No hamburger buns? No problem! These Quick and Easy Burger Bowls are a simple weeknight dinner loaded with all of your favorite hamburger toppings and a homemade burger sauce. They can be made in just about 1 hour for a fun dinner your whole family will love!
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Why You'll Love These Burger Bowls
- Served in just about 1 hour! These loaded burger bowls are similar to a "burger salad" and are also just as quick and easy to make. They're great for busy weeknights when you need dinner fast. You can also try this cheeseburger tater tot casserole for another simple burger-inspired recipe.
- Meal prep friendly! All you need to do is store the toppings, beef, and burger sauce separately in the refrigerator. Then, just add all of the components to your bowl right before enjoying.
- So customizable! My favorite burger bowl toppings are listed in the recipe below. However, you can easily use what you love, ignore the ingredients you don't, and add in any of your favorites that I might have missed. You can truly make your burger bowl your own!
Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- Ground Beef: I don't often use ground beef in recipes. My favorite "ground" meat is actually ground chicken! But when I use ground beef, I prefer to use grass fed ground beef (80% lean, 20% fat). If you're like me and generally prefer poultry over beef, you can also use ground chicken or ground turkey instead!
- Bacon: I like to use uncured natural bacon (no nitrites or nitrates) and bake it until it's crispy. You can also use turkey bacon if you'd like!
- Lettuce: This recipe calls for chopped romaine, but any type of greens would work! Feel free to use spring mix, iceberg, arugula, or spinach.
- Cheese: Cheddar cheese is pretty classic when it comes to cheeseburgers. However, you can definitely use any cheese you like best.
- Pineapple: Pineapple isn't a traditional topping on hamburgers, but I love adding it for a sweet and savory bite. The grill brings out the sweetness and gives it a light char.
- Burger Sauce: The homemade burger sauce is similar to a Big Mac sauce. It has mayonnaise, relish, ketchup, and mustard, so it's basically the only condiment you'll need for these delicious burger bowls!
⭐️ See recipe card below for descriptions and quantities of each ingredient.
Instructions
- Step 1: Preheat your grill to 450 degrees F and your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Step 2: While the grill and oven preheat, add all ingredients for the burger sauce to a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Step 3: Add strips of bacon in a single layer to the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until your desired level of crispiness is achieved. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Once any excess fat has been absorbed, crumble bacon into small pieces.
- Step 4: Lightly spray the grill with nonstick spray (or brush with oil). Place pineapple slices on the grill. Grill for 2 to 4 minutes, flip, and then grill another 2 to 4 minutes, or until both sides are lightly charred. Remove to a plate.
- Step 5: Set a skillet over medium heat. Add ground beef. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes, while breaking it apart with a spoon.
- Step 6: Season with worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon ketchup, 1 teaspoon mustard, garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, salt, and pepper. Stir to coat the ground beef.
- Step 7: To assemble the bowls, add lettuce to the bottom of each bowl. Top with a scoop of ground beef and the rest of your preferred burger toppings. Drizzle burger sauce over top.
⭐️ Tip: I like to use the 80/20 ground beef because it includes enough fat to keep the beef from drying out! You can use 90/10 but the beef may be a little drier in texture.
Substitutions and Alterations
- Ground Beef - You can use ground turkey or ground chicken instead.
- Bacon - You can leave out the bacon or use turkey bacon if you prefer.
- Romaine Lettuce - I like the crunch of romaine, but if you'd like to use a different green, you can opt for spring mix, arugula, iceberg, or spinach.
- Cheddar Cheese - American cheese, muenster, or smoked gouda would work well too.
- To make this gluten free - These deconstructed burger bowls are naturally gluten free because they're made in bowls, instead of on hamburger buns! Just make sure your worcestershire sauce is gluten free.
- To make this dairy free - You can leave out the cheddar cheese or use a plant based cheese instead.
- To make this vegetarian or vegan - For a vegetarian/vegan burger bowl, omit the ground beef and bacon. Use a plant based "meat," black beans, or simply just leave the beef out. To make it vegan, also use a vegan worcestershire sauce, cheese, and mayonnaise.
How to Store Burger Bowls
To store: Store leftover burger bowl components separately in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
To freeze: Freezing the toppings or the burger sauce is not recommended. However, you can prepare the ground beef ahead of time and freeze that for up to 6 months.
To reheat: Reheat ground beef in the oven at 300 degrees F for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until warmed through. Alternatively, you can reheat the beef in the microwave with a splash of water in 30 second intervals until warm.
Be careful not to overheat the beef, as this will dry it out!
Top tip!
Make the sauce first so the flavors have time to blend together before serving! The longer the sauce sits, the stronger the flavors will be.
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Share your cooking with me! If you make this recipe, I'd love to know. Leave a comment with a rating at the bottom of this page!
Quick and Easy Burger Bowls
No hamburger buns? No problem! These Quick and Easy Burger Bowls are a simple weeknight dinner filled with all of your favorite hamburger toppings and a homemade burger sauce. They can be made in just about 1 hour for a fun dinner your whole family will love!
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Servings: servings
Calories: 938kcal
Cost: $15
Equipment
Ingredients
For the Homemade Burger Sauce
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons sweet relish
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- 2 teaspoons white vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
For the Ground Beef
- 1 pound (16 ounces) ground beef I like to use grass fed (80/20)
- 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- 1 teaspoon yellow mustard
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
For the Toppings
- 1 pineapple, cored and sliced ½-inch thick into half moons
- 8 slices bacon I like to use uncured with no nitrites or nitrates
- 1 large head of romaine, chopped
- 2 tomatoes, diced
- 20 to 24 bread and butter (or dill) pickle slices
- ¼ red onion, finely diced rinse in water to remove some of the sharp bite
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 avocado, thinly sliced
Instructions
- Preheat your grill to 450 degrees F and your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- While the grill and oven preheat, add all ingredients for the burger sauce to a medium bowl. Whisk to combine. Set aside.
- Add strips of bacon in a single layer to the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes, or until your desired level of crispiness is achieved. Transfer bacon to a paper towel-lined plate. Once any excess fat has been absorbed, crumble bacon into small pieces.
- Lightly spray the grill with nonstick spray (or brush with oil). Place pineapple slices on the grill. Grill for 2 to 4 minutes, flip, and then grill another 2 to 4 minutes, or until both sides are lightly charred. Remove to a plate.
- Set a skillet over medium heat. Add ground beef. Cook for 5 to 8 minutes, while breaking it apart with a spoon.
- Season beef with worcestershire sauce, 1 tablespoon ketchup, 1 teaspoon yellow mustard, garlic powder, ½ teaspoon onion powder, salt, and pepper. Stir to coat the ground beef.
- To assemble the bowls, add lettuce to the bottom of each bowl. Top with a scoop of ground beef and the rest of your preferred burger toppings. Drizzle burger sauce over top.
Last step!Please consider leaving a review to let me know how you liked this recipe!
Notes
- If you do not have a grill, you can just use fresh diced pineapple instead of grilling it.
- I like to serve this with french fries or tator tots! You can either serve them in the bowl with the other toppings or on the side.
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- To make this gluten free - These deconstructed burger bowls are naturally gluten free because they're made in bowls, instead of on hamburger buns! Just make sure your worcestershire sauce is gluten free.
- To make this dairy free - You can leave out the cheddar cheese or use a plant based cheese instead.
- To make this vegetarian or vegan - For a vegetarian/vegan burger bowl, omit the ground beef and bacon. Use a plant based "meat," black beans, or simply just leave the beef out. To make it vegan, also use a vegan worcestershire sauce, cheese, and mayonnaise.
Nutrition
Calories: 938kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 71g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 17g | Monounsaturated Fat: 28g | Trans Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 127mg | Sodium: 1552mg | Potassium: 1059mg | Fiber: 7g | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 1057IU | Vitamin C: 116mg | Calcium: 211mg | Iron: 4mg
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