Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken Lettuce Wraps

I have your new favorite dinner recipe, right here!

There's no oven involved (but we do get to break out our slow cookers!), every bite is packed with flavor and texture, and this recipe is so super simple! It's a win/win/win.

These Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken Lettuce Wraps are bursting with sweet. sour, and spicy Asian flavors. It's like drippy teriyaki chicken meets fresh and crunchy spring rolls, all tucked together in a piece of fresh, tender bib lettuce. They are light yet satisfying - a perfect summer meal or appetizer! Let's walk through it all...

It all starts with the most unbelievable teriyaki chicken, which we whip up with very little thought thanks to our Crockpots. It starts with chicken breasts and chopped onions layered in the bottom of the pot, doused in an amazing teriyaki marinade. The marinade is quite simple and packed with tasty ingredients you probably already have on hand - teriyaki sauce, soy sauce, sweet chili sauce, lime juice, garlic and ginger. After 4 to 5 hours cooking on high, we simply shred up the chicken, thicken the sauce with a bit of cornstarch, and pile it high on our wraps!

Besides the lettuce, I love adding a handful of vermicelli rice noodles to each leaf of lettuce. The rice noodles soak up the glorious sauce from the chicken and give the whole dish a little more oomph. To finish up, we just need a few simple fixin's. I'm partial to cilantro leaves, sesame seeds, and a squirt or two of sriracha.

Now, this dish...sure, it's a little messy. Your fingers are going to get sticky and you may get teriyaki sauce all over your face. But trust me - for a dish this delicious, it's worth it!

I'm off to sea!

Hi blog-loves!

Hope you've been enjoying the recent posts here on Gas Stove Girl. I'm having a ton of fun cooking and eating them, and I hope you do too!

Like any good adult, I'm treating myself to a tropical vacation for the next week. I'll be cruising with my good friend to Belize and Cozumel--can you say bright sunshine and 85 degree weather?! I NEED IT!

Since I will be in the middle of the ocean, I won't have any new posts for you. That doesn't mean you can't be cooking though! Perhaps you want to give one of Gas Stove Girl's most popular recipes a try.

These Philly Cheesesteak Stuffed Peppers have far and away attracted the most readers. They are cheesy and hearty, all the amazing flavors of a traditional Philly Cheesesteak stuffed in a pepper...YUM!

Perhaps you need something to warm you up. In that case, Mom's Lentil Soup is a popular stop. This soup is healthy and flavorful, and makes you feel right at home.

My Ground Lamb Lettuce Wraps are packed with rustic Mediterranean flavors. They are light and satisfying. A great alternative to a traditional taco.

 

This French Onion Pasta is comfort food at it's finest. A full meal inspired by a traditional French Onion soup. That means there is bubbly melted cheese on top...you're welcome!

If you love your Crock Pot as much as I do, then you are going to love this Crock Pot Chicken Cacciatore. This meal rocked my socks off. A little bit of prep work leads to a rich, flavorful, and down-right addicting chicken dish.

Have fun cooking while I am away! Let me know what kinds of recipes you'd like to see when I get back, and be sure to comment on any posts with recipes that you've tried -- I'd love to know how it went for you.

Pictures of my tropical paradise to follow!

Until next time,

Jess xo

Ground Lamb Lettuce Wraps

Happy New Year, blogloves!

I hope everyone had a great holiday season. I spent an whole week home in NY and it was a ton of fun. If I could place a theme on the 2012 holiday season, it would be generosity. I'm so lucky to have great family and friends!

Yesterday marked my first day back to work in quite a few days (and my first day in 2013!)...and if i may. Someone needs to warn us young professionals just how hard it is to get back in a routine after being away for a week-plus. Alarm clocks. E-mails. Public Transportation?! Yikes!

I hope to get back on a regular blogging schedule too, once my body re-adjusts to the 9 to 5 grind.

For now, I wanted to share this simple and light recipe I made for dinner last night. It is packed full of flavor, with crunchy veggies and tangy feta to bring it all together.

DISCLAIMER: My pictures here are very sporadic. I was experimenting with my new camera (thanks Mom!!!) and, well, just go with it. Now that I have an idea of what setting works the best, I can be more focused on logically photographing the food.

Ok, back to dinner.

Do you like lamb? I thought I hated it, but after trying it out a few times while out to dinner, I realized I was so wrong. It is actually DELICIOUS. I am still a little timid when it comes to big pieces of the meat, but at Whole Foods I was able to find ground lamb. What a perfect transition - not too intimidating, yet very versatile.

Last night, I made Ground Lamb Lettuce Wraps, inspired by a recipe I saw in Cooking Light magazine this past summer. Lamb begs for meditteranean flavors, and I oblidged.

This setting is way too yellow!

Let's start with toppings -- chopped cucumber and tomato are mixed with fresh parsley, mint, and feta cheese. Nothing wrong there.

Next, since every good wrap should have a condiment, I mixed together equal amounts of plain non-fat greek yogurt and hummus. I had a spinach and artichoke hummus, and boy was it good.

Now all we have to do is cook the meat and build our own wraps. Super simple, but the whole dish feels very sophisticated.

1 medium onion, diced and sauteed with a little bit of EVOO, salt, and brown sugar. We want to get a slight caramelization on these bad boys.

Toss in the lamb, break it up, and cook until browned.

Wilt in 2 cups of chopped fresh spinach. Then the kicker -- 2 whole tablespoons of ground cinnamon mixed in.

For lettuce wraps, I highly recommend a head of boston lettuce. These leafs have a great bowl shape and have a nice, fresh flavor. (P.S. for the carb lovers in your life, like my boyfriend, you can get pita bread, warm it up, and serve everything on top of that). To make your wraps, start by spreading the yogurt hummus on the lettuce. Top with a generous amount of the ground lamb. Sprinkle the tomato cucumber salad on top of that!

Oh, and how could I forget...the crunchy element. Toasted pine nuts! Totally!

This is a great low-carb meal and is actually super fun if you are entertaining. I made a similar dish for some friends a few months ago, and it's totally worth it to let everyone get involved and make their own meal the way they like.

Meghan, Ryan, and Cory enjoying lettuce wraps and grilled vegetables