One of my favorite dishes at our corner Thai restaurant is a warm ground beef salad served over crisp shredded cabbage and lettuce leaves. I’ve taken the idea and turned it into a pickup appetizer by serving the warm beef mixture in little butter lettuce leaves and then garnishing them with the shredded cabbage.

The recipe is quick and easy and I find I usually have most of the ingredients on hand. You can substitute ground chicken or pork if that’s what you have in the fridge or freezer.

• 1 pound extra-lean ground beef
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 2 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
• 2 shallots, peeled and very thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 green onion, very thinly sliced
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh Cilantro
• Butter lettuce leaves, for serving
• Very thinly sliced small hot peppers, for garnish
• Mint leaves, for garnish
• Shredded cabbage, for garnish

Chop ground beef well. Place beef in a cold nonstick skillet and stir in lime juice, fish sauce and shallots. Place skillet over a burner and turn heat to medium-high. Cook ground beef mixture for 5-10 minutes, until beef is completely cooked. Remove skillet from heat and add chopped green onion and cilantro. 

To serve, place a spoonful of the meat mixture over the lettuce leaves and garnish with peppers, mint and cabbage.

Makes 6 servings.