Vietnamese Tofu-Noodle Lettuce Wraps

From EatingWell: March/April 2009 — Subscribe Now!

Here we toss rice noodles with crunchy vegetables, fresh herbs, tofu and a light, sweet, tart and salty Vietnamese dressing flavored with fish sauce and wrap the mixture in lettuce leaves. For a vegetarian version, use reduced-sodium soy sauce or tamari in place of the fish sauce. Pass the mixture, lettuce leaves and sauce separately so everyone can make their own wraps.

Vietnamese Tofu-Noodle Lettuce Wraps Recipe

4 servings, 2 wraps each

Active Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Nutrition Profile

Ingredients

2 ounces thin rice noodles, or rice sticks (see Note)
1/4 cup water
5 teaspoons fish sauce, (see Note)
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2-1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
8 ounces firm or extra-firm seasoned tofu, thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, cut into matchsticks
1 cup snow peas, trimmed and very thinly sliced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
8 large leaves green-leaf lettuce

Preparation

Bring a large saucepan of water to a boil. Add rice noodles (or rice sticks) and cook until just tender, about 3 minutes. Drain and rinse under cold water. Gently squeeze noodles to remove most of the water.
Meanwhile, combine 1/4 cup water, fish sauce, lime juice, sugar and crushed red pepper to taste in a small bowl.
Coarsely chop the noodles and combine in a large bowl with tofu, carrot, snow peas, basil and mint. Pour the sauce over the salad and toss to combine. To serve, spoon about 1/2 cup salad onto each lettuce leaf and roll up.

Tips & Notes

Ingredient notes: Dried thin rice noodles (or rice sticks) are also called “bun” or “vermicelli-style” rice noodles. Look for them in the Asian section of well-stocked super markets or an Asian-foods market.
Fish sauce is a pungent Southeast Asian condiment made from salted, fermented fish. Find it in the Asian section of large supermarkets and in Asian specialty markets.

Nutrition

Per serving: 197 calories; 6 g fat (1 g sat, 0 g mono); 0 mg cholesterol; 23 g carbohydrates; 14 g protein; 2 g fiber; 747 mg sodium; 147 mg potassium.

Nutrition Bonus: Vitamin A (70% daily value), Vitamin C (20% dv), Calcium & Iron (15% dv).

1 1/2 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 1/2 starch, 1 vegetable, 1 medium-fat meat