Kimchi Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Kimchi Chicken Lettuce Wraps

For the fastest path to deliciousness, select ingredients that punch above their weight. This recipe leans on just five primary ingredients — ground chicken, lettuce and rice form the foundation; kimchi adds depth; and hoisin lends sweetness — for a fresh spread that cooks in just 15 minutes. Bracing and assertive, kimchi doesn’t slip into this dish — it dominates. Although each jar of kimchi is unique, its salty, spicy and tangy notes reign. You’ll cook off a portion of the chopped fermented cabbage with the chicken, taming its taste and texture, then use the remainder as a garnish. To offset kimchi’s assertiveness, the chicken is glazed with hoisin sauce, which adds sweetness, color and glossiness. Set the chicken mixture, kimchi, lettuce and rice in separate bowls for tableside assembly.

Makes: 4 servings

Total time: 25 minutes

1 1/2 tightly packed cups store-bought or homemade kimchi (about 10 ounces)

2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil

1 pound ground chicken (preferably dark meat)

Salt and black pepper

3 tablespoons hoisin sauce, plus more for serving

Lettuce leaves (preferably 2 heads bibb lettuce or 1 large head red-leaf lettuce)

3 to 4 cups warm cooked short-grain rice

1. Finely chop the kimchi (or pulse in a food processor); transfer about two-thirds to a small serving bowl, reserving the remainder for the chicken.

2. In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium-high. Add the chicken, season with salt and pepper, and cook, crumbling it occasionally with a spoon, until starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in the hoisin sauce and then the reserved kimchi, and stir occasionally until chicken is glossy and cooked through, about 4 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Add the chicken mixture, lettuce leaves and rice to separate serving bowls. Assemble lettuce wraps by first adding a spoonful of rice, then chicken mixture and then kimchi; devour swiftly. Serve with more hoisin, if desired, for extra sweetness.

— Recipe by Alexa Weibel

Shrimp Fried Rice

Inspired by the fire-kissed flavor of Japanese steakhouse and hibachi fare, this quick fried rice dish is a veritable comfort. Frying the shrimp first in oil, just until they’re cooked, and reserving them to add back at the end means they stay tender. Plus, you’re left with the most aromatic shrimp oil in which to fry the rice and vegetables. The yum yum sauce, a mayo-ketchup dipping sauce that is ordinarily reserved for grilled hibachi meats, tastes fabulous splattered over the rice.

Makes: 4 to 6 servings

Total time: 30 minutes

1/4 cup olive oil, plus more as needed

1 pound peeled and deveined medium shrimp, thawed if frozen

Salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 medium onion, diced

1 1/2 cups frozen mixed vegetables (any mix of carrots, peas, corn and green beans)

6 cups cooked jasmine or other long-grain white rice, preferably cold and day-old

1/4 cup soy sauce, or to taste

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 large eggs

Yum yum sauce, for serving

1. Heat a very large nonstick or cast-iron skillet over high. Add the olive oil and shrimp, and sprinkle with salt and the garlic powder. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shrimp is no longer translucent and begins to turn golden at the edges, 2 to 4 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a plate and set aside.

2. Add onion and mixed vegetables to the shrimpy oil and cook, stirring occasionally, just until onion loses its raw edge but is still crunchy and the vegetables are mostly thawed, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the rice and soy sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, until well combined and the rice begins to crisp underneath where it meets the pan, 5 to 7 minutes. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more soy sauce as needed.

3. Scooch rice to one side of the pan, lower the heat to medium and melt butter on the empty side of pan. Crack the eggs into the melted butter, break the yolks and stir vigorously to scramble the eggs, cooking just until they have set but are still tender, about 1 minute. Stir the soft scrambled eggs into the rice, add the reserved shrimp and any accumulated juices, then remove the pan from the heat.

4. Let the fried rice sit for a few minutes so that it can continue to crisp in the pan’s residual heat. (If you haven’t already made the yum yum sauce, this is the perfect time to do it.)

5. Drizzle most of yum yum sauce over fried rice in the skillet, leaving some back, if desired, to serve on the side for dipping the shrimp.

—Recipe by Eric Kim