What to Eat with Lettuce Wraps

Hoisin or peanut sauce to dip, rice or noodles to fill up on, and soup or dumplings first.

What to Eat with Lettuce Wraps

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  1. Hoisin sauceThick, dark and sweet. Brush a little inside the leaf before the filling.
  2. Hot and sour soupA small bowl first, while the filling cooks.
  3. Steamed jasmine riceA spoonful in the leaf under the meat, or a bowl on the side.
  4. Pan-fried potstickersCrisp side up, with the soy and ginger sauce doing for both dishes.
  5. Spring rollsSomething crunchy to pass around with the wraps.

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How it works

What to eat with lettuce wraps? A leaf and a spoonful of filling is light, so add a sauce, a starch and something hot. These 42 ideas cover dips, extras for the leaf, rice, noodles, soups, dumplings and drinks.

Read the full guide

Chinese and Korean lettuce wraps

The Chinese kind, san choy bow, is Cantonese: seasoned minced meat spooned into a crisp raw leaf just before eating, usually with water chestnuts, mushrooms, bamboo shoots and spring onions. It is eaten by hand, at banquets and at Chinese New Year. The Korean kind, ssam, wraps meat such as pork in a leaf with ssamjang, garlic, green pepper or kimchi. With rice inside it is called ssambap.

Build the table

Put a sauce in reach of every seat. If the wraps are the main dish, start with soup or dumplings. Keep the crunchy extras in small bowls so each person tops their own.

  • Dry the leaves well. A wet leaf slides, tears and waters down the sauce.
  • Bring the filling out hot in one bowl with a spoon and refill it, so the last wrap is as warm as the first.

Questions and answers

What sides go with lettuce wraps?

Egg fried rice or cold sesame noodles, a bowl of hot and sour soup, and pan-fried potstickers or spring rolls. Smashed cucumber salad and edamame are the quick ones.

What sauce goes with lettuce wraps?

Hoisin sauce for sweet, peanut sauce for rich, soy and ginger dipping sauce for salty and sweet chili sauce for mild heat. Lime and fish sauce dip suits wraps full of herbs, and hot mustard is for the bold.

What to serve with chicken lettuce wraps for dinner?

Make them the starter and follow with pad thai or glass noodle stir-fry. Or keep them as the main dish with steamed jasmine rice and egg drop soup. Toasted cashews and crisp fried rice noodles suit a chicken filling.

What soup goes with lettuce wraps?

Hot and sour soup or egg drop soup to start, coconut chicken soup or hot and sour shrimp soup with a filling full of lime and herbs, seaweed soup with pork wraps and rice, and miso soup with anything.

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All 42 ideas

Dipping sauces 7

  • Hoisin sauce Thick, dark and sweet. Brush a little inside the leaf before the filling.
  • Hot mustard Fierce stuff. A dot is enough.
  • Lime and fish sauce dip Sharp, salty and a little sweet, with sliced chili floating in it.
  • Peanut sauce Thin it with warm water so it drizzles.
  • Soy and ginger dipping sauce Soy sauce, rice vinegar and grated ginger in a small dish.
  • Ssamjang A thick, spicy Korean paste of soybeans and chili. Dab it on the meat.
  • Sweet chili sauce The mild one. Put it in a small bowl for dipping.

To tuck inside the leaf 10

  • Crisp fried rice noodles Crumble a small nest into each leaf under the filling.
  • Crisp fried shallots A pinch on top of each wrap.
  • Crushed roasted peanuts Scatter them on last so they stay crunchy.
  • Fresh mint leaves Tear a couple over the filling just before folding.
  • Kimchi A small piece on top of the meat, for sour heat.
  • Perilla leaves Lay one inside the lettuce as a second, stronger leaf.
  • Pickled carrot and daikon Thin sweet and sour shreds. Drain them well first.
  • Sliced raw garlic and green chili Thin slices for the brave, one of each to a wrap.
  • Toasted cashews Chop them roughly and stir them through a chicken filling.
  • Water chestnuts Dice them into the filling for crunch.

Rice and noodles 6

  • Cold sesame noodles Make them ahead and serve them straight from the fridge.
  • Egg fried rice Turns a starter of lettuce wraps into a full dinner.
  • Glass noodle stir-fry Slippery clear noodles with vegetables and sesame oil.
  • Pad thai Sweet and sour rice noodles with lime and bean sprouts.
  • Steamed jasmine rice A spoonful in the leaf under the meat, or a bowl on the side.
  • Sticky rice Pinch off a small ball and tuck it into the wrap.

Soups 6

  • Coconut chicken soup Creamy and gentle next to a spicy filling.
  • Egg drop soup Mild and quick, for anyone who skips the chili.
  • Hot and sour shrimp soup Sharp and spicy. Serve it very hot in small bowls.
  • Hot and sour soup A small bowl first, while the filling cooks.
  • Miso soup Light and salty, sipped from the bowl.
  • Seaweed soup A clear, savory broth to go with pork wraps and rice.

Dumplings and small plates 9

  • Edamame Warm pods with flaky salt, to pick at while you wrap.
  • Pan-fried potstickers Crisp side up, with the soy and ginger sauce doing for both dishes.
  • Salt and pepper tofu Crisp cubes that can also go into a leaf for a meatless wrap.
  • Shrimp toast Cut it into triangles and serve it hot.
  • Smashed cucumber salad Cold, garlicky and sharp.
  • Spring rolls Something crunchy to pass around with the wraps.
  • Steamed shrimp dumplings Bring them out in the steamer basket so they stay hot.
  • Summer rolls Soft rice paper rolls of herbs and shrimp, dipped in peanut sauce.
  • Vegetable tempura Fry it last and take it straight to the table.

Drinks 4

  • Iced barley tea Toasty and unsweetened, poured over ice.
  • Jasmine tea Hot, in small cups, all through the meal.
  • Lychee juice Sweet and floral, over plenty of ice.
  • Thai iced tea Strong sweet tea with milk, over ice.