If you're craving a healthy, flavourful meal with a touch of Caribbean flair, look no further than these Caribbean ground beef lettuce wraps!

Two plates of wraps with ground beef on a bed of lettuce.

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Introduction
Ingredients you will need
The steps
Notes and tips
More recipes beef recipes to try
Ground Beef Lettuce Wraps

Introduction

This recipe combines savoury ground beef with bold Caribbean ingredients like green seasoning, chado beni (culantro), cho cho (chayote/christophine), and browning sauce to create a dish that’s bursting with flavor, texture, and color.

These wraps are not only delicious but also offer a healthy, low-carb alternative to traditional wraps.

With fresh lettuce leaves acting as the base and a rich, savory filling made from ground beef and vibrant vegetables, these wraps make for the perfect light lunch or dinner. Let’s dive into how to make this Caribbean-inspired meal that’s both tasty and satisfying!

Reasons to make these wraps

This recipe is brimming with bold Caribbean flavours i.e green season chadon beni, and browning sauce adds an unmistakable Caribbean twist.
Using fresh lettuce instead of bread or roti gives the wraps a more low carb approach.
Fresh and vibrant vegetables. The addition of cho cho (chayote/christophine), a popular Caribbean fruit (albeit treated like a vegetable), provides a refreshing crunch that complements the dish.
Quick and easy, you can serve this for lunch or dinner when you want something healthy, filling, and flavourful.
These wraps are versatile! Feel free to swap out the ground beef for ground turkey or plant-based tofu for a different twist.

Ingredients you will need

Ingredients you need for ground beef lettuce wraps

Ground beef - You will need ground beef that is on the leaner side, 5% or lower if possible.
Olive oil - Used for sauteing the ground beef and other ingredients.
Onion/scallion/garlic - These are the base ingredients for the recipe.
Beef seasoning/browning sauce - I like to use my homemade seasoning for both of these recipes.
Romaine lettuce - This is sweet, crispy and shaped perfectly to make wraps with.
Scotch bonnet pepper - To make the dish more spicy and fiery.
Bell peppers/carrots/cho cho - These are vegetables which are used to bulk up the recipe.
Soy(a) sauce/tomato sauce - To add colour and flavour.
Chadon beni/thyme - My choice of Caribbean style herbs.
Warm water - To simmer the ground beef.
Black pepper and pink salt - To enhance the taste/flavour.
Romaine lettuce - This type of lettuce is perfect for making wraps.

The steps

Add the ground beef, green seasoning, homemade browning sauce, soy(a) sauce, black pepper and pink salt to a medium sized bowl.
Use your hands to work the wet rub into the ground beef, cover the bowl with saran (cling film) and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.

Unwrap the bowl after the given time and set aside.
Meanwhile preheat a large frying pan or skillet with olive oil on medium heat.
Saute the onion, scallion and garlic until soft and translucent.
Add the ground beef and sear the meat, it should take several minutes. During the given time the meat should extract its own juices, you will need to cook this off by increasing the heat to high, keep a watchful so the beef doesn't burn.

Add the bell peppers, cho cho and carrot, thyme and chadon beni then continue to cook for a few minutes.
Stir in the tomato sauce and pour in the hot water and add the scotch bonnet pepper.

Bring the frying pan to a rolling boil.
Reduce the heat to medim-low, with, cover with the lid and simmer for 25-30 minutes.
As the beef is cooking then prepare the lettuce by arranging the leaves on a plate(s).

After the given time, do a taste test and add additional black pepper and pink salt if needed.
Discard the thyme stems and scotch bonnet pepper before serving.
Allow the meat to cool down before serving it on a bed of lettuce.

Notes and tips

I highly recommend using lean ground beef which has less fat, 5% is ideal of this recipe.
As per Caribbean custom the meat is washed ahead of time.
It is very important to cook off any excess liquid during the searing process this will help to improve the flavour by locking it into the ground beef.
Let the beef cool down completely or leave it until it is slightly warm so the lettuce won't become soggy.
If you don't plan on eating the wraps immediately or want to carry them with you place the ground beef and lettuce leaves in 2 separate containers and serve accordingly.
This is the link that you will need for my Green Seasoning, Beef Seasoning and Homemade Browning Sauce.
If you cannot get hold cho cho then use zucchini instead.

More recipes beef recipes to try

Caribbean Plantains With Ground Beef
Beef and Broccolini Stir Fry
Jamaican Beef Soup (Low Carb)
Instant Pot Picadillo (Cuban)
Jamaican Beef Stew Recipe (Stew Beef)
Jamaican Beef Curry (Curry Beef)

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