Minor Numbers: Ground Turkey Lettuce Wraps

Whenever I order Chinese food I love, love, love to get lettuce wraps as an appetizer! It seemed like a simple enough concept so I figured I would try making my own version. This recipe has quickly become popular with my family and friends so I thought it was about time to share it! I can't promise that it'll be better than P.F. Chang's but I can promise you that it'll be better on your wallet and your body without all the extra sodium. So in the end it's really a win-win right? Please just say yes for the sake of my feelings.

What you'll need:
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 head iceberg lettuce
1 red bell pepper, diced
1/2 cup water chestnuts, diced
1 shallot, diced
1 tbsp sesame oil
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground mustard
1 tbsp minced garlic
2-3 tbsp low sodium soy sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Here's how you make them:

1. On medium-high brown the meat and season it to taste with salt and pepper. Be careful with the salt because remember you'll be adding in the soy sauce later. I always recommend using low sodium soy sauce in any recipe because you can quickly lose control of the salt content with regular soy sauce. It's not only healthier for you to use low sodium but easier to keep the flavor in check. You can always add a little more salt at the end if you find the dish still needs some.

2. Dice up all the veggies and add the pepper and shallots to the pan. Don't add the water chestnuts just yet because I've found if you add them too early they won't stay as firm and crunchy.

3. Let the meat cook all the way through and allow the peppers and onion to soften.

4. Once the mixture is cooked through add in the sesame oil, spices, garlic, and water chestnuts.

5. Cook for another 1-2 minutes.

6. Add in the soy sauce. Here's where it depends on your taste level. I like to only put on a medium amount of soy sauce which is why I suggest using 2-3 tbsp which is just enough to coat the mixture but you can always use more or less. The same goes with the garlic. I'm a huge garlic fan so often times I'll even add an extra tbsp to give it an extra kick of garlic.

7. Peel apart the lettuce head into separate little cups. This is always tricky and I end up with quite a few pieces of lettuce that are torn! I'm not trying to impress anyone though so we just deal with the weirdly shaped lettuce cups.