When it comes to quick, balanced weeknight dinners, a lettuce wrap is the ultimate blank canvas. A large, hearty lettuce leaf can turn just about anything into a casual, handheld meal!
When you Google "lettuce wraps", you'll likely find a bunch of recipes that emulate the popular P.F. Chang's ground chicken lettuce wraps. But lettuce wraps are so versatile: Those recipes are just the tip of the iceberg!
A good, sturdy lettuce leaf lends the perfect amount of crunch and brightness to your favorite protein (like chicken, pork, beef, or beans). Bust out the lettuce for a quick dinner when you're craving vegetables but aren't quite in the mood for a regular ol' salad.
A build-your-own wrap night is also a fantastic way to use up any leftovers in the fridge, minimize meal prep on a busy night, or appease picky eaters!
Jump to:
- The best lettuce for lettuce wraps
- 3 ways to make lettuce wraps (without a recipe!)
- Our Favorite Recipe
- Lettuce Wrap Recipes
- 30 Minute Hoisin Shrimp Wraps
- Chicken Apple Salad Lettuce Wraps
- Chickpea Lettuce Wraps
- Peanut Chicken Wraps
- Salmon Lettuce Wraps
- Pork Lettuce Wraps (San Choy Bow)
- Buffalo Chicken Wraps
- Tofu Lettuce Wraps
- Cauliflower Lettuce Wraps
- Frequently Asked Questions
- More Easy Dinner Recipe Collections
- 💬 Comments & Reviews
The best lettuce for lettuce wraps
Butter lettuce (often sub-categorized as Bibb lettuce or Boston lettuce) is one of our favorite lettuce wrap options: Its leaves are large, crisp, and easy to roll into a wrap shape. Large romaine lettuce leaves, big green-leaf lettuce, kale, or even cabbage leaves will also work in these recipes!
When you're buying lettuce for wraps, look for fresh, crisp leaves with plenty of surface area. Use lettuce within a few days for best results: Older lettuce can be wilted and floppy instead of crispy (which doesn't make for a very satisfying bite).
3 ways to make lettuce wraps (without a recipe!)
- Lettuce wrap "tacos". Spoon your favorite taco fillings (like crockpot salsa chicken, black beans, or spicy ground beef) into a lettuce wrap. Top with shredded cheese, green onions, avocado, diced onion, cilantro, or fresh salsa!
- Meatball wraps. Our favorite meal prep turkey meatballs make a quick and easy filling: Heat them up in a small pan with your favorite sauce, add toppings, and enjoy. Try adding pizza sauce and shredded mozzarella for a meatball sub-style wrap, or drizzle them with cilantro yogurt sauce and top with shredded cabbage or carrots!
- Appetizers. Lettuce wraps make it easier to pick up an appetizer at parties or potlucks: We love placing a crab cake and a dollop of aioli on individual lettuce leaves for easy snacking!
Our Favorite Recipe
If we had to pick just one favorite recipe from this collection (...unfair), it would be these chicken apple salad lettuce wraps.
The chicken salad is so easy to mix together - just grab a rotisserie chicken and you're in business! - and the sweetness of fresh apple pieces is a perfect complement to the crisp bite of the greens.
Lettuce Wrap Recipes
30 Minute Hoisin Shrimp Wraps
This recipe has plenty of crisp veggies but still feels warm and cozy thanks to shrimp cooked in a large skillet with hoisin sauce! Add stir fry noodles or rice to these wraps to make them even heartier.
Chicken Apple Salad Lettuce Wraps
These easy chicken apple salad wraps feature a quick Greek yogurt honey dressing! Make the chicken salad mixture a day ahead of time and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for easy assembly.
Chickpea Lettuce Wraps
This easy (and vegan!) recipe features marinated garbanzo beans and a creamy tahini dressing with plenty of fresh veggies.
Photo & Recipe Credit: Fooduzzi
Peanut Chicken Wraps
Marinate chicken in an easy curry paste and ginger mixture, then grill or sauté. Pack the chicken in a lettuce wrap with fresh veggies, add a quick homemade peanut sauce, and finish with a squeeze of fresh lime juice.
Photo & Recipe Credit: Midwest Foodie
Salmon Lettuce Wraps
Broiled salmon is topped with a quick summer salad of avocado, red onion, cucumbers, and cherry tomatoes in a simple vinaigrette. With white rice and crispy bacon for a hearty wrap.
Photo & Recipe Credit: Sprinkled with Balance
Pork Lettuce Wraps (San Choy Bow)
These traditional Chinese pork lettuce wraps - San Choy Bow - use ground pork for a rich filling. With water chestnuts, carrots, and a delicious sauce with soy sauce, sesame oil, and oyster sauce.
Photo & Recipe Credit: Greedy Girl Gourmet
Buffalo Chicken Wraps
These easy buffalo chicken wraps are perfect for game day or a quick dinner during the week! The classic taste of buffalo wings in an easier-to-eat format. Add a dash of sriracha for extra heat!
Photo & Recipe Credit: Our Salty Kitchen
Tofu Lettuce Wraps
This crispy tofu is packed with flavor and wrapped in a crunchy iceberg lettuce leaf! This easy vegetarian dinner pairs well with a drizzle of peanut sauce, sweet chili sauce, low sodium soy sauce, and more.
Photo & Recipe Credit: Ahead of Thyme
Cauliflower Lettuce Wraps
These Korean BBQ-inspired wraps feature crispy roasted cauliflower that's drenched in an easy sauce with garlic, fresh ginger, sesame oil, and crushed peanuts.
Photo & Recipe Credit: Pinch of Yum
Frequently Asked Questions
We love butter lettuce (often called Bibb lettuce or Boston lettuce): It has large, crisp leaves that are easy to roll around a filling! Lettuce wraps also work well with large leaves of romaine lettuce, kale, or cabbage.
When you're buying lettuce for wraps, look for fresh, crisp leaves with plenty of surface area. It's important that your lettuce is as fresh as possible: Older lettuce can wilt, and may be floppy instead of crispy (which doesn't make for a very satisfying bite).
Tip: If you buy a whole head of romaine, pull off the larger leaves for lettuce wraps and save the smaller romaine hearts for chopped salads (like our cilantro chicken salad) later in the week!
Because we typically use lettuce wraps as a quick, easy dinner with minimal ingredients, we like to keep our side dishes easy, too!
Serve lettuce wraps with store bought chips, mixed nuts, or pretzels if you'd like a quick, crunchy side dish. We also love adding fresh fruit (like strawberries or apple slices), or raw veggies (like carrots, snap peas, green beans, etc).
If you have any leftover dips or sauces (like easy whipped feta, creamy goat cheese, or roasted beet goat cheese dip), serve those with the veggies on the side!
Lettuce doesn't freeze well: We recommend making your wraps with fresh lettuce for best results.
That said, you can often make the filling for a lettuce wrap ahead of time and keep it in the freezer! Our meal prep turkey meatballs (made using ground turkey) and crockpot chicken, for example, freeze very well and are easy to thaw and reheat when you want to use them. Many sauces can also be made ahead of time (and often frozen), and you can chop any veggies as part of your meal prep routine earlier in the week so these lettuce wraps are easy to assemble later.
We hope you loved this guide to homemade lettuce wraps! Thank you to all of the talented photographers and recipe developers who contributed to this collection. If you have any questions, just drop a comment below. For more easy, balanced meal ideas, check out our collection of main dishes!
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