🇹🇭 Thai
Thai Larb (Larb Gai) — Ground Chicken Lettuce Cups
⏱ 20 min
🍞 ~7g
🍽 4 servings
⭐ 4/5
⚠️ Estimates only — not medical advice. Carb counts vary by brand and portion. Always verify with your endo or CDCES.
🌍 Cultural note
Larb is the national dish of Laos and the soul of Isaan (Northeastern Thai) cuisine. It's a warm-cool salad of ground meat with herbs, lime, fish sauce, and toasted rice powder. Thai families eat it scooped into lettuce or cabbage leaves with sticky rice on the side. The toasted rice powder (khao kua) is the magic — nutty and crunchy, totally worth making.
Why this recipe is T1D-friendly
- Naturally low-carb: protein + herbs + lime, wrapped in lettuce
- The toasted rice powder is only ~2g per serving and adds huge flavor
- High protein + healthy fat (the meat juices) keeps Dash full for hours
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground chicken (or ground turkey) (0g)
- 2 tbsp uncooked jasmine rice (for khao kua / toasted rice powder) (10g across batch)
- 1 small shallot, sliced thin (4g)
- 3 green onions, sliced (3g)
- 1/4 cup mint leaves, torn (1g)
- 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped (1g)
- Juice of 2 limes (5g)
- 2-3 tbsp fish sauce / nam pla (1g)
- 1 tsp allulose (0g)
- 1/2 tsp Thai chili flakes (omit for kid plates) (1g)
- 2 tbsp chicken broth or water (1g)
- 1 head butter lettuce or romaine hearts, leaves separated (4g across all)
- Optional: sliced cucumber on the side (3g)
Rice / noodle / wrap options
| Wrapper / base | Portion | Carbs |
|---|---|---|
| Lettuce cups (default) | 3-4 leaves | ~7g |
| With Thai sticky rice (traditional) | 1/4 cup cooked | +18g (=25g) |
| With jasmine rice | 1/3 cup cooked | +15g (=22g) |
| With cauliflower rice | 1/2 cup | +3g (=10g) |
| With cabbage cups | 3 leaves | +2g (=9g) |
| With cucumber slices | 1/2 cup | +3g (=10g) |
Directions
- Make toasted rice powder: heat a dry skillet over medium-low. Add 2 tbsp uncooked jasmine rice. Toast 5-7 minutes, swirling often, until rice turns deep golden brown. Smells like popcorn.
- Let rice cool 2 min, then grind in a mortar/pestle, spice grinder, or pulse in a small food processor to coarse sand texture. Set aside.
- In a wide skillet, add ground chicken and the 2 tbsp broth/water (this keeps it juicy, no oil needed).
- Cook over medium heat, breaking up the meat, 6-8 minutes until fully cooked and most liquid evaporates.
- Turn off heat. Let the chicken cool just slightly (2 min) — larb is served warm, not hot.
- Add shallot, green onions, mint, cilantro, lime juice, fish sauce, allulose, and chili flakes (adults only).
- Sprinkle in 2 tbsp toasted rice powder. Stir gently.
- Taste — should be salty, sour, herby, savory. Adjust lime and fish sauce.
- Wash and dry lettuce leaves. Arrange on a plate.
- Serve larb in a bowl with lettuce cups on the side — kids scoop their own.
Dash's kid tips 🐆
- Skip chili flakes entirely for kid plates — the lime, mint, and toasted rice powder are the real flavor
- The toasted rice powder is the unsung hero — kids LOVE the crunchy nutty texture; don't skip it
- Let kids assemble their own lettuce wraps — it's interactive and they eat more
- If your kid is suspicious of fresh mint, start with just cilantro, add mint next time