Firecracker Vegan Lettuce Wraps Recipe - Pinch of Yum
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Firecracker Vegan Lettuce Wraps

109 reviews / 4.8 average

HELLO YUM. Firecracker Lettuce Wraps that are happily vegan – with crispy tofu bits, saucy brown rice noodles, and a creamy sesame sauce.

Firecracker Lettuce Wraps – I see you with your browned crispy tofu bits, your sticky brown rice noodles, your delicate lettuce leaves, and your creamy umami sauce. I see you and I love you and I want you.

These lettuce wraps are a big deal, because a) they taste, obviously, aaaamazing, and b) they are lettuce wraps that know how to actually keep you full. That’s right. I said ACTUALLY KEEP YOU FULL. None of this two-tablespoons-of-ground-chicken-in-a-lettuce-leaf-counting-as-a-meal business. I LOVE lettuce wraps. I also love to be full after a meal, and sometimes it is hard to find a lettuce wrap that can deliver. Enter this delicious mashup.

Why it’s a mashup:

  • There are noodles.
  • But wait, seriously, NOODLES. Brown rice noodles. Inside the lettuce. Like… noodle stir fry meets lettuce wrap.
  • Also tofu, so this is vegan!
  • But you know you can use other protein, right? Can be vegan, doesn’t have to be vegan. For our traditionalists, ground chicken is a winner, too.
  • Everything in this lettuce wrap is drenched in my Favorite Of All Time sauce. From way back here.

Naturally I am a huge supporter of anything that involves wrapping up a essential noodle stir fry and delivering it straight from plate to hand to mouth. So yes, these are my new thing of the moment.

How To Make Our Vegan Lettuce Wraps (1 MIN):

Closeup of Vegan Lettuce Wraps.

Yeah. Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah.

Here’s what we’re working with: lettuce, tofu, sauce, noodles.

Individual ingredients for Vegan Lettuce Wraps.

Pause here to stand over the pan and eat several big forkfuls.

Fried tofu and brown rice noodles with sauce in pan.

And finally, your saucy masterpiece.

Closeup of Vegan Lettuce Wrap.

There is a 99% chance that you will end up with a firecracker sauce bomb all over your face / lap / fingers, but please, for the love, do not get all proper on me and start eating this with a fork. Grab a few napkins and a few friends who aren’t going to judge you for getting savage with it and just get in there. That’s the way to do it, pals.

Print
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Vegan Lettuce Wraps on table.

Firecracker Vegan Lettuce Wraps


  • Author: Lindsay
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 8 large lettuce wraps 1x

Description

HELLO YUM. Firecracker Lettuce Wraps that are happily vegan – with crispy tofu bits, saucy brown rice noodles, and a creamy sesame sauce.


Ingredients

Units Scale

For the Firecracker Sauce:

  • 1/2 cup peanut butter
  • 1/3 cup low sodium soy sauce
  • 1/3 cup sesame oil
  • 1/4 cup rice vinegar
  • 2 tablespoons chili paste (like sambal oelek) ++ for more firecrackery-ness
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • a small knob of fresh ginger, peeled
  • a clove of fresh garlic, peeled

For the Lettuce Wraps:

  • 1 block extra firm tofu (see notes)
  • 4 ounces brown rice noodles
  • 1 head butter lettuce for wrapping
  • 1/2 cup peanuts for serving
  • 1/2 cup cilantro for serving
  • 1 lime for serving

Instructions

  1. Noodle Prep: Soak your noodles in a bowl of lukewarm water for at least 30 minutes while prepping the rest of the recipe. You want the noodles to be soft and flexible.
  2. Sauce: Blend all the sauce ingredients together in a small blender or food processor until smooth and creamy.
  3. Tofu: Press the tofu with a few paper towels to get some of the moisture out. Cut the tofu into small pieces. Heat a little oil in a nonstick skillet. Add your tofu. Stir-fry until golden brown. I usually let it sauté for at least 15 minutes. Add about half of the sauce to the pan. Stir-fry for another 3-5 minutes. As the sauce browns, it will form small crispy pieces around the tofu. Yum! Transfer tofu to a bowl.
  4. Noodles: Drain and rinse your noodles. Add another swish of oil to the pan and plop the noodles in. Add about half of the remaining sauce. Stir fry for just a minute or two until coated. Add a splash of water if it’s too sticky. Remove from heat immediately and toss with the tofu.
  5. Lettuce Wrap It Up: Fill your butter lettuce leaves with the noodle/tofu mixture (it’s okay if it’s sticky – you’re just wrapping it up in lettuce). Top with peanuts, cilantro, lime, and more sauce. YUM YUM YUM!

Notes

Air Fryer Option: To get really crispy tofu, you could also consider air frying your tofu!

Protein Options: It’s super easy to swap out your protein here. My two favorites are tofu (as written) and ground chicken!

Soaking the Noodles: This is important. If you don’t soak the noodles long enough they will require more liquid in the pan to cook, which kind of makes them boil into a big glob. Edible? Yes. Awesome? Not really. Be sure to soak them until they are very, very soft – almost ready to eat soft.

  • Prep Time: 15 minutes
  • Cook Time: 20 minutes
  • Category: Dinner
  • Cuisine: Asian-Fusion

Keywords: lettuce wraps, vegan lettuce wraps, vegan recipe, tofu recipe


One More Thing!

This recipe is part of our collection of easy tofu recipes. Check it out!

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274 Comments

  1. Pinch of Yum Logo

    STOP with that sauce. OMG sounds amazing! I would most likely sub with chicken because I don’t think my husband would dig the tofu, but I’m loving everything about this recipe.

    1. Pinch of Yum Logo

      My husband used to be quite offended by tofu. But the man married a vegetarian so over the years he has warmed up to it…how? Well i would make something utterly delish (instert above recepe) and use chicken but crumble small amounts of tofu into it. Over time the tofu would increase and eventually it would be enough for him to notice. I would reply that I add tofu every time, that he loves the dish, and admit I added more this time.
      Now he eats the stuff straight up.

    2. Pinch of Yum Logo

      Try it!
      Also, get some vegan chicken nuggets and see if he likes them without you saying they aren’t chicken. Serve with his fav dunking sauce. You might be surprised!

    1. Pinch of Yum Logo

      Making this currently… my noodles say to boil for 5 min. Does soaking them replace that instruction or should I do both? Thanks

      1. Pinch of Yum Logo

        Hi, Robyn! It depends on the kind of noodles you ended up purchasing, but typically soaking your noodles for 30 minutes and then popping them in the pan (like at the end of this recipe) should cook them completely.

  2. Pinch of Yum Logo

    These TOTALLY reminded me of the P.F. Chang’s lettuce wraps or the lettuce wraps from California Pizza Kitchen for some reason! I love how colorful and flavorful the tofu and brown rice noodle filling appears. You can even toss some of it into a salad FULL of butter lettuce, but of course, it’s way more fun to get your hands messy with lettuce wraps!

  3. Pinch of Yum Logo

    Hi! This looks fantastic. Do you think almond butter would work in place of peanut butter?

  4. Pinch of Yum Logo

    This looks SOOOO YUM!! My kids would love this except how spicy is it as it’s written? Just wondering how much I should scale back the spicy stuff

  5. Pinch of Yum Logo

    I am also a huge fan of lettuce wraps…but the ones that fill you up 🙂 genius idea adding the brown rice noodles to this, this is on a my to-make list!!

  6. Pinch of Yum Logo

    Thank you so much for the vegan recipes and explaining how to veganize the non-vegan recipes! I am a long time fan and I am transitioning from vegetarian to vegan this year. I will be making this for dinner tonight!

  7. Pinch of Yum Logo

    I loved this! Made it last night and it was a big hit. So much flavor. Thank you for this recipe.

  8. Pinch of Yum Logo

    This recipe was absolutely delicious! I used ground chicken and regular rice noodles because I couldn’t find the brown rice ones and it was so good. Will definitely be making again. Thanks for another great recipe!

  9. Pinch of Yum Logo

    this looks easy and delicious! what butter would you suggest replacing the peanut butter in for? I am allergic to peanuts and walnuts so I haven’t tried any of your recipes with those nuts in them but really want to try this one. any suggestions?

    1. Pinch of Yum Logo

      Almond butter if you can tastes delicious! My son has a peanut and tree nut allergy. We sub sunflower butter and it works great.

  10. Pinch of Yum Logo

    I always love creative meals and this is a great example. The wraps look like they would be less dense than tacos but would still be very satisfying. Plus, the green contrasts well against the rest of the colors.

  11. Pinch of Yum Logo

    I made these last night for dinner! OMG delicious. My boys have requested these for after school snack today. The firecracker sauce is soooo good, I could eat it with a spoon. Thank you for a great recipe!

  12. Pinch of Yum Logo

    You’re right, this is filling. In a good kind of way. It’s also fun with all the garnishes. Not the prettiest dish, but boy, is it tasty. Thanks so much for this recipe!

  13. Pinch of Yum Logo

    Sounds and looks like a real winner. I know my other half will not do the tofu but maybe chicken.

  14. Pinch of Yum Logo

    Omg this sounds delicious!! How long will the sauce keep in the fridge? I would love to make a big batch and use it on different dishes.

  15. Pinch of Yum Logo

    Would this transfer well? Like to bring to a friend who had a baby? Would I bring her the whole tofu/sauce and letttuce separate? Thanks!