Gochujang Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps with Pickled Asian Pear Slaw

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These gochujang ground beef lettuce wraps are an easy dinner that’s more than a little exciting than your usual ground beef sitch. Everything comes together in just 25 minutes with crunchy Asian pear slaw, rice, avocado and creamy gochujang aioli drizzled on top. It’s a light, Korean-inspired recipe that’s still filling and super fun for a busy weeknight.

There’s something so refreshing about a lettuce wrap.

These in particular are light and fresh but also filling and flavorful. The perfect blend of seasoned meat, fluffy rice, punchy slaw and creamy sauce.

The through-line here is the Korean flavors – gochujang, ginger, garlic, pear. Did you know that pear is used quite often in Korean cooking? For example, pear is used in Korean BBQ marinades to add sweetness and help tenderize the meat. If you haven’t tried my Korean shredded beef yet, I use this method in that recipe.

For THIS recipe, the Asian pear shows up in our slaw. Asian pear is a little crispier and less sweet than a conventional pear, with a texture similar to jicama. It is the perfect crunchy, juicy sweet topping for our gochujang beef. And then don’t forget a big drizzle of gochujang aioli (sounds fancy, but it’s just gochujang sauce, garlic, lime, and mayo).

Oh, and a note on gochujang. This might sound like a fancy, foreign ingredient, but you can find it at almost any regular grocery store in the international foods aisle. If not, find it at the nearest Asian market.

This is a dinner my whole family LOVES! I serve it to my girls rice bowl style instead of a lettuce wrap, which you are welcome to do. Penelope especially loves the Asian pear slaw. Enjoy!

What Ingredients You’ll Need to Make Korean Beef Lettuce Wraps:

• Protein: I use 90/10 ground beef. Ground turkey, ground chicken or lean ground pork would also work well.
• Gochujang sauce: Gochujang is a fermented red chili paste with sweet, savory and spicy flavor. For this recipe, we’re using gochujang sauce, a Korean condiment made with diluted gochujang paste and additional ingredients like sesame oil, vinegar and sweeteners. Make sure you grab sauce rather than paste since they aren’t interchangeable 1:1.
• Aromatics: You can’t beat fresh garlic and ginger. I’ve been loving the refrigerated garlic paste and ginger paste you can find in the produce section. They blend seamlessly into the beef and are SUCH a clutch shortcut.
• Caramelization ingredients: Brown sugar adds a little sweetness to balance the spice and helps the beef caramelize. And then I prefer low-sodium soy sauce so you can better control the saltiness, but coconut aminos can be used as a substitute, especially if you follow a gluten-free diet.
• Slaw: Asian pear, shredded carrots and lots of fresh herbs! I use mint, green onions and Thai basil, use all three if you can! The slaw is ‘dressed’ with a splash of seasoned rice vinegar and pinches of salt and sugar.
• Aioli: Mayo, gochujang sauce, fresh garlic and lime juice make the creamy drizzle that goes over everything.
• Lettuce: I love butter lettuce because the leaves are soft, flexible and naturally cup-shaped for holding all the fillings. Romaine or iceberg lettuce would work too if that’s what you have.
• Grain of choice: I like jasmine rice, but you could also use short-grain white rice, brown rice, quinoa or no grain at all!
• Optional toppings: Crushed peanuts, crispy shallots or wonton strips are all yummy ways to add a little extra crunch, which I highly recommend.

How to Make Gochujang Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps:

In a small bowl, stir together the mayo, gochujang sauce, minced garlic and lime juice until smooth. In a medium bowl, toss the shredded carrots, julienned Asian pear and fresh herbs with the seasoned rice vinegar, sugar and salt until everything is evenly coated.

Heat the avocado oil in a large skillet over medium heat, then add the ground beef and cook for about 5 mins, breaking it up as it browns. Drain any excess grease if needed. Stir in the gochujang sauce, garlic, ginger and brown sugar and cook for about 30 seconds, until fragrant.

Stir in the soy sauce, then let the beef cook undisturbed for 4-5 minutes, until the sauce thickens and beef caramelizes and crisps on the bottom.

Cook your rice or grain of choice, if using. Fill the lettuce leaves with rice, gochujang beef, Asian pear slaw and avocado, then finish with a generous drizzle of gochujang aioli. Sprinkle crushed peanuts, crispy shallots or wonton strips on top if ya want!

Truly cannot get enough of this one.

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Gochujang Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps with Asian Pear Slaw

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• Author: Erica Baty
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 15 minutes
• Total Time: 25 minutes
• Yield: 12 lettuce wraps, 4 servings
• Category: Beef
• Method: Assemble, Stovetop
• Cuisine: Korean
• Diet: Dairy-Free

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Description

Fresh, crunchy and packed with Korean-inspired flavor, these gochujang beef lettuce wraps have savory ground beef, Asian pear slaw, rice and the easiest creamy gochujang aioli.

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Ingredients

Gochujang Ground Beef

• ½ tablespoon avocado oil
• 1 lb lean ground beef (I use 90/10)
• 1–2 tablespoons gochujang sauce (not paste)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced or 1 tablespoon garlic paste
• 1-inch knob ginger, grated or 1 tablespoon ginger paste
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce or coconut aminos

Pickled Pear Slaw

• 1 cup shredded carrots
• 1 Asian pear, cut into matchsticks
• 1 cup fresh herbs – mint, green onions, thai basil (any or all, but I recommend all)
• 2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
• pinches of sugar and salt

Gochujang Aioli

• ¼ cup mayo
• 1 tablespoon gochujang sauce
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1 teaspoon lime juice

Assembly

• 12 large butter lettuce leaves (you could also use romaine or iceberg)
• 1–2 small avocados, cubed
• rice, quinoa, or grain of choice, optional
• peanuts, crispy shallots or wonton strips, optional

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Instructions

1. Gochujang Ground Beef: In a large skillet, heat avocado oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the ground beef, breaking it up until browned and cooked through, about five minutes. Drain, if needed. I use really lean beef so I usually just use a paper towel to pat away any excess grease/moisture instead of a full drain (one less dirty dish, yay!)
2. To the cooked ground beef, add 1-2 tablespoons gochujang sauce (depending on your desired heat level), 1 tablespoons garlic paste, 1 tablespoon ginger paste and 2 tablespoons brown sugar. Stir until the garlic and ginger are fragrant, 30 seconds. Stir in ¼ cup low-sodium soy sauce and then let the beef simmer/cook for 4-5 minutes, undisturbed, until it is thickened, caramelized and crispy on the bottom.
3. Pickled Pear Slaw: In a medium bowl, combine 1 cup shredded carrots, 1 julienned Asian pear, 1 cup fresh herbs, 2 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar and big pinches of sugar and salt, tossing until everything is evenly coated.
4. Gochujang Aioli: In a small bowl, stir together ¼ cup mayo, 1 tablespoon gochujang sauce, 1 clove grated garlic (I use a microplane), and 1 tablespoon lime juice.
5. Assembly: Cook rice or grain of choice, if using. I love jasmine rice. Fill each butter lettuce leaf with a couple tablespoons of rice, several tablespoons of beef, some pear slaw, cubed avocado and a generous drizzle of gochujang aioli. Garnish with crushed peanuts or crispy shallots, if ya want!I could legit eat ten of these.

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Notes

I am generally a garlic purist (no jarred garlic for me, thanks). BUT, guys, I’ve honestly been loving the fresh garlic paste and fresh ginger paste you can find in the produce section (it’s usually by the little plastic containers of fresh herbs). It has great flavor, blends seamlessly into sauces and dressings and is SUCH a clutch shortcut when you don’t want to peel, grate or mince garlic/ginger.

Refer to the above blog post for ingredient information, step-by-step instructions, variation ideas and answers to frequently asked questions.

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Nutrition

• Serving Size: 3 lettuce wraps (without rice or optional toppings)
• Calories: 403
• Sugar: 12.9 g
• Sodium: 764.7 mg
• Fat: 21.8 g
• Carbohydrates: 26.6 g
• Fiber: 5.3 g
• Protein: 25.1 g
• Cholesterol: 78.7 mg

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