Dive In: Turkey Sweet Potato Lettuce Wraps
I absolutely FROTH over this recipe.
Just wanted to get you guys excited. But honestly, this dish is my go-to for meal prepping, for a quick dinner, for delicious leftovers, and for any time I’m craving a lean, veggie and protein-filled meal…with a teeny bit of cheese.
If you haven’t already hopped on the turkey bandwagon, then trust me and make that leap tomorrow. Turkey is a lean, mean, healthy protein, and you can substitute ground turkey for ground chicken for most recipes and have it still taste delicious. Turkey meatballs, turkey burgers, turkey breasts, or just simply ground turkey mixed with your favourite pasta, veggies, rice, etc.
The best part of my dish: it’s VERSATILE! There is no right or wrong way to make it. You can add different vegetables, more of one, less of another, substitute softer mushrooms instead of crunchy peppers (or capsicum for you Aussies). You can add chili flakes and chili oil, or go the coconut oil route. You can make this dish in a skillet and eat it as is, OR dish it into iceberg lettuce cups for a crunchy bonus. I opt for the lettuce every time, as I love a good crunch.
No joke: I used to put potato chips inside my sandwiches as a kid. Nothing like a
crispy Cheetoh to complement my bologna and mayo.
Without further ado – here’s how to make one of my favourite, most flavourful go-to meals.
WHAT DO I NEED?
- 1lb (500g) ground turkey
- 1 sweet potato
- 1-2 red or yellow bell peppers/capsicum
- 1 yellow onion
- 1 head of iceberg lettuce
- 2-3 cloves of garlic
- Shredded mozzarella
- Fresh parsley
- Olive oil
- Salt, pepper
- Guilty extras (chili flakes, cayenne, whatever flavour you love!)
WHAT DO I DO?
- Preheat the oven to 400F/200C.
- Dice the peppers and onion, and place into a bowl. I use two full peppers and half an onion, so feel free to adjust accordingly.
- Dice the sweet potato and keep separate. I use anywhere from ¾ to one full sweet potato.
- Chop the garlic cloves into minced pieces.
- Place a large skillet over medium heat, warming the olive oil and minced garlic.
- Once warm, add the ground turkey. Add salt and pepper. Stir until it has lightly browned. No worries if there is still some pink – it will continue to cook!
- Add the peppers and onion. Stir occasionally and wait for the veggies to soften.
- Add the sweet potato, along with a bit more salt and pepper to taste. By separating the sweet potato from the other veggies, you will get a delicious flavour of onion, garlic and pepper marinating with the turkey juice. Mmmm!
- Once the sweet potato has softened (stir stir stir!), remove the skillet from the heat.
- Sprinkle a light layer of mozzarella cheese on top of the skillet.
- Place the skillet into the oven, until the cheese has melted evenly.
- Remove the skillet, let it cool for 2-3 minutes.
- Top with fresh parsley, as well as any extra chili flakes or cayenne.
- ENJOY!
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE LETTUCE WRAPS?
Great question – this is the point where the dish is so versatile, you can eat it as, or scoop into lettuce cups.
- Peel and discard wilted outer leaves of the head of iceberg lettuce.
- To the best of your abilities, cut out the core of the lettuce head.
- Put the head of lettuce in a large bowl, cored side up, and rinse with water.
- Carefully separate the leaves and pat dry.
- If need be, trim the leaves to shape into a cup. No lettuce wrap is perfect, so as long as it is strong enough to hold a heart scoop of turkey heaven, you’re fine.
- Keep any shapeless lettuce pieces – you can always convert into a salad or mix into the sweet potato/turkey leftovers!
- Fill the lettuce cup halfway with the sweet potato/turkey filling.
- Top with more fresh parsley.
- Dive in and enjoy!
Plan on making this dish? I want to see your variations! Snap a pic and tag @thelifecoast on Instagram.