My Thai Hubby’s grandma did all the cooking at his house growing up. Most of her meals were what my Thai Hubby calls, country-style Thai food, which means simple, homey Thai food.
Whenever they wanted eat Issan food, which is a type of Thai food that is super spicy, and jam-packed with a million amazing flavors, they would go out to a local restaurant to eat it since his grandma didn’t make that kind of Thai food. Issan-style Thai food was always a special treat for him.
Then my Thai Hubby married me, an American girl who loves Issan food, and decided to learn how to make it.
It’s still a special treat, but instead of eating out with his grandma in Thailand, now we can enjoy it in Austin on our balcony in the fading sunlight with our kiddos laughing and being silly at the table.
My love of Issan food lead to me to learn how to make my favorite Issan dish at home, larb. I love how all the flavors meld together so well: zesty lime, roasted rice powder, spicy Thai chili powder, crisp shallots and refreshing mint.
I already have a recipe for larb on my blog, which I love to make too. But my Thai Hubby loves meatballs, and gave me the idea to make Thai Laarb Meatballs and put them in lettuce wraps. He is brilliant! One of the many reasons I love him.
These are full of flavor, and simple to make! I use the broiling method that I do to make my Thai Basil Meatballs because it’s super fast and they come out crispy on top, like meatballs that are sold in Thailand.
I hope you savor them as much as we do, and feel free to share a pic on Instagram and tag us to show us your amazing Thai Larb Meatball Lettuce Wraps!
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Thai Laarb Meatball Lettuce Wraps Recipe
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 3-4 1x
Description
Thai Larb Meatball Lettuce Wraps are a flavor-packed dish easy to make for a weeknight dinner if you are in the mood for some Thai Issan homemade food!
Ingredients
- 1 cup cilantro coarsely chopped
- 1 cup green onion, cut into 1 inch-ish pieces
- 1/2 cup mint leaves
- 1 shallot, coarsely chopped
- 1/3 cup lime juice
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp roasted rice powder
- 1/2-1 tsp roasted Thai chili flakes, to taste
- 1 tbsp tapioca flour
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1.25 lb ground turkey or ground beef or any ground meat you love
- Lettuce of your choice, I love bib lettuce!
Instructions
- Add the cilantro, green onions, mint leaves, and shallot to a food processor.
- Process until finely chopped. You don’t want big chunks of the herbs or cilantro stems in your meatballs, so once it looks good to you, add to a mixing bowl.
- Add in the lime juice, fish sauce, roasted rice powder, chili flakes, tapioca flour, panko bread crumbs and ground meat.
- Combine until just mixed.
- Form into meatballs and place on a large baking sheet, or two cookie sheets.
- Broil for 15 minutes, or until crispy looking on top and cooked through.
- Eat with jasmine rice, and lettuce and enjoy!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
Want to pin in it on Pinterest? Here is a pin for you!
Thai Larb Meatball Lettuce Wraps Recipe of your hubby’s grandma seems good. Actually I got a doubt. Can I use chicken or pork instead of beef? I prefer chicken rather than any other meats and pork is only a second option. If so what are the changes I have to make in the ingredients and making? I am eagerly waiting for your reply to try larb meatball Lettuce. I am actually excited to try it.
Hi Julia! So glad you are excited to try this recipe! Feel free to use ground chicken or beef. It might be better to use beef, since this recipe works better with meat that is not lean. So just sub beef for pork and keep the rest of the recipe the same. Enjoy! 🙂
Great Recipe, Thanks for sharing 🙂
So glad you enjoyed it Vivian! 🙂