Big Mac Bowls
For probably 2 meals out of every 5, I serve some version of rice with a protein and veggie—and as much as I love a good rice bowl, sometimes it’s time to mix it up. (Although my all-time favorite lunch is leftover white rice with chopped or sliced cucumber and carrot on top, plus an egg or some leftover chicken.) I have been seeing lots of low-carb burger bowls online, and I used to be a big fan of what is basically a big salad with a bun-less burger on top, but lately that has not sounded good to me at all. Turns out it was missing one major ingredient: French fries.
Now, if you want to keep this lower carb, by all means feel free to skip the fries and add more lettuce or other veggies, but for me right now, some shredded lettuce and a generous handful of crispy fries is really working as a base for these burger bowls. If you’re feeling extra, you can make the fries from scratch but I have found that frozen ones thrown into the air fryer are just as delicious and a hell of a lot easier. I also decided to keep the beef ground instead of forming burger patties, and it made the entire thing much more satisfying to eat. The sauce I made is a little more In-N-Out than McDonald’s, but if you are specifically into that Big Mac sauce, there are plenty of recipes for it out there (my husband isn’t a big mustard fan, which seems to be a main ingredient). And one final customization: if you wanted to make these vegetarian-friendly, just swap out the beef for your preferred meatless protein source.
Ingredients:
1 pound of ground beef
1 tablespoon olive oil
A frozen bag of French fries (unless you want to make them yourself!)
1-2 heads of romaine or iceberg lettuce
Optional toppings: chopped tomatoes, shredded cheese, onions, pickles, diced onion
For the sauce:
3 tablespoons of mayo
About 1 tablespoon of ketchup
1-2 teaspoons of relish (or you can chop up whatever pickles you like if you don’t have relish)
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions:
Heat olive oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and mince so it is as fine or as chunky as you prefer (sometimes I like to use a spatula to press it down in a thin layer so it’s kind of like a smash burger). Season generously with salt and pepper. Cook for 7-8 minutes, or until fully browned.
While beef is cooking, prepare French fries according to package instructions. They are great in the oven but if you have an air fryer I always recommend using that.
Mix sauce ingredients together and stir well to combine. You can make this ahead of time to give it extra time for all the flavors to come together, just store it covered in the fridge until ready to use.
To assemble bowls, add a handful of lettuce and a generous portion of fries. Top with beef and cheese, as well as any other toppings you are including. Finish by drizzling the sauce overtop and serve right away.
