Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Caramelized Onion Sweet Potatoes

An odd combination for a meal, but I still really enjoyed this one! I found the caramelized onion sweet potato recipe first and just tried finding a one-pan quick protein recipe to pair with it. I typically cook 5lbs of sweet potato each week, so from experience I thought it was best to split the sweet potatoes onto two different baking sheets so that all of the diced potatoes were lying flat on the plan. Flipping the potatoes every 20 minutes is a must to evenly roast them and make sure they don't burn! I increased my oven to 400 degrees, flipped every 15-20 minutes on both pans, and after an hour they were done. Note that 5lbs of sweet potatoes typically gets me about 7oz of cooked sweet potato across six meals. If you don't need that many sweet potatoes or carbs, split the recipe in half. Anyways, while the sweet potatoes were roasting I quickly made the chicken lettuce wraps. I doubled the ground chicken, but left the rest of the ingredients the same and thought it still turned out plenty flavorful. Also, I drained my chicken some when it was done because there was a lot of excess liquid. I loved how both of these recipes turned out and thought the meal was delicious! Both recipes are extremely simple, have very few ingredients, and are definitely worth trying out. 

20 Minute Perfect Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground chicken (I doubled this)
• 1 cup fresh mushrooms chopped (you can use red peppers and water chestnuts too)
• 1 onion finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves minced
• 1-2 tablespoons grated ginger
• ½ cup coconut aminos (about) 
• A little bunch of green onions chopped
• Sesame oil or olive oil
• Salt
• 1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup (100% pure, raw) 
• Romaine or Boston Lettuce

Directions:​

1. Cook ground chicken in a large skillet with a little sesame oil (you can use olive oil too) until well browned. Break the ground chicken with a wooden spoon. I cooked it at medium heat for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the chopped onion, grated ginger, garlic cloves, green onions, and chopped mushrooms (or peppers/water chestnuts if using).
3. Cook for another 5 minutes, approximately. Then add the coconut aminos. I used about ½ of a cup. Depending on how much sauce you want, start adding it little by little. Add a little maple syrup or honey and a pinch of salt and taste it. Add more coconut aminos (or soy sauce), or honey/salt if needed. It really depends on your taste.
4. Cover the skillet and let it cook for about 5 more minutes in medium heat.
5. Wash your lettuce leaves and start making your lettuce wraps. You can also serve them separately and make your own as you eat them.
6. Your Chicken Lettuce Wraps are ready!

Original recipe found here


Caramelized Onion Sweet Potatoes
Ingredients:

• ½ cup organic olive oil or coconut oil
• 2 large fresh organic yellow onions, fine chopped
• 4 large fresh organic garlic cloves, fine chopped
• 2 fresh whole organic bay leaves
• 5 pounds of organic sweet potatoes, wash well, remove blemishes DO NOT PEEL and medium diced
• 1 tsp. fresh ground pink salt
• 6 large fresh organic green onions, fine chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a sauce pan on medium heat, add your oil, onions, garlic and bay leaves. While stirring often cook your onion mixture until it is a dark golden brown. 
3. Remove from the heat and allow to set for 15 minutes. Remove the bay leaves and discard. 
4. Completely drain your onions/oil in a metal mesh strainer, reserve BOTH the oil and onions. 
5. In a large bowl, mix your diced sweet potatoes, flavored oil, caramelized onions and sea salt. On an ungreased metal baking sheet, evenly spread out your potatoes and tightly cover with tin foil. Using a spatula, flip the potatoes about every 20 minutes to evenly cook all sides. 
6. After about 1 ½ hours, test a potato with a fork, it should go in easily and slide off clean. At this point uncover and continue to roast, flipping every 15 minutes until medium golden brown. Remove from oven, place in a large mixing bowl, toss with the chopped green onion and serve. 

Original recipe found here