Nothing against a turkey wrap, but my favorite type of wrap is a lettuce wrap. I always feel like I am eating so healthy when I order it in the Asian bistro (you know the one).After looking online at the stats, it turns out that while I feel I am eating well, that may not be entirely the case: one serving has 530 calories, 24 grams of fat, 2090 milligrams of sodium. On the bright side, it does have only 47 grams of carbohydrates, 8 grams of dietary fiber, and a whooping 32 grams of protein. It is not the worst meal you could have, but definitely not as health conscious as I once thought. It got me to thinking; how healthy are the baby bok choy wraps that I make at home? It turns out that they are a bit better for you than the restaurant version in that they have a bit less in the way of calories totaling 423,  one more gram of fat  with 25 grams, almost half the sodium with only 1157 milligrams of sodium. The carbs come in with less than have at 21 grams, but the same can be said for the dietary fiber with only 4 grams, and the protein is reduced by 3 grams with 29 grams.

So depending on the focus in your diet, you might choose either. What I really like about a homemade filling though is that it can be customized to your individual taste. I happen to think the filling I get at the Asian bistro is a bit on the sweet side, so my concoction is not so sweet but the umami is bumped up a bit–just the way I like it! In addition, I can source my own products which for me means using as much organic and fresh products as possible. In the recipe below, I believe the only item I could not find organic was the pepper and water chestnuts. Not bad, in the grand scheme of things. While the benefits above may be enough to convince you, there is one more thing that puts it over the top: how completely simple they are to prepare! Just take a look…

Baby Bok Choy Wraps

INGREDIENTS

• 2 slices of bacon, diced small
• 1 tablespoon of garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon of ginger, minced
• 377 grams (13.3oz) of ground chicken
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 shallot, minced
• 10 cremini mushrooms, minced
• 1 can of sliced water chestnuts, minced
• 2 small carrots, minced
• knob of ghee
• 1 teaspoon roasted sesame oil
• 1/2 teaspoon hot oil
• 1 tablespoon oyster sauce
• salt & pepper to taste (again)
• 2 bunches of baby bok choy (or lettuce cups)

MISE EN PLACE

1. Dice the bacon.
2. Mince the shallot, mushrooms, water chestnuts, and carrots.
3. Make sure the salt, pepper, sesame oil, hot oil, and oyster sauce are within reach.
4. Wash and trim off ends of baby bok choy.

STEP ONE
Cook diced bacon until almost crisp over medium heat in a large fry pan. Add garlic and ginger. Cook until tender. Remove from pan with slotted spoon; leaving bacon drippings.

STEP TWO
Cook ground chicken over medium heat, breaking up into small pieces. Season with salt and pepper. Once cooked through, re-add bacon mixture and cook for a minute or two. Remove from pan with slotted spoon.

STEP THREE
To the same large fry pan, add ghee, sesame oil, and hot oil along with shallot, mushrooms, water chestnuts, and carrots. Add a pinch of salt and pepper. Cook until tender; about two minutes. Re-add chicken/bacon mixture. Stir. Add oyster sauce. Stir to integrate. Taste for seasoning; adding salt and pepper if necessary.

STEP FOUR
Spoon chicken mixture onto scoop portion of baby bok choy and serve!

COOK’S NOTES
Alternatively, you could use the baby bok choy as little dippers and forgo plates! Or if you really want, you could use lettuce cups~