Thai Ground Turkey Wraps

Life never seems to slow down and it seems the busier I get the less time I have to make the food I want sometimes (hence the long breaks between posts). I struggle, as I'm sure many of you do, with wanting to make healthy food me and my family enjoy, having the time to prepare it and the actual desire.  Let's face it, there's just those days when ramen or boxed mac and cheese will grace our table. But I believe dinner is a worthy fight! It's worth trying to get your kids to eat that green veggie just one more time, it's worth putting forth an effort to make something healthy when you may not want to.  So some of my go-to dinners lately are some of the most simple, quick and healthy that I can find.

These Thai wraps totally fit the bill.  They are my current favorite.  I already love Thai flavors, but something so quick to throw together that's satisfying and light on the calories, now that's a winner in my book.  I loved that most everything in this dish was fresh.  The herbs make a huge difference so don't skip them!  I used nappa cabbage for the shell but you could also use another lettuce, like butter lettuce, if you prefer. The only sauce in this dish is the sauce on the turkey, which is how I prefer it.  I like the contrast of the fresh herbs and cabbage to the warm saltiness of the meat.  But, if you feel like you need something more saucy on top, you could add a little hoisin, sweet chili sauce or even more sriracha.


Thai Ground Turkey Wraps
1 lb. ground turkey
2 Tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. fresh grated ginger
pale section of lemongrass finely chopped (or 1 drop lemongrass essential oil)
1 jalapeno, finely diced
juice of 1 lime
2 Tbsp. fish sauce
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. Sriracha
1/3 cup chopped chilantro
1/3 chopped fresh basil
1/3 cup chopped fresh mint
3 green onions, chopped
1/4 small head of red cabbage, thinly sliced
Nappa cabbage leaves, whole, for serving

Optional garnishes:
chopped peanuts
sweet chili sauce
hoisin sauce

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.  Add garlic, ginger,  and lemongrass and saute about 60 seconds, until fragrant. Add ground turkey and cook until no longer pink. If using lemongrass oil instead of lemongrass, add at this point, after turkey is cooked.  Be careful not to add too much or it will be overpowering.  You may want to dip a toothpick into the bottle then swirl it in the meat.

In a small bowl, stir together lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar and Sriracha.  Pour over cooked ground turkey, toss in the chopped jalapeno, stir to evenly distribute sauce and let sit 5 minutes.

Remove meat from heat and toss in fresh herbs and red cabbage.  Scoop onto nappa cabbage leaves, top with green onions and other garnishes as desired.