PF Chang’s Lettuce Wraps

These PF Chang’s lettuce wraps can made at home for a fraction of the price of the restaurant. With ultra-tender chicken and the best savory sauce, these wraps are easy, flavorful, and way better than takeout.

Ingredients In PF Chang’s Lettuce Wraps

• Chicken – I always just use chicken breasts for this recipe. Some people like to use ground chicken but honestly, it’s not the best option for this recipe. Partially freeze the chicken first and it will be easier to get thin slices for velveting. Of course you can just throw the chicken straight in the pan and sauté it, but I’m telling you it is worth the extra step to velvet it first!
• Chicken/Veggie Filling – For the filling I use chicken, mushrooms, water chestnuts, cashews, garlic, and green onion. You can also add the little crispy rice noodles like PF Changs does at the end but sometimes they are hard to find so I just end up leaving them out most of the time.
• Lettuce Wrap Sauce – A mixture of teriyaki sauce, chili sauce, soy sauce, ginger, and red pepper flakes. You can also add a little hoisin sauce if you prefer. Using PF Chang’s brand teriyaki sauce gets you even closer to that restaurant flavor, use it if you can find it!
• Lettuce leaves – I always go for butter lettuce (varieties of butter lettuce include Boston and Bibb). You can also use iceberg or Romaine but in my experience they tend to break apart more easily and don’t have as good of flavor as butter lettuce.

How To Make P.F. Chang’s Lettuce Wraps

1. In a bowl, stir together the teriyaki sauce, sweet chili sauce, soy sauce, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the chicken broth, soy sauce, cornstarch, and oil until smooth. Add the sliced chicken and toss until evenly coated. Let it sit for about 15 to 20 minutes.

3. Bring a pot of water to a boil. Drain off the excess marinade, then add the chicken in batches. Cook just until it turns white, about 2 to 3 minutes.

4. Drain the chicken well, then give it a rough chop so the pieces are smaller and closer to that restaurant-style texture.

5. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic, water chestnuts, and mushrooms and cook for about 1 minute until just tender.

6. Add the chicken to the skillet along with about half of the sauce. Cook for a few minutes, stirring often, until everything is heated through and nicely coated.

7. Stir in the cashews and green onions and cook for another minute.

8. Warm the remaining sauce in a small saucepan. Divide into bowls and leave one plain, mix one with sriracha, and one with peanut butter. Spoon the chicken mixture into lettuce leaves and serve with dipping sauces.

What Kind of Lettuce is Best for Lettuce Wraps?

For lettuce wraps, you want something soft, flexible, and sturdy enough to hold the filling without falling apart. Butter lettuce is my go-to because it has naturally cup-shaped leaves that are tender but still strong enough to hold everything together. It also has a mild, almost sweet flavor that just tastes better that other kinds of lettuce. Bibb and Boston are both types of butter lettuce, and either one works great for lettuce wraps. Iceberg lettuce is another popular option and gives you that crisp, crunchy bite, but it can be a little harder to work with and tends to crack if you overfill it. Romaine works in a pinch and holds up well, but it’s more rigid and doesn’t wrap as easily. If I’m using Romaine I will eat it more like a taco instead of trying to roll it up.

Expert Tips

• Prep everything ahead: Once you start cooking, it goes fast. Have your sauce and ingredients ready to go.
• Make it low-sodium: Use low-sodium soy sauce, coconut aminos, or tamari to control salt levels. Teriyaki sauce can be salty, so check labels or make your own if needed.
• Gluten-free lettuce wraps: The lettuce is naturally gluten-free, just swap in gluten-free soy sauce or tamari and double-check your teriyaki sauce.
• Drain the chicken well after velveting: Too much water will thin out your sauce and keep it from coating properly.
• The 5-Minute Version (really): I like to cook up big batches of velveted chicken (no joke like 10 pounds at a time) then freeze it in individual bags. Then when I want to make these wraps, I literally just pull out a bag of velvet chicken and throw it in with the veggies and sauce. Lettuce wraps in 5-minutes.

Make It Kid Friendly

As a little added note, PF Chang’s lettuce wraps are not the most “kid-friendly” meal or easiest to hold together for smaller hands. If you have young ones like I do, lettuce wraps are pretty much impossible because little ones have a hard time keeping the lettuce wrap intact. To solve this problem, I cut up the lettuce placed it in a bowl, and put the filling over the top. Sometimes I cook up a little rice and add it to the bowl with the chicken mixture. They LOVE it!

Storing and Reheating

It is best to separate all the parts from each other. Place the chicken mixture in an airtight container and the bib lettuce in another one. This will help keep them both fresh and delicious when ready to reheat. Place the chicken mixture in a microwave to reheat or on the stovetop. Once warmed through, spoon the mixture into a lettuce cup and enjoy!

Frequently Asked Questions

More Great Copycat Recipes

They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. So here goes. Some more great imitation recipes from your favorite restaurants.

Dressings

Cilantro Lime Vinaigrette

Chicken

Orange Chicken

Main Dish

Honey Baked Ham

Pork

Cafe Rio Sweet Pork Recipe