Thai Pork Lettuce Cups

I got a giant portion of lean pork mince from Morrison’s with my meat vouchers so I split it into three. Now usually I make my Sweet Chilli Chorizo Burgers or some meatballs with pork mince but I really wanted to make something with it last night that didn’t require any fuss (i.e blending or getting my hands dirty). I’ve had lettuce cups a few times in both Thai and Korean restaurants so I thought why not try and recreate them at home myself!

The result was amazing. My hubbie said it was his favourite dish I had ever made (and considering I was asking him to wrap meat in lettuce I did not expect this!!). It is so, so quick to make and the flavours are incredible, so fresh and zingy. The lettuce cups are a great way to add bulk to a meal for 0 points and really add to the freshness of the dish.

You could have it without rice (and it would make a great starter) but as we were having it as an evening meal I used microwaveable rice (as I was in major rush) and to be honest I would use it again as it was lovely and fluffy and so quick!! The recipe include points for a pack of Morrison’s microwaveable jasmine rice between the two of us but if you want to cook your own you will need 100g of dry rice.

POINTS AND NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION

Serves 2 – per serving = 10 points or 471 cals, 11.2g fat, 56.4g carbs, 38.1g protein

Ingredients

Large thumb sized piece of ginger, peeled and grated

2 garlic cloves, grated

1 chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

½ tbsp light brown sugar

300g extra lean pork mince (5% fat)

1 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp white wine vinegar

4 tbsp dark soy sauce

Juice of 2 limes

2 tbsp oyster sauce

1 packet of jasmine or basmati microwave rice

5 spring onions, finely sliced

Large handful of fresh coriander, roughly chopped

1 large iceberg lettuce

Method

1. Spray a large frying pan with low-calorie cooking spray, pop on the heat and add the ginger, garlic and chilli, adding a little water if the pan is dry. Fry over a medium heat for a couple of minutes and then add the sugar.
2. Add the pork mince and break up with a wooden spoon. Cook for 5 minutes. Next add the fish sauce, white wine vinegar, soy sauce, lime juice and oyster sauce and simmer for another 5 minutes or until the mince is cooked through and the sauce has gone a little sticky.
3. Pop the rice in the microwave and cook according to the packet instructions.
4. Add the spring onion and coriander to the mince, stir through and leave to simmer for another minute.
5. Slice the ‘core’ off the bottom of the lettuce and begin to peel away the lettuce leaves, creating large lettuce cups. Rinse and pat dry.
6. Serve by loading the rice and mince inside a lettuce cup, wrap and crunch away!