We’ve got another ‘sub for the same cost’ kinda recipe here.
Even in the land of ridiculously cheap tortillas, a bag of 10 tortillas costs a smidge more than a head of iceburg lettuce. So the non-Paleo ingredient in Korean Beef with slaw tacos can be easily swapped for lettuce without affecting the cost!
Yay for budget-friendly Paleo.
Tips for hacking this recipe:
1. Only buy ground beef when it’s on sale. Freeze extra packages to use in future weeks/meal plans.
2. Shred your own cabbage. (If you think you’ll eat it all up in a week…a head of cabbage yields a.l.o.t. of shredded cabbage!
3. Omit the cilantro if you aren’t a fan, or if it’s not cheap for you. (It’s $.28 for a big bunch at my store…crazy cheap!)
4. Visit an International or Asian grocery store and you’ll most likely find cheaper sesame oil and other popular Asian food ingredients.
5. For my Paleo friends, use coconut aminos. For my non-Paleo or just low-carb/no-carb friends, use soy sauce!
So, onto the recipe…
I tossed in a little cilantro to the slaw. Also added some sesame oil and ground ginger to ‘match’ the flavors in the beef 🙂
Matchy, matchy!
These wraps were amazing…powerful flavors with simple ingredients!
Korean Beef Lettuce Wraps with Slaw
Adapted from: Korean Beef Bowl
Yield – 4 servings, 2 wraps each
Preparation Time – 15 minutes
Cooking Time – 15 minutes
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 Tbsp minced onion
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 cup coconut aminos (or soy sauce, if non-Paleo)
- 2 Tbsp sesame oil
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- Salt and pepper
- 14 oz. bag cole slaw mix
- 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
- 1 Tbsp sesame oil
- 3 Tbsp canola oil
- 3 Tbsp rice or red wine vinegar
- 1/2 tsp ground ginger
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Iceburg lettuce head
- Optional garnishes – sesame seeds, green onion slices
Directions
- Brown the ground beef with the minced onion and garlic powder, then drain and return to the skillet.
- Stir in the coconut aminos/soy sauce, sesame oil, ground ginger and some salt and pepper. Let simmer about 5-8 minutes, stirring often, allowing flavors to mingle.
- In a mixing bowl, add the shredded cole slaw mix or cabbage and toss with chopped cilantro, sesame oil, canola oil, vinegar, ground ginger and salt and pepper, to taste.
- Carefully pull apart 8 large leaves from a head of iceburg lettuce. Load the wraps with the Korean ground beef and slaw. Roll up and enjoy!
- Serve Korean Beef Lettuce Wraps with slaw and optional sesame and green onion garnishes.
See all of our 31 Days of Budget Friendly Paleo Recipes here!
Other “31 Days of” Series to check out:
- 31 Days of School Lunchbox Ideas
- 31 Days of Slow Cooker Meals
- 31 Days of Gluten Free Meals
- 31 Days of Freezer Cooking Recipes
- 31 Days of Skillet Dinner Recipes
- 31 Days of Breakfast Recipes
I made this for dinner tonight; husband and kids (even the picky one) loved it, but all said it was too oily. It’s weird putting canola oil in the slaw, and I used only 2 TBS instead of 3. Maybe I should omit it all together. And maybe I should use sesame oil in the slaw only, not the ground beef. I also used flour tortillas instead of iceberg lettuce, because my kids will only tolerate one green food in each meal lol.
I made this tonight for the family. I made my slaw with sesame oil and coconut oil since canola oil is not paleo. Everyone loved this and I will absolutely make this again. I do agree that there is a bit too much oil in the meat, and I plan to cut it in half next time.
We loved this, but found it hard to eat wrapped in lettuce so will just mix it all together in the pan and skip the lettuce.