This is my favourite way to eat – light, crunchy with lots of flavour! These easy chicken san choy bow (lettuce wraps) can be whipped up in 20 minutes, and will be a firm family favourite.
If you’re looking for a dinner that’s fast, flavour-packed, and just a little bit fun — this is it. Chicken san choy bow is one of those magical meals that feels fancy but is secretly super simple. It comes together in one pan, in under 20 minutes, and the end result is a sticky, savoury filling you scoop into crisp lettuce cups and top with crunchy peanuts, fresh spring onions, and a little chilli if you like a kick.
It’s the kind of meal that gets people around the table, building their own bites and going back for seconds. Bonus: it’s fresh, light, and a total crowd-pleaser — even for the fussy eaters.
🥬 Why you’ll love this recipe
✔️ Quick and fuss-free – On the table in under 20 minutes. Perfect for busy weeknights!
✔️ One pan magic – Less mess, less washing up, more time to relax.
✔️ Big on flavour – Sweet, salty, sticky, and totally satisfying.
✔️ Light but filling – The lettuce cups keep it fresh and crunchy, but it still feels like a proper meal.
✔️ Hands-on fun – Great for families, dinner parties, or fussy eaters — everyone builds their own!
🥬 How to make chicken san choy bow
- Sizzle the chicken
Pop a non-stick frying pan on medium-high heat and add your chicken mince. Cook for 3–4 minutes, breaking it up with a spoon, until it’s golden and starting to brown nicely. No need to be fancy here — just get it sizzling!
- Make it sticky and delicious
Now for the flavour! Add the soy sauce, brown sugar, kecap manis, and a drizzle of sesame oil. Stir it all together so the sauce coats every little bit of chicken. Keep it cooking for another couple of minutes until it starts to turn glossy and sticky. Yum. Remove from the heat and let it rest while you prep the toppings.
- Build your lettuce cup station
Grab your crisp lettuce leaves and lay them out like little bowls. Pop everything on the table — the chicken, spring onions, chilli, and crushed peanuts — and let everyone build their own. It’s DIY dinner, but make it tasty.
- Load, top, crunch!
Spoon the sticky chicken into the lettuce cups, sprinkle over spring onions, a few chilli slices (if you like a kick), and finish with a handful of crunchy peanuts. Then take a bite — messy, crunchy perfection.
Easy chicken san choy bow
- Prep Time: 5
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
500g chicken mince
2 tbs light soy sauce
2 tbs kecap manis
2 tbs brown sugar
1 tbs sesame oil
2 baby cos lettuce leaf cups
1 fresh red chilli, sliced thinly
2 spring onions, sliced thinly
1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts
Instructions
- In a non-stick pan over medium to high heat, cook the chicken mince, for 3-4 minutes, until brown.
- Add the soy sauce, brown sugar, kecap manis, and sesame oil, and stir-fry until the sauce is distributed evenly, and the chicken is slightly sticky. Remove from the heat.
- To serve, place the chicken, lettuce cups, spring onions, chilli and peanut onto the table, and let people spoon the chicken mixture into the lettuce cups, and top with spring onions, chilli and peanuts.
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