Rachael Ray's Barbecued Chinese Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Today we celebrate Carmageddon – the most ridiculously overhyped L.A. hysteria since the nonexistent 1984 Olympics Terminal Gridlock From Hell – with Tina’s incredible Recipe of the Week, courtesy of celebrity chef and Food Network superstar Rachael Ray. Tina, by the way, recommends using Costco Kirkland chicken breasts for this. They're exceptionally large and meaty and grill very nicely.

This light Pacific Rim masterpiece is very SoCal; enjoy with a chilled Samuel Adams Summer Ale or three, and at least a half hour of breathless local TV news coverage of relatively empty fast lanes.

Ingredients

• 2 cups, 4 handfuls, fresh shiitake mushrooms
• 1 1/3 to 1 1/2 lbs. thin-cut chicken breast or chicken tenders
• 2 tablespoons light colored oil, such as vegetable oil or peanut oil
• Coarse salt and coarse black pepper
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 inch ginger root, finely chopped or grated (optional)
• 1 orange, zested
• 1/2 red bell pepper, diced small
• 1 small tin, 6 to 8 ounces, sliced water chestnuts, drained and chopped
• 3 scallions, chopped
• 3 tablespoons hoisin, Chinese barbecue sauce, available on Asian foods aisle of market
• 1/2 large head iceberg lettuce, core removed, head quartered
• Wedges of navel orange -- platter garnish

Directions

Remove tough stems from mushrooms and brush with damp towel to clean, Slice mushrooms. Chop chicken into small pieces.

Preheat a large skillet or wok to high.

Add oil to hot pan. Add chicken to the pan and sear meat by stir frying a minute or 2.

Add mushrooms and cook another minute or two.

Add salt and pepper to season, then garlic and ginger. Cook a minute more.

Grate zest into pan, add bell pepper bits, chopped water chestnuts and scallions. Cook another minute, continuing to stir fry mixture.

Add hoisin Chinese barbecue sauce and toss to coat the mixture evenly.

Transfer the hot chopped barbecued chicken to serving platter and pile the quartered wedges of crisp iceberg lettuce along side.

Add wedged oranges to platter to garnish. To eat, pile spoonfuls into lettuce leaves, wrapping lettuce around fillings and squeeze a juicy orange wedge all over it.

Top photos courtesy of Rachael Ray and Food Network. Lower image courtesy of Samuel Adams Beer.