Pei Wei Our Way

If I had to choose a restaurant that I am almost in love with, it would have to be Pei Wei. Their orange chicken has been a favorite of mine for a good time, as have their delicious chicken lettuce wraps. My mouth is watering just thinking about it! Since we're no longer in the big city with a close proximity to such a restaurant, AND because I know how much groceries cost, I have a harder time justifying eating out than I may have before.

Not too long ago I had a hankering for some chicken lettuce wraps and decided to see if I could find the recipe online. I found one, but ended up tweaking it and have really enjoyed the final product. I made the wraps last night and after a pinch of this, and a smattering of that, we enjoyed a yummy dinner which also made the house smell like I was a chef fresh from China. Say that last part 3 times fast. ;)

For this recipe, I have used (ground) turkey, chicken, and beef, which have all turned out really well. Last night I made up a big batch of the stuffings along with a crock of white rice...leftovers of this kind are always a treat the next day! Below is the recipe I used last night and would say it could easily feed 4 not-too hungry people, or make an excellent (albeit, messy) appetizer.

Directions:
Cook 1 lb. ground meat in a large skillet. Once the meat is cooked through, add in 4 cloves of minced garlic and saute. Next, add 1 cup (about 8 stems of washed and chopped) green onions and saute for 1 minute. Add the *sauce to this mix and stir. Once the sauce is blended in, add 1 1/2 cups of chopped mushrooms and saute. Lastly, turn off the heat and add 1 cup of (broken) rice sticks. Allow the mix to cool a bit before serving in whole Romaine or Iceburg lettuce leaves.

*Sauce mixture:
1/4 cup of soy sauce
1/4 cup of rice wine, or rice vinegar
1 T. of sesame seeds
1 T. minced ginger root (I was fresh out of root so used 1 tsp. powdered ginger instead)
1 T. sugar

This is by no means an exact replication of the dish I love so well in the restaurant, but for homemade oriental food, it makes my taste buds sing!

**Side note: When Andrew and I were dating, his Mom would make Indonesian food from time to time. On several occasions I was invited over for Indonesian, and was at first a bit alarmed to see Andrew pouring some black, tar-like stuff onto his cooked white rice. BUT, then I tried it and joined the club. The tar stuff is called "Bango"; also know as Kecap Manis (Ketchup Mon-ees). It's very sweet soy product that is also gluten free. Give it a try next time you make white rice with your lettuce wraps!