Chinese Chicken Lettuce Wraps

To eat this Chinese style treat, spoon the chicken mixture in to a crisp lettuce leaf, fold and eat with you hands.  It is usually served as an appetizer, but we eat it for a light dinner. 

Cooking tip:  To save dish washing, I buy the cheapest paper plates I can find and place various chopped ingredients on each plate.  Double up on meats or heavy items.  Then just toss the plates when finished cooking.

   Chicken Mixture

2 large cloves garlic
1 quarter-size slice fresh ginger
1 8-oz can sliced bamboo shoots, drained
1 8-oz can water chestnuts, drained
5 green onions, chopped
 ¼ lb. mushrooms chopped
1 ½ pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in 2” chunks
4 tablespoons salad oil, split 2 T. & 2 T.
¼ to ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper, optional
1 teaspoon sesame oil
Cooking Sauce
2 teaspoons cornstarch
1 T. dry sherry
2 T. water
2 T. soy sauce
½ t. sugar

Hoisin Sauce for spreading
Chilled Romaine or Butter lettuce leaves, 
head lettuce is fine also

1. Insert metal blade in your food processor .  Mince garlic and ginger and set aside.
2. Place bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and onions in a work bowl.  Process until finely chopped. Set aside.
3. Chop mushrooms and set aside.
4. Chop raw chicken, ½ at a time, until finely chopped. 
5. Prepare cooking sauce.  Set aside.
6. Heat a wok or a 12” frying pan over high heat.
7. Add 2 T. of the cooking oil.
8. Add garlic, ginger and red pepper (optional) and stir.
9. Add chicken and stir fry until opaque (about 3 minutes) and set aside.
10. Using a paper towel and tongs, wipe the fry pan clean.
11. Add remaining 2 T. cooking oil to pan.
12. When oil is hot, add mushrooms, onions, water chestnuts and bamboo shoots and stir fry for 2 minutes.
13. Return the chicken to the pan.
14. Stir cooking sauce, pour in to the pan and cook stirring until sauce boils and thickens.
15. To eat, spread a little Hoisin sauce on a lettuce leaf.  Spoon on some of the chicken mixture, then wrap up and eat out of hand.