Ditch The Bowl And Serve Chili Beef In Lettuce Wraps Like Gordon Ramsay
Chili beef doesn't need to be served in a bowl over rice. There are a few different ways to serve it. But if you want to change things up and impress your hungry eaters, grab a page out of Gordon Ramsay's playbook and use a leafy green. In fact, ditch the bowl altogether and instead transform this classic dish into a lettuce wrap. Per his Youtube channel, Ramsay's chili beef resembles a filling similar to what you would add to a taco, only with some Asian-inspired flavors and aromas we know and love.
The outcome is similar to Vietnamese style pork lettuce wraps, which taste lovely and light. The secret to this is in the recipe having no carbs, and also having a relatively dry and fragrantly spiced filling.
Ramsay uses ingredients like minced beef and pork, along with sesame oil, chopped garlic, ginger, brown sugar, lime, and chilis to create an intensely flavorful hearty filling that has all the feels and sensations for your tongue. To keep the meaty concoction crunchy, he drains the oil. But before you worry it might be too dry, don't, because the "Hell's Kitchen" chef crafts a sweet, crunchy, savory, and fiery dressing to drizzle over the meaty base once it has been layered onto the green lettuce leaves that cradle it.
What type of lettuce?
Those crispy lettuce leaves not only add a refreshing texture to this meaty concoction, they enhance the overall eating experience. Not to point out the obvious, but using lettuce leaves to serve your beef chili is not only a creative presentation twist, it will save on the clean-up. But that's not the only bonus by switching things up with this dish. If you have grain-free eaters, the lettuce leaves allow them to enjoy it as well.
If you are wondering what type of lettuce to use to serve your chili beef, Ramsay recommends crisp baby gem, which is a specialty romaine, because it is "durable" and "strong." But if you can't find any heads of baby gem at your grocery store, romaine hearts or Boston bib can work in a pinch. You could also experiment with red cabbage leaves if you want a burst of color and a truly substantial leaf with a peppery bite. However, if green leaf or butterhead lettuce are all you can find or have in your fridge, those will work too, just bear in mind that they're not as robust.