Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps are easy to make and a true crowd-pleaser. They're made with healthy ground turkey, pantry-staple Asian flavors, and drizzled with a creamy ginger tahini sauce.

A close up of this turkey lettuce wraps recipe with tahini sauce drizzled over the top.

Are you excited to meet your new favorite weeknight dinner recipe? I thought you might be! Let me introduce to you these Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps. They're about to make your life a whole lot tastier.

Why you want to make turkey lettuce wraps tonight

  • Just look how pretty they are!
  • Lean ground turkey meat + caramelized veggies + the most delicious Thai-inspired sauce = magic.
  • In less than 30 minutes you can be listening to your family tell you how much they love the dinner you cooked.
  • Turkey lettuce wraps are perfect for meal prep. Hello, lunch!
  • You'll walk away from dinner feeling amazing. These turkey wraps are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and paleo. I know you love healthy dinner recipes.

A hand holding on of the turkey lettuce wraps.

Why choose ground turkey in lettuce wraps?

Think turkey! Turkey is a delicious and versatile protein and ground turkey is perfect for making Asian lettuce wraps. I often reach for ground turkey instead of chicken when I'm grocery shopping as it goes so well in different recipes. The neutral flavor of ground turkey breasts is ideal with this Thai-inspired recipe.

From a nutritional standpoint, it's very similar to chicken so you can feel good about eating it as an everyday protein option.

How to substitute turkey in your recipes?

Turkey tastes great, is simple to cook, and is easily used as a substitute for other proteins. It works well with many different flavors and cuisines and can be baked, roasted, fried, grilled, or slow cooked.

Using ground turkey instead of ground chicken is a very easy substitute. I personally can't tell the difference when I cook with ground turkey breasts.

I do find that ground turkey thigh meat is more flavorful and makes an excellent substitute for chicken meatballs.

Also, choosing turkey means supporting Canadian farmers. Go local!

Turkey taco lettuce wraps on a marble board with some creamy ginger tahini sauce on the side.

How do you make Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps?

Making these lettuce wraps is super easy. But there is a little trick you need to know before you get started.

To make this recipe taste the absolute best, you need to caramelize the veggies. Don't worry, this part is easy. All you need is a little patience and you can do this.

Onions, carrots, and red peppers are all naturally very sweet. When they're allowed to cook for an extended period of time, their sugars caramelize and they become even sweeter. Doing this lets us only use 1 tablespoon of honey yet still achieve the perfect sweetness that you'd expect from Asian lettuce wraps.

After about 12 minutes, your veggies will be ready. They should look beautifully dark like they do in this picture. ↓

A close up of the caramelized vegetables for the Asian turkey lettuce wraps.

Making the best ground turkey lettuce wraps continued …

While your veggies are cooking, take this time to make the two sauces. Multi-tasking in the kitchen is the key to getting dinner on the table stat! Just make sure to stir the veggies a few times while you're mixing your sauce ingredients together.

Then all you have to do is cook the ground turkey until it's no longer pink and mix in the sauce.

This turkey lettuce wraps recipe is so easy that it (almost) doesn't deserve to taste so good!

A wooden spoon holding up the filling for these ground turkey lettuce wraps.

What’s the Best Lettuce for Lettuce Wraps?

My preference is Bibb lettuce. It's often sold in containers with the root still attached so it's always fresh. The leaves are small and cupped shaped so they work perfectly as lettuce wraps. They're also nice and crunchy.

In a pinch, I've used romaine, butter lettuce, red leaf, and green leaf lettuce. They all work if you can't get your hands on Bibb lettuce.

How to make lettuce wraps family friendly?

If you're lucky, you'll make the recipe exactly as written. But I know from having my own toddler at home that lettuce isn't the best option for little ones.

That's ok! You can still make these turkey lettuce wraps. Here are two ways of pleasing the lettuce-adverse at your table:

  1. Turn them into turkey taco wraps by using tortillas instead of lettuce.
  2. Serve the ground turkey filling on top of some rice.

No matter how you choose to serve these turkey lettuce wraps, they're delicious!

For more great turkey recipes, make sure you check out www.thinkturkey.ca.

A close up of these Thai turkey lettuce wraps with tahini sauce drizzled over the top.

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A close up of these Thai turkey lettuce wraps with tahini sauce drizzled over the top.

Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps

  • Author: Kristen Stevens | The Endless Meal
  • Prep Time: 5 mins
  • Cook Time: 20 mins
  • Total Time: 25 minutes
  • Yield: 3-4 servings 1x
  • Category: Dinner
  • Cuisine: Thai

★★★★★

5 from 7 reviews
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Description

Thai Turkey Lettuce Wraps are easy to make and a true crowd-pleaser. They're made with healthy ground turkey, pantry-staple Asian flavors, and drizzled with a creamy ginger tahini sauce.

Scale

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon neutral-flavored oil
  • 1/2 medium onion, minced
  • 1 carrot, julienned or grated
  • 1 red bell pepper, minced
  • 2 tablespoons minced ginger
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 lb. ground turkey
  • 1/4 cup sliced green onions
  • Bibb lettuce leaves
  • Optional toppings: sesame seeds. lime wedges, and thinly sliced red cabbage

Thai-Inspired Sauce

Creamy Ginger Tahini Sauce

  • 4 tablespoons tahini
  • 1 tablespoon each: lime juice and honey
  • 2 teaspoons grated ginger
  • 2 small garlic cloves, finely minced

Instructions

  1. Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan over medium-high heat. Add the onion, carrot, and bell pepper and cook for about 12 minutes, or until they are quite dark and become sweet smelling. Add the ginger and garlic and cook 1 minute more.
  2. While the veggies are caramelizing, mix the Thai-inspired sauce ingredients in a small bowl. In another small bowl, mix the creamy ginger tahini sauce ingredients with 3 tablespoons of water. Add more water if you want a thinner sauce.
  3. When the veggies are cooked, push them to the side of the pan and add the turkey. Let it cook until it is no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Break up any larger chunks with your wooden spoon then mix the turkey into the veggies. Add the Thai-inspired sauce and let it come to a boil. Stir in the green onions.
  4. Serve the Thai turkey on bibb lettuce leaves with the tahini sauce drizzled over the top and any or all of the optional toppings.

Thai ground turkey lettuce wraps with the title on top of the picture.