This meal has many of my absolute favorite things – warm Indian spices, healthy ingredients, and perfect crispy Indian paneer cheese. With lettuce in season, I couldn’t resist making these. I make this dish leaner by using ground turkey and pack in some extra vegetables to make it a complete meal. Quick enough for your average weeknight, this dish is gluten free and kid-adaptable – you’ll want to add this to your lineup this week!
Serves 4 | Gluten-Free, Kid-Adaptable, Vegetarian-adaptable | Less than 30 minutes
- For the Crispy Paneer
- 4 oz paneer cheese (low-sodium if possible), diced into 1/4 inch cubes
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp coriander seeds
- Black pepper
- Sea salt
- For the Curry
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 tbsp minced fresh ginger
- 1/2 tbsp minced fresh garlic
- 1 lb 94% lean ground turkey
- sea salt
- 1 can low-sodium diced tomatoes
- 2 tbsp madras curry powder
- Black pepper
- For the Lettuce wraps
- 1 head of Bibb lettuce or Boston hydroponic lettuce, leaves washed and dried
- Cilantro
- Sliced scallions
Using a mortar and pestle, grind the cumin and coriander seeds until fine. Heat the coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When oil is crackling, add the paneer, spices, a sprinkle of sea salt and a few cracks of black pepper. Stirring frequently, cook until browned on all sides. Remove when done and set aside (I place mine on a paper towel-lined plate to remove excess oil).
Without washing the skillet, add the onion, bell pepper, ginger and garlic. Cook for 1 minute until softened a bit. Add the ground turkey and a sprinkle of sea salt. Cook for another 1 minute or so to brown the turkey a bit and break it apart into small pieces. Pour in the diced tomatoes and add the curry powder and a few cracks of black pepper. Let simmer for about 4-5 minutes until the turkey is cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed. The mixture should be thick, but not dry. Set aside to let cool for about 5 minutes
Take a large lettuce leaf and place on a plate. (Note – If the leaf doesn’t feel strong enough to hold the curry, double up the lettuce leaves). Add about a 1/8-1/4 cup of curry mixture and top with paneer, cilantro and scallions. Roll the lettuce into a wrap and serve immediately.
To make this vegetarian, sub chickpeas for the turkey.
For the kids – I set aside some ground turkey and peppers to cook separately and serve with the lettuce on the side.
Time and Taste 