I’ve been getting really sick of eating and cooking the same 5-10 meals over and over again, so I recently decided to try a few new recipes to change things up a bit. First up is the Vietnamese Lettuce Cups, featured in Nom Nom Paleo’s latest cookbook. I love ground meat dishes because they are so versatile. You can put them on lettuce, add it as a topping over rice, or even eat it on its own topped with an egg.

Don’t skip out on the pickled carrot strings because they really add a whole new dimension to this refreshing dish.  It, along with the diced apple, also gives it a different textural dimension. The mint and basil really adds a brightness to this dish too that makes it scream summer! Add more fish sauce than the recipe calls for if you want more umami and an extra punch in flavor.

My daughter and husband (two of the pickiest eaters I know) really loved this dish, and I hope you will too!

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Ingredients for Quick-pickled Carrot Strings:

1/4 cup apple juice
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
3 large carrots, julienned

Directions: Combine the first three ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Then submerge the julienned carrots into the mixture, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

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Now that we’ve gotten the carrot strings garnish out of the way, we can work on our actual lettuce cup filling… the ingredient list seems long all lumped together, so I’ve separated it out into sections based on when you put the ingredients in. I made these for my husband and in-laws, who do not like cilantro (much to my dismay!!  They must have that one cilantro tastebud), so I omitted those. One time I accidentally forgot to buy basil, and I only had mint on hand.. but it was still delicious!  So don’t feel like you have to have every single thing on this list, and don’t get too overwhelmed by the ingredients. It’s a versatile recipe!

Ingredients for Lettuce Cups:

1 tablespoon coconut oil (or fat of choice)
1 small shallot, minced (you can use 1/4 of an onion if you don’t have shallots)
Kosher salt

1 pound ground pork (or turkey)
1 tsp fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced

1 teaspoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 medium golden delicious apple, cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon minced fresh mint
2 tablespoons minced fresh basil

1 head butter lettuce, leaves separated
Sriracha (optional)

Directions: In a large skillet, melt oil over medium heat.  When heated, add the shallot and a pinch of salt. Saute about 3 minutes until translucent. Add the ground pork and cook until no longer pink. Add the ginger and garlic, and stir-fry for a few more minutes.  Season with fish sauce, lime juice, and pepper.

Remove from heat, add the apple and minced herbs.  Stir to combine.  Serve in individual lettuce leaves and garnish it with carrot strings and sriracha (if you like heat).

Adapted from: The cookbook, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans