Big Mac in a Bowl Recipe

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Can you lose weight by hopping in the drive thru, grabbing a Big Mac, chucking the bun, and eating just the beef patties? You can!

So long Weight Watchers – let’s eat ALL of the bun-less McDonald’s Big Macs and lose weight on the keto diet. Mmmm, not so fast…

Now if you trade out that Big Mac sandwich for this Big Mac in a bowl recipe – that’s a different story!

Keep reading to learn how to change your favorite fast food burger into a Big Mac burger bowl so you get to eat delicious food, while also reaching your goals.

Is A Big Mac Healthy?

There’s countless reasons a traditional Big Mac is a no-go if you want to improve your health.

Even when you make a low carb Big Mac by tossing the bun, you still have to think about the cheese blend that’s only 60% real cheese, the “special sauce” that’s made from highly processed vegetable oils, and do we even need to talk about what’s in the mystery meat?

Also, what about the temptation to order fries … since we all know how well french fries go with a McDonald’s Big Mac.

When you make your own keto mac salad at home, you know exactly what’s in there. Low-carb salads are a healthy alternative to the world famous combo of a burger patty topped with a sesame seed bun.

Big Mac Bowl Recipe Ingredients

The main ingredients for this delicious burger salad bowl include a pound of ground beef, shredded cheddar, lettuce, onions, a tomato, and a few dill spears.

You’ll also need yellow mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and black pepper to season the meat for this Big Mac keto salad.

Since a homemade keto Big Mac sauce is best, gather those ingredients too.

To get all of those Big Mac flavors you love, you need a keto-friendly mayo, sugar-free ketchup, dill pickle relish, diced onions, minced garlic, white vinegar, and salt.

How to Make A Big Mac Burger Salad

A keto Big Mac bowl is an easy meal that’s perfect for busy weeknights. When you do a little meal prep ahead of time, it’s even easier to throw this meal together in under 15 minutes.

Let’s start with that delicious special sauce since it needs a little time to allow the flavors to blend in the fridge.

Homemade Big Mac Sauce

While you may be tempted to use a shortcut and grab a bottle of Thousand Island dressing, heed my warning: this convenience comes at a cost.

This is especially true since most salad dressing found on grocery store shelves is chock full of added sugars and vegetable oils. Both of these commercial convenience food extras do nothing for your waistline!

Skip the added sugar and bad oils, and opt for your own low carb Big Mac sauce instead.

To make this keto-friendly sauce, simply combine all of the sauce ingredients into a small bowl and mix. Allow the flavors to blend in the fridge for at least an hour.

Chop Toppings

While you wait for the sauce flavors to blend, chop the toppings for this keto Big Mac salad recipe.

My favorite toppings include diced white onion, chopped dill pickles, diced tomatoes, and shredded salad greens. Feel free to add other favorite burger toppings, such as chopped red onion or sesame seeds.

While many lifelong dieters choose iceberg lettuce for a salad bowl recipe, try chopping a few cups of romaine lettuce instead. Leafy greens, like spinach or romaine, are a healthier option in keto recipes since they contain more nutrients.

Even if you don’t love the taste of mixed greens now, keep mixing them into your Big Mac burger bowls and eventually your tastebuds will come around.

Where’s the Beef

Once all of the prep work is done, brown ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat.

While you may be tempted to choose lean ground beef, if you want to keep your Big Mac salad keto, then opt for a cut that’s around 80/20. Keto dieters who prefer leaner meat should check in with your digestion.

While eating fewer carbs is important, you also need to eat enough healthy fats to get into ketosis in the first place. It takes a combo of the healthy fats and low carbs in this low carb Big Mac salad to help you get the best results on a keto diet.

Back to the beef. As you brown the raw ground beef, season with the spices, mix in the chopped onions, and stir.

Then drain any excess grease and turn down the heat. To get an authentic taste of a Big Mac, pour yellow mustard over the beef and stir.

Create Salad Bowls

The last step is to layer the salad ingredients for this Big Mac in a bowl recipe. You can choose individual servings in separate bowls, or serve family style in a larger dish.

This hearty salad comes together by adding the lettuce into a bowl. Next, spoon the ground beef on top.

Then drizzle the keto Big Mac sauce on top. Finally layer with your favorite burger toppings.

Just like that, you have an easy recipe low in net carbs that tastes just like the real thing!

Big Mac Burger Bowl Wrap Up

Hopefully you see how easy it is to whip up this delicious keto cheeseburger salad instead of pulling through the drive through for a quick dinner. If the lines at McDonalds near you are half as long as they are here, you’ll even save time!

If you love this recipe, please share the healthy fat love on social media. Don’t forget to save this recipe to Pinterest for next time.

Keep scrolling for nutritional information and the printable recipe card.

Make Keto Easy

While simple low carb recipes like this are a great start, why not learn the same info that’s helped hundreds of women finally break through weight loss stalls on keto?

Get into the Keto Quick Start Course to learn how I lost 100 pounds and finally quit yo-yo diets for good!

More Easy Ground Beef Meals:

Keto Taco Salad

Keto Taco Casserole

Low Carb Big Mac in a Bowl

Print Recipe

This Big Mac salad keto friendly recipe is a much better choice than pulling through the drive thru and ditching the buns. It’s a quick meal your whole family will enjoy. Add all of your favorite toppings to make keto weight loss easy with this low carb burger bowl.

Author: Nissa
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 10 mins
Total Time: 20 mins
Yield: Recipe Serves 4 1x
Category: Keto Lunch / Dinner Recipe
Method: Stove Top
Cuisine: Keto / Low Carb / High Protein
Diet: Diabetic

Ingredients

Scale

For Keto Big Mac Bowls:

1 lb 80% lean ground beef
4 oz shredded cheddar cheese
4–6 cups chopped spinach or bag of shredded lettuce
1 & 1/2 cups finely chopped onion
Small tomato, chopped
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
Sea salt & black pepper to taste
3 tbsp yellow mustard
Whole pickle, chopped
4–6 oz Thousand Island dressing (homemade is best)

Dressing Ingredients:

1/2 cup keto-friendly mayo
2 tbsp sugar-free ketchup
2 tbsp pickle relish
2 tsp finely diced onions
1/4 tsp minced garlic
1 tsp white vinegar
1/8 tsp salt

Instructions

Prep work:

Combine keto Big Mac Sauce is a bowl and stir to combine. Allow to blend while covered in the fridge for at least an hour.
Chop preferred Big Mac bowl toppings.

Cook Big Mac Bowls:

Brown the ground beef in a large skillet.
Mix in 1 cup chopped onions, garlic, onion powder, salt and pepper to ground beef while its browning.
Once beef is browned and onions have softened, remove skillet from heat.
Mix in mustard and stir well.
Layer the ingredients on a plate and serve.

Notes

Allow ground beef to sit out 20 minutes prior to cooking since beef heats up best at room temperature.
The sauce lasts up to 5 days in an airtight container. I store my homemade Big Mac Sauce in a mason jar and use for other low carb recipes throughout the week.
Leave cheese off salad if you are sensitive to dairy.