Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps are an easy and healthy low-carb meal that can be ready in about 30 minutes. These wraps are filled with seasoned chicken, crisp veggies and herbs, crunchy peanuts, and a sweet peanut sauce.

Try some other lettuce wrap recipes next. These Vegetarian Lettuce Wraps, Taco Lettuce Wraps, or Beef Lettuce Wraps are all simple to make and lip-smacking delicious.

Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps

These wraps are light and healthy, fresh-tasting, and brimming with so many great textures. From the crisp lettuce to the crunchy nuts on top and the smooth peanut sauce finishing everything off, you will love this meal!

These wraps are an easy meal to make for a quick weeknight dinner. The chicken only requires a few spices and a grill or grill pan (or George Foreman-style electric grill), there are only a few veggies to chop, and the peanut sauce is as easy as adding everything to a blender and pressing the start button.

Peanut sauce

Before we get too far, I’ll say right up front that this peanut sauce is far from an authentic Asian sauce. It’s definitely more on the sweet side and perhaps is more of a peanut dressing. Either way, we’re obsessed with this sauce; it’s indulgent, rich, and a little tangy! The sauce is intentionally sweet to complement all the raw crunchy veggies. The flavor is milder than a lot of peanut sauces and complements the flavors in the chicken delightfully.

Although the sauce is sweet by design, you can always tweak it to your preference and make it less sweet (by adding less honey). Alternatively, you can add more spice (increase cayenne pepper, add red pepper flakes, or add in some chili sauce). 

And the sauce is very easy to make. It’s as simple as putting the ingredients in a good blender (I like the Blendtec® blender for its quality and power) and letting it rip.

Chicken tips

• Slice breasts in half before grilling: Slice and/or pound your chicken breasts into evenly thick pieces before grilling. That way they’ll cook quicker and evenly. They’ll also be the perfect size when diced for these Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps.
• Generously oil your grill grates. I do this by rolling up a few paper towels, drenching them in oil (canola or vegetable), and while using tongs, I rub the drenched paper towels along the grill grates. Doing this will contribute to a beautiful sear, and ensure the chicken doesn’t stick to the grates. 
• Let the cooked chicken rest: Chicken needs to rest, tented with foil, for 5-10 minutes before cutting in. This helps the juices redistribute inside the chicken, rather than leaking out.
• Turmeric tip: Turmeric has a brilliant yellow/orange color and will dye your hands, table, cutting board, and even your kids the same bright color, so don’t use it on surfaces you don’t want to be scrubbing forever after making this meal. 

Not grilling the chicken? If you don’t have the grill fired up, then I recommend sautéing it instead. To sauté the chicken, cut it into small bite-sized pieces and toss with all the seasonings. Add oil to a large skillet and sauté until chicken is cooked through and registers 165 degrees F. Timing will vary depending on the size of the chicken but should take around 5-7 minutes. Once cooked, allow to cool, and then dice the chicken into even smaller pieces.

I also tested these wraps with rotisserie chicken. While we definitely preferred the texture and seasonings of the grilled chicken, it was still pretty tasty with warmed, diced rotisserie chicken (especially when you consider how fast it came together).

Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wrap veggies

• Lettuce: I recommend using butter (Boston) lettuce. It has a nice flavor, a good amount of crispness, and rolls up nicely.
• Carrots: Use a bag of matchstick carrots if you’re in a hurry. I love the flavor and crispiness of whole carrots, so I use them to make my own matchstick carrots. However, that takes an extra few minutes, so use whatever method you have time for. 
• Cucumbers: I highly recommend using Persian or English cucumbers since they’re much crispier than regular cucumbers. In these wraps, crispiness is important.
• Red pepper: Any sweet bell pepper works; red, orange, or yellow. You can even leave out the pepper and use extra carrots or cucumber if you prefer.
• Other ideas: If you want to try a different combination of veggies, try very thinly sliced red cabbage, thinly sliced kale (or kale slaw), or broccoli slaw.

Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wrap toppings

The toppings for these lettuce wraps are simple, but pack in even more flavor and texture. Add whatever you’d like! Listed below are our three “must-have” additions:

• Chopped peanuts or cashews: I like getting roasted and salted nuts for these wraps. They add the perfect finishing touch and replace the need for salt.
• Fresh cilantro: Chop right before serving or just grab a few full stems and add them right on top.
• Fresh lime: I usually serve these wraps with a few lime wedges on the side so everyone can add a few squeezes of fresh lime right before eating. I intentionally didn’t add lime juice to the sauce because I planned for it here. 

More low-carb recipes:

• Egg Roll in a Bowl
• Turkey Meatloaf
• Ground Turkey Stir Fry
• Caprese Salad with Basil Dressing
• Spaghetti Squash with Turkey Meatballs

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5 from 6 votes

Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps

By Chelsea Lords

Peanut Chicken Lettuce Wraps are a quick, nutritious low-carb meal! Packed with seasoned chicken, crisp veggies, fresh herbs, crunchy peanuts, and a sweet peanut sauce, they’re ready in just 30 minutes.

Prep Time: 25 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes minutes

Servings: 12 lettuce wraps (3 to 4 servings)

Equipment

• Small blender I use a mini Blendtec/Twister Jar

Ingredients 

USMetric

 

1x2x3x

Lettuce Wraps

• ▢ 3/4 of 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts about 13 ounces
• ▢ 1 tablespoon olive oil
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• ▢ 12 large Boston lettuce leaves or butter lettuce leaves
• ▢ 1 large red bell pepper thinly sliced into matchsticks, 1 cup
• ▢ 1-1/4 cup matchstick (julienned) carrots
• ▢ 1-1/4 cup matchstick (julienned) Persian cucumber or English cucumber, 2 to 3 Persian cucumbers or 1 English
• ▢ 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped peanuts
• ▢ Lime juice for topping
• ▢ Fresh cilantro for topping

Peanut sauce/dressing

• ▢ 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• ▢ 3 tablespoons honey
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons water
• ▢ 1-1/2 tablespoons rice vinegar
• ▢ 1-1/2 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• ▢ 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper optional, depending on your preference for heat

Instructions 

• Sauce: In a small, powerful blender, add creamy peanut butter, honey (see note 1), olive oil, the water, rice vinegar, soy sauce, pepper, and cayenne pepper. Blend until smooth and refrigerate while finishing everything else.
• Remove fat and halve breasts lengthwise if they are thick. Pound chicken to get the pieces uniformly thick throughout. (with a meat mallet or the bottom of a heavy frying pan.) Pat both sides of the chicken with paper towels. On one side of the chicken, drizzle 1/2 tablespoon olive oil and rub it in. Sprinkle on half the salt, half the pepper, half the turmeric, and half the cumin. Gently press in the spices and flip the chicken to the other side. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and spices.
• To sauté the chicken instead, see note 3. Preheat an indoor or outdoor grill to medium-high heat (400-450°F on an outdoor grill) and generously oil the grates (see note 2). Cook on preheated grill until the chicken is golden and no longer pink in the center, about 4–5 minutes per side (or until the chicken registers 165°F). Remove, cover with foil, and let stand 5–10 minutes. When cooled slightly, dice the chicken into bite-sized pieces.
• Prep veggies while chicken is cooking: Slice a bell pepper into small, matchstick-sized pieces, cut matchstick carrots (or use prepared matchstick carrots). Cut cucumber(s) into matchstick pieces. If you aren’t using salted nuts, add a pinch of salt to the veggies. Finely chop the peanuts.
• Wash and completely dry 12 lettuce leaves. Divide the cooked chicken evenly among the 12 lettuce leaves, followed by the veggies and peanuts. Add fresh cilantro and lime wedges to plates. Drizzle sauce generously over the wraps and enjoy immediately.

Recipe Notes

Note 1: I love this sauce exactly how it’s written, but it is quite sweet. If you prefer less sweetness, add honey slowly or add some red pepper flakes to make it a bit spicier.

Note 2: I oil the grill grates by rolling up a few paper towels, drenching them in oil (canola or vegetable), and using tongs, rub the drenched paper towels along the grill grates right before adding the chicken.

Note 3: To sauté the chicken instead, cut it into bite-sized pieces and toss with all the seasonings. Add 1 tablespoon oil to a large skillet and sauté until chicken is cooked through and registers 165°F. Timing will vary depending on the size of the chicken but should take around 5–7 minutes. Once cooked, allow to cool (tented with foil), then dice the chicken into even smaller pieces.

Storage: Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Keep the chicken, veggies, and sauce separate for the best texture. Reheat the chicken, then assemble fresh wraps when ready to eat.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 138kcal | Carbohydrates: 9g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 8g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 20mg | Sodium: 189mg | Potassium: 294mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 4063IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 22mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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