I love being at home cooking up a storm in the kitchen, cooking for friends & loved ones with a house filled with wonderful aromas, laughter in the room and glasses of wine flowing. These are the moments that bring I life for - Miss Adelia

What is a lettuce wrap?

Lettuce wraps are similar to sandwich wraps, but they use lettuce instead of flatbread to contain the other ingredients. Any type of sandwich can be made as a lettuce wrap instead, and a number of different types of lettuce may be used. Iceberg lettuce is one popular option, since the leaves tend to be solid and crunchy, though large, flexible romaine leaves are also well suited to use as wraps. Other varieties of lettuce, such as the somewhat bitter escarole, can also be a good fit for certain types of wraps. Due to the fact that no bread products are used in the making of a lettuce wrap, these sandwich substitutes tend to be lower in both calories and carbohydrates than other similar options.

Sandwich wraps have been popular since the 1980s, though lettuce has been used as a bread replacement in certain circumstances for even longer. The term wrap was not used until the 1980s, but some restaurants served hamburgers with lettuce in place of buns as early as the 1970s. These early examples typically used two leaves of lettuce that were not necessarily wrapped around the fillings, though the basic concept was the same. Many products that are sold as lettuce wraps still use this sandwich-like method, especially when certain varieties of lettuce are used.- Wisegeek.com

Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients: (Items that were not used will be notated)

10 Butter Lettuce Leaves
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 tablespoon cooking oil
1/2 large onion, chopped
2 cloves fresh garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon soy sauce (Not used)
 1/4 cup hoisin sauce (Not Used)
2 teaspoons minced ginger (Not Used)
1 Tablespoon of rice (Not used)
2-3 white mushrooms, chopped (Not used)
Asian Chile pepper Sauce (optional, not used)
1 8oz. can water chestnuts, drained and finely chopped
3 stems, green onions, chopped
2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
2 tablespoons Teriyaki Sauce (Not suggested, used)
1 teaspoon cloves
1-2 teaspoon salt (to taste)
1-2 teaspoon pepper (to taste)

 *Suggested: Add more veggies, red bell peppers, corn, green peppers, chopped cooked carrots

Rinse whole lettuce leaves, pat dry and set aside.

In a medium skillet over high heat, brown the ground beef in 1 tablespoon of oil, stirring often and reducing the heat to medium, if necessary. Add the onion, green onion, chopped garlic in the same pan, stirring frequently. Add the soy sauce, Teriyaki sauce, sesame oil, cloves, and salt/pepper/cloves (or regular ingredients) to the onions, and stir. Continue cooking until the onions begin to wilt, it should only take about 2 minutes. 

Drain and taste, add more salt, pepper or sauce for taste, if needed.

Arrange lettuce leaves around the outer edge of a large serving platter, and pile meat mixture in the center. To serve, allow each person to spoon a portion of the meat into a lettuce leaf. Wrap the lettuce around the meat like a burrito, and enjoy!