Instructions: Wash and dry the chicken breasts and trim off any fat. Chop the chicken breast as finely as possible with a cleaver. Soak the mushrooms in hot water to cover for 30 minutes. Drain, stem, and finely chop the mushrooms. (Save the soaking liquid for later use in soups.)

Peel 12 large whole leaves off the head of lettuce. (Save any remaining lettuce for salads.) Arrange the leaves around the outside of a large platter. Combine the ingredients for the wok sauce in a mixing bowl and stir until the cornstarch is dissolved.

Heat a non stick wok or frying pan over high heat. Swirl in the oil. Add the garlic, scallions, and chilies and stir-fry until fragrant but not brown, about 15 seconds. Add the chicken, celery, water chestnuts, and black mushrooms and stir-fry until cooked, about 2 minutes. Stir the wok sauce to redissolve the cornstarch and add it to the chicken mixture with the bean sprouts. Stir-fry for 1 minute, or until the bean sprouts are tender but not soft. Remove the wok from the heat and stir in the peanuts, if desired. Add salt and pepper to taste, and stir in the mint leaves. Transfer the chicken mixture to a serving bowl and place it in the center of the platter with the lettuce leaves. ( You can serve it hot or at room temperature.)

To serve, have each guest place a heaping spoonful of chicken mixture in a lettuce leaf and fold it up like a blintz. Provide each guest with a small bowl of the dipping sauce.

Yield: 12 bundles, which will serve 4 to 6 as an appetizer.

WINE RECOMMENDED: Alsacian gewurtztraminer

Cuisine: "Vietnamese"

Yield: 12 packets

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