These Vegan Thai Lettuce Cups make a light and refreshing meal, loaded with fiber and plant-based protein from a hearty green split pea filling. They are a great way enjoy one of your half-cup servings of pulses this week! If you’re not familiar with green split peas, they are a variety of pulse with over 16 grams of fiber per serving. Soluble fiber, like the kind found in legumes, is thought to regulate blood sugar levels and may help to lower LDL cholesterol, possibly reducing the risk for heart disease. Split peas also contain potassium, which may help lower blood pressure.
If you’re used to cooking other popular pulses, like red lentils, you should know that green split peas take slightly longer to cook. In fact, I’ve found that they take even longer to cook than their packaging states. Some say they will take 35 to 45 minutes of simmering to get tender, but for me it took closer to an hour for my green split peas to become tender. The preparation is a breeze, but you’ll have to plan on staying near your kitchen while this plant-based filling simmers away on the stove. These vegetarian lettuce cups are naturally gluten-free when you use tamari, a gluten-free soy sauce, and you can make them soy-free by using coconut aminos, if you’d like to. This filling is ultra-simple, but so hearty and flavorful that no one will miss the meat in this vegan version. I hope you’ll enjoy it!
Substitution Notes:
If you don’t have green split peas on hand, I think another variety of pulse could probably work well in its place, particularly lentils or another small legume. Since the filling is made in the skillet, you can always taste as you go and adjust any seasonings as you see fit. As always, please leave a comment below letting us know if you make a modification, so we can all benefit from your experience.
Have you signed up for the Half Cup Habit?
This 4-week challenge encourages readers to add 1/2 cup serving of pulses (beans, lentils, chickpeas, or dry peas) to their diets three times a week. In other words, you simply have to eat 1 1/2 cups of cooked pulses a week. By participating, users will receive free recipes, pulses cooking tips and more. Click here to join me in taking the Half-Cup Habit today! — Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite way to cook with pulses? Disclosure: I developed this recipe as part of my ongoing sponsorship with USA Pulses and Pulse Canada.
