Cilantro-Mint Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Name: Cilantro-Mint Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 40 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: Fine sea salt; 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 8 ounces each); 2 loosely packed cups mint leaves; 1 loosely packed cup cilantro leaves and tender stems; 3 to 5 Thai green chiles, stemmed; 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 large lemon); 2 tablespoons full-fat Greek yogurt; 2 teaspoons cumin seeds or 1 teaspoon ground cumin; 1 teaspoon sugar; 2 garlic cloves (optional); 1/2 head lettuce, leaves separated

By Zainab Shah

Published May 23, 2025

Cilantro-Mint Chicken Lettuce Wraps — Ryan Liebe for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Barrett Washburne.

Total Time: 45 minutes
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes
Rating: 4(57)
Comments: Read comments

A Desi cilantro-mint chutney adds verdant, fiery flavors to tender shredded chicken in these herbaceous, tangy lettuce cups. The heat from the green chiles, warmth from the cumin and cooling sourness from lemon juice and Greek yogurt are stellar supporting acts for the otherwise everyday chicken breast, creating a chicken salad of sorts. Make the green chutney in advance and use any extra as an accent for other meals; it’s especially good with samosas, kebabs, fritters, on sandwiches, in yogurt and with any meal that includes rice and curry. Any leftover chicken salad is excellent for sandwiches or on its own.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

Fine sea salt
2boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 8 ounces each)
2loosely packed cups mint leaves
1loosely packed cup cilantro leaves and tender stems
3 to 5Thai green chiles, stemmed
2tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice (from 1 large lemon)
2tablespoons full-fat Greek yogurt
2teaspoons cumin seeds or 1 teaspoon ground cumin
1teaspoon sugar
2garlic cloves (optional)
½head lettuce, leaves separated

Ingredient Substitution Guide

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Preparation

Step 1
Add 4 cups of cold water to a medium saucepan wide enough to hold the chicken in a single layer. Stir in 3½ teaspoons salt. Place chicken breasts in a single layer in the pan, smooth-side down. Cover the pot and bring the water to a boil over medium heat (which takes about 10 minutes).
Step 2
When the water begins to boil, flip the chicken breasts, turn off the heat and let the chicken cook, covered and undisturbed, for 15 minutes. Transfer the poached chicken to a cutting board and let rest for 10 minutes.
Step 3
While the chicken rests, make the chutney: Combine mint, cilantro, chiles, lemon juice, yogurt, cumin, sugar, garlic (if using) and 1 teaspoon salt in a blender. Blend on high speed, scraping the sides occasionally, until the mixture is thick and mostly smooth. (The chutney can be made ahead and refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week.)
Step 4
Shred the chicken and mix with about ½ cup chutney in a large bowl. (To store the chicken salad, refrigerate in a covered container for up to 3 days.)
Step 5
Arrange the lettuce leaves in a single layer on a large plate. Place 1 to 2 heaping tablespoons of chicken salad on each of the leaves and serve.

Ratings

4 out of 5

57 user ratings

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Comments

Doc O3 weeks ago

Made as directed, the mixture was too dry to puree in our blender. We ended up adding a total of one cup of Greek yogurt and about 3 TLB of lemon juice to be able to blend the mass into a thick sauce. Our lettuce refused to form "cups"; so we just coarsely chopped it and added it to the shredded chicken and all of the sauce. It made for a spicey, herby chicken salad, but was even better with some golden raisins and roasted peanuts. Served with crostini, it made for a nice summer lunch.

TLeighMD3 weeks ago

The flavor is top notch, delish. Only comment is that it might come off as a bit dry if your chicken isn't super moist. I ended up adding more sauce. I think you could add more yogurt or mayo too. Highly recommend.

Mary Ellen Navas3 weeks ago

This sounded fresh and delightful but instead I found it dimensionally wrong: too spicy and lacking a counter balance. It needs something sweet, maybe currents in the chicken salad, and something crunchy, as a topping maybe chow mien noodles? Details: I followed the recipe exactly except I did not have 3-5 Thai chili peppers, I used two small serrano peppers with half of the seeds and membrane removed. I served it with naan and extra yogurt to smooth out the heat. A wrap would work. Help?

Leah1 week ago

Not enough sauce to chicken ratio for me. Recommend doubling the sauce and adding golden raisins for some sweetness. Also good on arugula with toasted almonds for crunch

CyndyCKV1 week ago

I'm wondering what kind of mint ... spearmint or peppermint. I'm leaning toward spearmint. With 2 cups in the recipe, the flavor profile will be very different depending on the type of mint. Any advice?

Cathy1 week ago

On first try used 3 Thai chilis and the chutney was so hot as to be inedible. Thankfully I tasted it before adding it to the chicken. Second try I just skipped the chilis and still had a bite to it from the cilantro and garlic ….. but it was kinda blah. It improved a bit with salt. Mixed the chutney with the chicken and served with lettuce leaves on the side. Not much got eaten. Now I need to figure out how to improve the taste of this leftover chicken salad. Maybe add a mild chili, some nuts and some sort of fruit.

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