to make Korean Lettuce wraps

Start by heating peanut oil or coconut oil in a frying pan. Once hot – the oil will begin to shimmer. Add the ground chicken or turkey, onion and minced garlic and ginger to the pan.

• Cook until chicken browns and the onions are translucent and begin to soften.  Use the back of a wooden spoon to break up the chicken into small pea-sized chunks.

• Add the peppers and water chestnuts cooking about 5 minutes or until peppers are slightly soft.

• Now let’s make the pan sauce.  I like to first whisk together the soy sauce, hoisin, sesame oil, honey, gochujang paste together in a small bowl. 

• Add the sauce to the pan and simmer on low heat until the chicken and veggies are evenly coated and everything is heated through.

• To serve, spoon several tablespoons of the chicken mixture into the center of a lettuce leaf, taco-style, drizzled with peanut sauce and chopped peanuts, if desired.  

If you need more heat you can pass Sriracha sauce and don’t forget to drizzle on some extra hoisin and chili crisp for your dinner guest to dress up their wrap!

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Food to serve with lettuce wraps

These Korean Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce are amazing on their own, but if you’re looking to round out the meal, here are a few delicious sides to consider.

• Coconut mango rice - A serving of coconut brown rice with slices of mango and snap peas for a tropical twist complements the savory wraps perfectly.  To make the rice simply follow the rice package instructions but use coconut milk instead of water. Before serving, fluff the rice with a fork then add slices of mango and snap peas.   If I have time, I will give the peas a quick sauté in the pan with some coconut oil and a sprinkle of salt. This only takes about 30 seconds.
• Add a refreshing Asian ramen noodle salad—one of my favorites from the blog—for a crunchy, tangy side that pairs beautifully.
• And don’t forget a simple bowl of fresh fruit, like sweet cantaloupe melon, to bring a bright, juicy finish to your dinner.

Storage

Store any leftover lettuce wrap filling in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Store leftover lettuce separately in the refrigerator, because storing them together will make the lettuce soggy.

Freeze the filling in an airtight container for up to 2 months. 

Related

Looking for other recipes using the Korean Gochujang chili paste? Try these: