My friend Jolene recently asked me to make beef lettuce wraps, and I put the craving into action last night. I did some research and all of the recipes I saw had pretty similar components: beef or pork, mint, cilantro, dried shrimp, soy, sesame, chili, garlic, and ginger. I had never cooked with dried shrimp before, but enjoyed them immensely when they were offered as a condiment to street food in Thailand. So I headed to T&T market (http://www.tnt-supermarket.com/en/)and stocked up on ingredients.
These lettuce wraps are dead simple, and each component is prepared separately, so they are a great meal to make with friends or family, each person being responsible for a filling.
I took a head of ice berg lettuce and cut the core out (about two inches). I dunked this in a sink full of warm water and then plunged it into an ice bath. This trick I learned from Jolene, the defibrillator of the lettuce world. This process can resuscitate any wilted green. The warm water opens the pores in the vegetable and then the cold shocks it, crisping it back to life. I let the water drain off and then wrapped the head in a moist towel and put in the fridge until the fillings were ready.
For the beef: I melted some coconut oil (you could use any other vegetable oil, not olive) in a non-stick skillet on medium high and add minced garlic, ginger, fresh chili pepper, the stems from a bunch of cilantro, chopped finely, and those dried shrimp, all chopped up. They were quite hard, next time I might soak them in hot water before chopping them up. I cooked this down until the beef was crispy and aromatic and then seasoned it with about a tablespoon of soy sauce, a few good splashes of fish sauce, sesame oil and lime juice. I finished it with a good crack of black pepper.
I had separate bowls for minced cilantro, mint and green onion, and lots of each of them!
I chopped some dry-roasted peanuts and added them to a hot pan with a bit of oil, chopped garlic and shredded, unsweetened coconut.
For the sauce I combined a good amount, half a cup or so, of hoisin sauce, a quarter cup of soy sauce, the juice of one lime, grated one-inch piece of ginger, one chili pepper, minced, a handful of cilantro, minced, and one green onion, minced and a spoonful of sugar. Finished it with a couple splashes of fish sauce and a couple drops of sesame oil.
In a mortar and pestle, I combined about four red chili peppers, five cloves of garlic and a healthy pinch of salt. I smashed this around and added a small squeeze of lime juice to finish. This was dynamite, and added a lot of fire to the wraps, definitely needs to come with a disclaimer!!
The assembly was my favourite part. I took a piece of perfectly crisp lettuce, curved perfectly to cradle my tender toppings. I layered some bean sprouts on the base, spooned some beef in next and then added my greens: mint, cilantro and green onion. I drizzled the sauce over the fillings and topped with the crispy peanut and coconut. I wrapped it up into a tight parcel and mowed down.
They were surprisingly simple, but beautifully aromatic, with dynamic and delicious flavours. It's an impressive, interactive meal that brings people together. Go on, try it, I dare you.
Try it, Love it, Learn it, Share it.
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