Instant Pot Pork Lettuce Wraps

These Instant Pot Pork Lettuce Wraps have a healthy secret, whole grain wheat berries add a chewy whole-grain goodness to them!   Post may contain affiliate links, full disclosure on sidebar.

I love laarb.  Laarb is a Northern Thai dish that is ground meat cooked with various Thai chiles, herbs and spices.  Anytime I find a variation of Laarb, I make it.  Like these Thai Beef Cabbage Wraps from Nigella.   So when I saw this whole grain version in The Great Big Pressure Cooker Book, I immediately added it to my menu.  I was intrigued.  I have been trying to add whole grains to our diet, and adding it to one of my favorite dishes could either go horribly wrong or be utter genius.  I am pleased to say that it was the later!

What makes this even better is it is done in one of my top favorite small appliances, my Instant Pot.   In this recipe, you first use the Instant Pot to make the wheat berries.  Then you drain them, turn on the saute feature and brown the meat with the spices.  You stir back in the wheat berries and you are finished.   What I love about this recipe is that the grains don’t feel like an after thought, like you added them just to be healthy.  They add a pleasing chewiness to the whole dish.  Really, this will now be the way I make all versions of laarb!

To turn into a meal, I made a quick salad of carrots and radishes, which I tossed with lime juice and minced cilantro.   You can probably tell from the photo, but I made them a bit too big.  It would have been better if I had used my julienne peeler.   Also, I used butter lettuce, which a lot of lettuce wraps call for, but honestly I prefer cabbage.  It holds up better and I like the extra crunch.

5 from 3 votes

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Instant Pot Pork Lettuce Wraps

These Instant Pot Pork Lettuce Wraps have a healthy secret, they contain whole grain wheat berries. 

Course Main Course

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 4

Calories 544 kcal

Ingredients

• 1 cup dried wheat berries
• 1 tbsp peanut oil
• 1 pound ground pork lean
• 8 scallions thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup cilantro leaves minced
• 1/4 cup lime juice fresh
• 2 tbsp fish sauce
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar
• 1 tsp sambal oelek
• 2 heads boston lettuce

Instructions

1. Pour the wheat berries into your Instant Pot and add 3 cups of water.  Lock the lid into place and cook on high pressure for 30 minutes.  When the timer goes off allow the pressure to release naturally for 10 minutes and then release the rest.   Unlock the lid and drain the wheat berries in a colander.  Wipe out the cooker. 

2. Turn the cooker to the Saute function and heat the oil.  Add the ground pork and cook until cooked through, about 5 minutes, crumbling with a wooden spoon.  Add the scallions, cilantro, lime juice, fish sauce, brown sugar and sambal oelek.  

3. Turn off the heat and add the wheat berries.  To serve scoop about 2 tablespoon into each lettuce leaf.  

Recipe Notes

Make a garnish with julienned carrots and radishes tossed with a little lime juice and fresh cilantro. 

Nutrition Facts

Instant Pot Pork Lettuce Wraps

Amount Per Serving

Calories 544 Calories from Fat 252

% Daily Value*

Total Fat 28g 43%

Saturated Fat 9g 45%

Cholesterol 81mg 27%

Sodium 780mg 33%

Potassium 629mg 18%

Total Carbohydrates 47g 16%

Dietary Fiber 8g 32%

Sugars 7g

Protein 27g 54%

Vitamin A 60.1%

Vitamin C 15.9%

Calcium 9.3%

Iron 22.4%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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