These easy, build-your-own hoisin lettuce wraps are quick enough for a busy weeknight and endlessly customizable for everyone at the table.
Some dinners just work better when everyone gets to assemble their own. Set the skillet of savoury hoisin pork on the table alongside crisp lettuce leaves and plenty of toppings, then let everyone take it from there. Ground turkey or chicken work just as well, and leftover rotisserie chicken makes this speedy dinner even faster.
Ingredients for Hoisin Lettuce Wraps
Canola oil, for cooking
2 tsp sesame oil (optional)
1 lb ground pork, turkey or chicken, or leftover shredded rotisserie chicken
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 cup chopped cilantro stems
2–3 green onions, chopped
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp lime juice or rice vinegar
1/4–1/2 cup hoisin sauce
1 head butter or leaf lettuce, leaves separated
Optional toppings
Chopped peanuts
Julienned carrots
Sliced green onions
Chopped fresh cilantro
Lime wedges
Directions for Hoisin Lettuce Wraps
- In large, heavy skillet, heat drizzle of canola oil over medium-high. Add sesame oil, if using, and ground pork. Cook, breaking up meat with spoon, until no longer pink. (If using leftover rotisserie chicken, add it along with garlic and ginger in the next step.)
- Add garlic, ginger, cilantro stems and green onions. Cook, stirring, until excess moisture has evaporated and meat begins to brown.
- Add soy sauce and lime juice or rice vinegar and cook for 1 min. Add hoisin sauce to taste, stirring until meat is well coated and heated through.
- Spoon meat mixture into lettuce leaves and top with peanuts, carrots, green onions and cilantro, as desired. Serve with lime wedges for squeezing over top.
Originally published in ParentsCanada magazine, August/September 2014. Updated September 2026.
