Fridge Dump Lettuce Wraps

Welcome welcome! 

You know that feeling when you get home late from a long day and just want something easy that doesn't make you feel gross, but you only have leftovers in the fridge?

That was me right before I decided to make this dish. I hesitate to say "create", because Lettuce Wraps have existed long before my birth, but I don't know that anyone has tried this combination. 

We also had tortillas, so at first, I wanted to make tortilla wraps. However, if you've ever read the nutrition facts on the back of a tortilla package, you'll see that they contain a shocking amount of carbs and calories! (More on that later...). 

At first, with the lettuce, I considered making a salad with just the lettuce, chicken, and maybe some corn. But with the addition of exhaustion at 10:00pm, that small meal just screamed 'large bowl of ice cream for dessert'.

Hungry and tired, I was very close to resigning to my bed sans dinner. But then, I remembered a meal I was too picky to try at a friend's house about 10 years ago. We ordered in; I ate plain jasmine rice and miso soup while she and the rest of her family ate various exotic mixes wrapped in lettuce...or maybe it was cabbage? Either way, that blurry image of delicious wrapped in crunchy, healthy, low calorie, green boats sounded lovely and filling. 

So, 10 years later.....

The Recipe: Fridge Dump Lettuce Wraps

• Four leaves of Romaine lettuce
• One cup of cooked Jasmine Rice
• Half an ear of cooked yellow sweet corn
• One cup of steamed green beans
• Half a breast of cooked chicken

The Process: 

• Put the rice in a plastic container
• Arrange the rice so that there is a column of space in the center
• Fill the column halfway with water
• Press a balled paper towel sheet on top of the rice cup
• Use sensor reheat on a microwave to heat the rice
• Put rice in a bowl
• Wrap the half ear of corn in a paper towel sheet
• Use sensor reheat on a microwave to heat the corn
• Use a steak knife to cut the corn off the cob and add it to the bowl of rice
• Wrap the half chicken breast in a paper towel sheet
• Slice it into smaller pieces and add it to the rice and corn
• Use sensor reheat on a microwave to heat the corn
• Place the green beans in a Magic Bullet cup with the steamer lid and a small amount of water
• Microwave for one minute
• Remove and loosen the lid slightly
• Microwave for one more minute
• Add the green beans to the rice, corn, and chicken
• Mix the green beans, rice, corn, and chicken
• Spoon the mixture into lettuce as desired
• Wrap lettuce around the mixture
• Enjoy!

The Calories:

Lettuce: 19 calories

Rice: 205 calories

Green Beans: 34 calories

Chicken: 123 calories

________________________

TOTAL: 381 calories 

For 381 calories, this is a lot of food, and a very well-balanced meal! I'm so glad I used lettuce instead of tortillas because it allowed me to have more of the mixture and still end up with a low calorie count. Each tortilla would be about 150 calories, and I made four lettuce wraps, so would have used four tortillas. That would add about 600 calories to the total, making the meal 981 calories.

What went right:

         I successfully used quite a few leftovers in the fridge and they actually tasted very good together. The meal was light and healthy, but filling. 

What went wrong: 

         Nothing, really. It would have been nice to have made it with fresh ingredients I suppose.

Were I to use fresh ingredients rather than leftovers, this would be the new Process:

• Boil 1-1.5 cups of water in a small pot.
• Put a small amount of water in the large Magic Bullet cup with the steamer top.
• Boil 3-4 cups of water in a large pot.
• Light a grill, or heat up a Panini/grill pan on the stove.
• In the small pot, cook your rice on low-medium heat until it is saturated and sticky.
• In the Magic Bullet cup, put desired amount of green beans.
• In the large pot, boil an ear of corn for about 10 minutes.
• On the grill or Panini/grill pan, cook your chicken. Time for each will differ based on your product.
• Follow leftover recipe from this point forward.

What would I do next time?: 

         I would try using some other ingredients...avocado would be awesome, and possibly some tomatoes or pico de gallo. It might also be fun to experiment with different rices and seasonal veggies. I know a lot of people would add sauces or dressings to this, and I suppose it would keep the mix together as more of a dip, but it would also add unnecessary calories and sodium. With sauteed vegetables or fried rice and tofu, I might try it with soy sauce, peanut sauce, or teriyaki sauce...but only a little bit!

Would I make this in college?:

         This is probably going to happen at some point in college. For some reason "fridge dump" feels like a very college event. 

Overall, a very satisfying meal and I can't wait to try more versions!