Thai Crispy Tofu Lettuce Wraps Recipe

The concept of using lettuce leaves as a wrapper for food has been part of various cuisines for centuries. The fresh crunchy lettuce paired with a flavorful filling makes for a delicious light meal that can be served as an appetizer, lunch, or dinner. 

Recipe developer Miriam Hahn brings us this recipe for Thai crispy tofu lettuce wraps and says, "My favorite thing about these lettuce wraps is how the crispy tofu absorbs all of the delicious flavors and delivers great texture when paired with a mix of cooked and raw vegetables. I like to serve these on summer nights when I want something simple and light." 

If you like Thai cuisine you'll love this quick and flavorful dish that can be made in 30 minutes. Read on to learn how to spice up your week with these Thai lettuce wraps.

To make this recipe, you'll need several things from the produce department and a variety of condiments for our delicious peanut sauce. Starting out in the produce department pick up garlic, ginger, Thai chile, mushrooms, red pepper, shredded carrots, butter lettuce, and extra firm tofu. "Sometimes Thai chiles can be hard to find so you can use a Fresno or serrano chile instead," Hahn shares. 

Then you'll need some sesame oil, soy sauce, maple syrup, cornstarch (or arrowroot powder), lime juice, peanut butter, rice vinegar, and garlic powder. "You can use any type of nut butter here and if you have a nut allergy, you can substitute sunflower seed butter," Hahn says.

You can also pick up sesame seeds and scallions to use as a nice but optional garnish. 

Go ahead and heat up the oven to 400 F. We're going to be baking our tofu to make it nice and crispy. You'll need to remove the extra water from the tofu so use a tofu press or make a DIY tofu press with a shallow bowl and a plate. Place your tofu in the shallow bowl and place the plate on top of the tofu. Place something heavy on top of the plate, and let it sit for 15 minutes. The excess water will collect in the shallow bowl.

Now it's time to prepare the tofu. Crumble the tofu into a large bowl. Add some of the sesame oil and the cornstarch. Stir to coat, then some soy sauce and maple syrup. Lay the crumbled tofu on a baking sheet and put it into the oven for 30 minutes. 

"Cooking the tofu in the oven will provide a crispy texture that you can't get by cooking it stovetop," Hahn remarks.

In this step, it's time to whip together the flavorful sauce. Grab a small bowl and add some sesame oil, the remaining soy sauce, the remaining maple syrup, a garlic clove, ginger, lime juice, peanut butter, rice vinegar, and some water. Stir with a whisk and set aside. 

"I love that I don't need to use a food processor or blender for the sauce. If the peanut butter is on the thick side versus the runny side, feel free to add in a little more water," Hahn explains.

For our seasoned veggies, add the remaining sesame oil to a large frying pan and bring the heat to medium. Add in the remaining garlic and diced chile pepper. Give that a couple of minutes in the pan and then add the mushrooms, red peppers, and garlic powder. Cook for about 15 minutes, stirring frequently. "You want the mushrooms to reduce quite a bit in size and the red pepper to be tender," Hahn explains.

By now the tofu should be nice and crispy. Add it to the frying pan with half of the peanut sauce. Stir to combine everything and we're ready to assemble our wraps by stuffing the lettuce cups with the tofu vegetable mixture, the shredded carrots, and a spoonful of the extra peanut sauce. 

"Sometimes I set up a lettuce wrap bar and let everyone assemble their own wraps with their choice of toppings," Hahn shares. The lettuce wraps pair well with a simple soup or this black bean salad. Hahn says the unassembled tofu mixture will last well for up to 5 days in the fridge if kept in a sealed container.