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Shrimp Lettuce Wraps are sweet and savory and are absolutely perfect for summer dinners. Pair with rice and a really good coconut lime sauce! If you love this recipe, try my Shrimp Tacos too!
Shrimp Lettuce Wraps | With Coconut Lime Sauce
Basically in a nut shell, there’s a cup of butter lettuce full of sweet coconut almond rice, fresh pineapple, jalapenos, cilantro, coconut & cornmeal encrusted shrimp topped with a coconut milk & lime sauce. They are sweet and savory and are sure to please everyone!
Main Ingredients Needed
The ingredients are divided into 3 sections- shrimp, rice and sauce. Here is everything you will need to gather up to make some yummy shrimp lettuce wraps:
For The Shrimp:
- Shrimp- peeled & deveined.
- Lime Chipotle Marinade– used to marinate the shrimp. I used a marinade from Saucy Mama. It’s so delicious!
- Sweetened shredded coconut + cornmeal– used to coat the shrimp as a breading.
- Salt + pepper- to taste.
- Oil of choice for frying– canola, vegetable, peanut, any light colored oil for the rice.
About the shrimp: I marinated them for about an hour in a Lime Chipotle Marinade. Man, is that stuff packed full of flavor! After I marinated them, I coated half in a cornmeal coconut mixture and kept half plain. The breaded shrimp took a nice hot bath in some canola oil and the plain shrimp were quickly seared in a hot pan with a little olive oil. Both were tasty, but we preferred the cornmeal coconut ones. Try them both out and see which you prefer!
For The Rice:
- Butter– used in cooking the rice, keeps it from sticking together.
- Long grain white rice– could also use jasmine rice.
- Chicken stock– our liquid used in cooking the rice.
- Bay leaf– for flavoring.
- Salt + pepper- to taste.
- Granulated sugar– to slightly sweeten the rice.
- Toasted slivered almonds + toasted sweetened shredded coconut- added after the rice is cooked for added flavor and texture.
For The Coconut Lime Sauce:
- Coconut milk– our coconut liquid base for the sauce.
- Sugar– adds a little sweetness to the sauce.
- Lime zest– for citrus flavoring.
- Butter lettuce– leaves removed from core and washed. Always wash your produce.
- Cilantro– chopped.
- Fresh pineapple– fresh is best!
- Jalapenos– seeded & chopped.
- Limes– cut into wedges.
How To Make Shrimp Lettuce Wraps | Directions
Overall, this dinner was pretty easy to put together and absolutely perfect for summer! (Side Note: there are a lot of parts to this that you could break up over the course of your day if you’re busy! That’s what I did!)
Step 1: Marinate Shrimp in Lime Chipotle Marinade
In an air tight container, mix shrimp with Lime Chipotle Marinade. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Step 2: Cook The Rice
Preheat large pot over medium high heat. Melt butter and stir in rice to coat. Stir in salt, pepper, sugar and bay leaf. Pour chicken stock into pot and bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat to low until rice has softened completely, 20-30 minutes. Once cooked, remove from heat, stir in almonds and coconut. Keep rice covered to stay warm until service.
Step 3: Cook Shrimp (Option 1- No Breading)
To cook the shrimp without breading-Preheat large skillet to medium high heat. Add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. Place shrimp into hot pan in one even layer. Cook about 2-3 minutes per side or until shrimp turn pink and opaque. Remove from heat and keep warm.
Step 4: Cook Shrimp (Option 2- With Breading)
To cook shrimp with breading– Preheat large deep skillet to medium high to high heat with 3/4 inch oil. In shallow dish, combine cornmeal, coconut, salt and pepper together. Dip shrimp into mixture, being sure to coat well. (The marinade acts as a really great glue for the breading so be sure to not wipe any of it off!) Place coated shrimp into hot oil and cook 2-3 minutes per side until shrimp are pink and opaque and breading is golden brown. (*You’re going to want to have the oil hot enough for the shrimp to sizzle when they hit the pan, but not so hot that they burn before they cook. You can test one shrimp at first and adjust your stove accordingly.) Remove shrimp to paper towels, sprinkle with salt and keep warm.
Step 5: Make Coconut Lime Sauce
Mix coconut milk with sugar and lime zest. That’s it!
Step 6: Assemble Lettuce Wraps
Scoop desired amount of rice into bottom of a butter lettuce leaf. Top with pineapple, jalapenos, cilantro, shrimp, sauce and more lime juice if desired.
Storing Leftovers
Store leftovers ( lettuce, rice, shrimp, sauce) separately in airtight containers in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Loved Shrimp Lettuce Wraps? Give These Recipes A Try…
- Taco Lettuce Wraps
- Chicken Lettuce Wraps
- Southwest Sausage Quinoa Lettuce Wraps
- Hummus Veggie Wrap
- Crispy Chicken Ranch Wraps
- Asian Lettuce Wraps
I hope you love these as much as my hubby and I do! For full recipe details, see the printable recipe card below. Enjoy, friends! 🙂
Shrimp Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
for the shrimp-
- 1-1 1/4 lbs shrimp 21-25 count, peeled & deveined
- 1 cup Lime Chipotle Marinade
- 1/2 cup cornmeal
- 1/2 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- salt
- pepper
- oil of choice for frying canola, vegetable, peanut, any light colored oilfor the rice-
- 1 1/2 tablespoons butter
- 3/4 cup long grain white rice
- 1 1/2 cups good quality chicken stock
- 1 large bay leaf
- salt
- pepper
- 2 heaping tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup toasted slivered almonds
- 1/4 cup toasted sweetened shredded coconut
for the coconut lime sauce
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- zest of 1/2 lime
- 1 head butter lettuce leaves removed and washed
- 1/4 cup cilantro chopped
- 1-2 cups diced fresh pineapple
- 1-2 fresh jalapenos seeded & chopped
- 2 limes cut into wedges
Instructions
- In an air tight container, mix shrimp with Lime Chipotle Marinade. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
- For the rice-Preheat large pot over medium high heat. Melt butter and stir in rice to coat. Stir in salt, pepper, sugar and bay leaf. Pour stock into pot and bring to boil. Cover and reduce heat to low until rice has softened completely, 20-30 minutes. Once cooked, remove from heat, stir in almonds and coconut. Keep rice covered to stay warm until service.
- To cook the shrimp without breading-Preheat large skillet to medium high heat. Add about 2 tablespoons of olive oil to the pan. Place shrimp into hot pan in one even layer. Cook about 2-3 minutes per side or until shrimp turn pink and opaque. Remove from heat and keep warm.
- To cook shrimp with breading-Preheat large deep skillet to medium high to high heat with 3/4 inch oil. In shallow dish, combine cornmeal, coconut, salt and pepper together. Dip shrimp into mixture, being sure to coat well. (The marinade acts as a really great glue for the breading so be sure to not wipe any of it off!) Place coated shrimp into hot oil and cook 2-3 minutes per side until shrimp are pink and opaque and breading is golden brown. (*You’re going to want to have the oil hot enough for the shrimp to sizzle when they hit the pan, but not so hot that they burn before they cook. You can test one shrimp at first and adjust your stove accordingly.) Remove shrimp to paper towels, sprinkle with salt and keep warm.
- To make the coconut sauce-Mix coconut milk with sugar and lime zest. That’s it!
- For assembly-Scoop desired amount of rice into bottom of a butter lettuce leaf. Top with pineapple, jalapenos, cilantro, shrimp, sauce and more lime juice if desired.
[…] Island Shrimp Lettuce Cups (hellooooo […]
oh! and I made a post on my blog with a link to yours, you can find it on the post as well as the blogs we follow! we'll be trying letcho soon by the way 🙂
the shrimp looks delish!!!
You have some amazingly delicious recipes.
As much as I like your recipes and pictures, I enjoy your writing even more! Very fun…
Looks delicious!
I love your recipes, especially your desserts. Ii've tried many of them.
I just found your site and I am so excited about your recipes 🙂
Wow! I think I need to make these – shrimp and coconut are my favorites, especially together!!!!
It looks amazing!! 🙂
I love all of your fabulous recipes. So yummy!