Vietnamese Lettuce Wraps with Peanut Sauce
Vietnamese Lettuce Wraps are a lower-cal version of Vietnamese rice paper rolls. The fresh herbs and peanut dipping sauce are key here! Everything else you can switch: prawns for shredded chicken, fish or even tofu, with any shreddable veg you want. Excellent no-cook meal!
Vietnamese lettuce wraps
Vietnamese lettuce wrap platter
Vietnamese lettuce wraps
These lettuce wraps are not strictly Vietnamese authentic (as far as I know), but they certainly embrace all that we love about Vietnamese food – fresh and light yet never boring, using an abundance of crunchy vegetables, herbs and a killer peanut dipping sauce.
Ingredients
- THE LETTUCE CUPS:
- 300 g / 10 oz peeled whole cooked prawns/shrimp medium (600g/1.2lb unpeeled whole prawns – this is what I use) – Note 1
- 75 g / 2.5 oz dried vermicelli noodles or glass noodles or rice
- 12 large or 16 -20 small lettuce leaves I used baby cos/romaine, eg iceberg, butter lettuce
- VEG AND HERBS:
- 1 batch quick pickled carrots and daikon below *recommended* OR 2 carrots finely julienned (use plain)
- 2 cups beansprouts
- 2 cucumbers julienned
- 2 cups mint leaves
- 2 cups coriander/cilantro sprigs sub with chives + extra mint
- 3 birds eye red chilli finely sliced (optional)
- 1/4 cup roasted peanuts finely chopped (recommended)
- VIETNAMESE PEANUT SAUCE:
- 2 tbsp natural peanut butter smooth (ie not sweetened) – Note 2
- 2 tbsp hoisin
- 1 – 2 tbsp lime juice sub rice vinegar
- 1/3 cup LOW FAT coconut milk Note 3
- 1 large garlic clove finely grated
- 1 tsp+ sambal oelak or other chilli sauce/paste of choice, can omit (adj to taste)
- 1 tsp dark soy Note 4
- 1 tsp white sugar
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- QUICK PICKLED VEGETABLES
- 2 medium carrots peeled cut into 2 mm / 1/10″ batons
- 1/2 large white radish daikon , peeled, cut the same as carrots
- 375 ml boiling water
- 100 g white sugar
- 4 tsp cooking salt / kosher salt
- 180 ml rice wine vinegar sub apple cider vinegar
Instructions
- Pickle first – Put the boiling water, salt and sugar in a bowl. Mix to to dissolve, then add vinegar. Submerge vegetables and leave for 2 hours. Drain then use per recipe (or store in fridge submerged in liquid).
- Peanut sauce – Mix the peanut sauce ingredients and set aside for the flavours to meld while you prepare the platter. Start with 1 tbsp lime juice and add more if you want tarter.
- Prawns (shrimp) – Cut the prawns in half horizontally and remove the vein.
- Noodles – Soak the noodles in boiling water per packet directions. Rinse under cold water (to prevent stickiness) then drain very well.
- Lay it all out – Pile everything onto a giant platter or put things in little bowls, then let everybody help themselves!
- Assemble – Here's my order: lettuce leaf, noodles first, then veg* (carrots, bean sprouts etc), prawns, stuff herbs down the side, drizzle with sauce, sprinkle with peanuts and chilli. Bundle and bite!
Video
Notes
* Sometimes I like to be a rebel and not use all the veg in every lettuce wrap, especially if I’m using small lettuce leaves. Just put what you want in your lettuce wrap!
1. Or cook your own – just toss 300g/10oz raw peeled prawns with a little salt and pepper. Preheat oil in non stick pan on high and cook each side for 1 1/2 min (medium) to 2 minutes (large ones), then remove.
2. Natural peanut butter is just peanuts, no sugar no salt. Flavour is more intense and it is runnier than peanut butter spread which makes it idea for sauces. Mix well before use as it separates if not used regularly. Can sub with peanut butter spread but your sauce will be thicker with slightly less peanut flavour.
3. Low fat coconut milk is thinner which makes the sauce not too thick. If you only have full fat, that’s fine, use 1/4 cup then top up with water.
4. Dark soy is more intense flavoured than regular and light soy, and darkens sauce colour. But you can substitute with light or all-purpose soy (more on difference soy sauces here).
Leftovers – The peanut sauce will keep for 4 days in the fridge or freezer for 3 months.
Nutrition assumes all the sauce and vermicelli noodles are consumed, and half the pickles. You probably won’t use all the pickles but you’ll be fine with that because they last for weeks and weeks in the fridge!
- Noodles first then whatever vegetables you want to add. Because – newsflash – you don’t have to stuff everything you see on the platter into every lettuce wrap!!
- Prawns – Top with prawns and stuff the herbs down the side.
- Sauce – Drizzle with sauce, sprinkle with peanuts and chilli.
- Then bundle it up and bite!
