Happy Chinese New Year: Lettuce Wraps. DEGF

Chinese New Year: Lettuce Wraps (Dairy. Egg. Gluten. Free.)

© Life Diet Health 2015

It’s the start of the Chinese New Year celebrations. I thought it was the year of the Goat but it appears that “Yang” translates as Goat, Sheep or Ram so 2015 can be any of those years! 🙂 If you don’t know the story of how the Chinese New Years were named and ranked, look up the great swimming race as the story is worth reading (here’s a simple version with pictures)! This Chinese style recipe I’ve created as a lettuce wrap but my husband made it into a tortilla roll and my son ate it on its own without the lettuce! If you’re celebrating, Happy New Year! 🙂

Gather

• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 200g brown rice
• 500ml boiling water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ——————
• 800g (2 large) aubergine sliced
• Salt
• 15g coconut oil
• 2 teaspoons apple cyder vinegar
• 50ml water
• 350g mushrooms chopped
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 50g leek sliced
• 10g fresh ginger
• 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic granules
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 100g red pepper diced
• coconut oil for frying
• 40g cashews quartered
• 40g sesame seeds
• Large lettuce leaves for serving

Prepare

1. Heat the teaspoon of oil in a saucepan and add the rice. Coat the rice in oil and cook for 30 seconds. Carefully add the water (it will spit a bit) then add the salt, stir and bring to the boil. Turn the heat down, cover and leave for 40 minutes.
2. Spread the aubergine out and sprinkle salt over them. Leave for ten minutes, pat the moisture off with kitchen towel, turn over and repeat.
   

   © Life Diet Health 2015
3. Dice the aubergine and put in a large pan with 15g oil on a low heat. Stir to cover in oil and then put the lid on the pan for five minutes.
4. Add the vinegar to the water then add to the aubergine. Stir and cover for two minutes.
5. Add the mushrooms, stir, cover and cook for two more minutes.
6. Add the onion and leek and stir. Cover and cook for five minutes.
7. Put the piece of ginger in the centre of the vegetables, sprinkle the garlic and cinnamon over and cover for five more minutes.
8. Stir the vegetables, add the red pepper, cover and turn the heat off.
9. Melt a small amount of coconut oil and lightly fry the cashews until turning golden. Add the sesame seeds and cook for thirty seconds before turning off the heat (the sesame seeds will start popping and jumping out of the pan if you leave them longer!).
10. Get a lettuce leaf, add a spoonful of rice and a couple of spoonfuls of vegetables then sprinkle with the nuts and sesame. Wrap the lettuce around the filling and munch!
11. Enjoy!

Serve & Store

• Serve as part of Chinese New Year celebrations 🙂
• Serve without the lettuce for a tasty plated meal.
• Wrap everything up in a flat tortilla or Chinese pancakes.
• Use rice wrappers and make spring rolls by rolling the filling up and frying.
• Store the vegetables covered in the fridge for up to three days. NOTE: rice should be cooled as quickly as possible if you are not eating it all and stored in the fridge as soon as it is cooled. Rice should only be stored for a day and only reheated once. Add water to the rice before heating.

© Life Diet Health 2015

© Life Diet Health 2015

© Life Diet Health 2015