Weeknight burger bowls are built for speed and deliver wholly satisfying, hearty flavor. Easily seasoned ground beef combines with your favorite burger toppings and a spot-on burger sauce that checks all of the boxes for the burgers and fries of your dreams, just in bowl form. Served over low-prep lettuce and shortcut cabbage, this quick dinner recipe is ready in 30 minutes.
I got hooked on burger bowls after my postpartum freezer meals ran out, when we found a local meal prep company who saved our weeknights big time. Their meals were intended to be all heated up together so this big salad-esque version is a little different, but the spirit remains intact.
Making burger bowls at home means we have the luxury of different temperature ingredients. Something I loved about those bowls was that the burger patty and fixings were served over cabbage. Here I include cabbage in the form of coleslaw mix (zero prep!), along with leafy green lettuce. No worries of hot lettuce here.
In service of making these burger bowls as quick as possible for weeknights, I swapped their burger patties for simply cooked ground beef and replaced their roasted potato wedges with air fried frozen fries. Arguably more authentic to the burgers-and-fries vibe.
These burger bowls became an instant family favorite on repeat in my house, and I hope you love them too.
Super Weeknight-Friendly
The measurements in the recipe card look a little chaotic - some metric, some imperial, some shakes, dashes, or handfuls. My big goal here, alongside making a tasty and quick dinner recipe, was to dirty as few dishes as possible while still measuring precisely where it counts. Because washing a ton of dishes doesn't factor into my ideal Tuesday night plans, and I'm sure it doesn't yours either.
Both imperial and metric measurements are given for the burger sauce as I usually weigh the mayo, ketchup, and mustard right into the jar/bowl to cut down on dirtying measuring cups. The dried spices are given in how many shakes, as well as teaspoons if you'd rather.
Recipe Ingredients
A big burger salad bowl like this is prime for being loosey-goosey with the measurements, especially when it comes to toppings like tomatoes, onion, cheese, pickles, etc.
Beef: Go with your preferred fat percentage - I usually do 85/15.
Worcestershire sauce: Beefs up the beefiness!
Montreal steak seasoning: Funnily enough I never use it on steak but LOVE it on ground beef to give it a smoky, boldly savory flavor, reminiscent of a grilled burger.
Burger sauce: Mainly mayo, ketchup, honey (or Dijon) mustard, and some of the brine from the dill pickle jar - such an impactful little ingredient! If you have a store-bought burger sauce you like then go right ahead instead, though I haven't yet found any that hits the same notes as this homemade version. I've tried the one from Kinder's, but it's pretty different than this so I wouldn't recommend as a sub here.
Cheese: Use your favorite. I think yellow American cheese brings that classic burger taste, but cheddar is a good option, too. Bonus if using cheddar - you can find it pre-shredded to simplify prep even more.
Fries: And again: go with your favorite. IMO thicker steak fries would bring too much fluffy potato-y interior per bite. The kind I like is labeled "hand-cut style" and they're of average thinness.
Coleslaw mix: This is the absolute fastest way to include cabbage in a salad. A bag of coleslaw mix will be next to the lettuces and features shredded green and red cabbages and carrots. One time I bought a vegetable slaw (same as coleslaw except with shredded broccoli, too) when it was on sale and it was a great option as well.
Easy Steps
Make the burger sauce.
Whisk together mayo, ketchup, honey mustard, dill pickle brine, garlic and onion powders, and pepper.
Cook the fries.
Follow the package directions. I often will use the air fryer instructions as it takes around half the time as the oven. Get these going and then start on the beef to be efficient with time.
Cook the beef.
Crumble and fully cook ground beef on the stovetop. Drain fat as desired and season with Worcestershire sauce and Montreal steak seasoning partway through cooking once all of the beef is in small pieces.
Assemble the burger bowls.
Combine the lettuce and coleslaw mix in bowls, then add beef, cheese, onion, tomatoes, and pickle chips. Nestle some of the fries on the side, then top it all with a generous drizzle of burger sauce.
Tips and Tricks
- Potential fry swap - If it strikes your fancy and you don't mind a longer prep time, making croutons from sesame burger buns was an idea I (still) have jangling around my head. Cooking frozen fries in the air fryer is considerably quicker and less work so I went that direction instead.
- Extra shortcuts - Using a pre-shredded cheese (haven't found American in this format, though), keeping the cherry or grape tomatoes whole, using pre-cut lettuce, and making sure to use pickle chips can all reduce the prep time even further.
- Make-ahead tip - The burger sauce can be prepared up to two days ahead of time, refrigerated and kept covered in an air-tight container or jar. If you happen to have extra comeback sauce hanging around, stir in a little pickle brine and it works here, too.
- Storing leftovers - It's best to store the different components of these burger bowls separately so they all maintain the same textures.
More Weeknight-Friendly Dinners
Did you enjoy this recipe? I’d love for you to leave a star rating and a comment review in the recipe card below!
Weeknight Burger Bowls
Ingredients
For the Burger Sauce
- ½ cup (120g) mayonnaise (I use light)
- 2 Tablespoons (34g) ketchup
- 1 Tablespoon (15g) honey mustard or Dijon
- 1 ½ teaspoons dill pickle brine (from the jar)
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder (about 6-8 moderate shakes)
- ¼ teaspoon onion powder (about 2-4 moderate shakes)
- ⅛ - ¼ teaspoon freshly-cracked black pepper (about 5 twists), or to taste
For the Beef
- 1 pound ground beef (I like 85/15)
- 4 dashes Worcestershire sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Montreal steak seasoning
For the Bowls
- 14 ounces frozen french fries (about half a 28-ounce bag)
- Green leaf or romaine lettuce torn or chopped (about 1 big handful per person)
- Bagged coleslaw mix (about 1 big handful per person)
- 4 slices yellow American cheese chopped, or cheddar
- Thinly-sliced red onion to taste
- Dill pickle chips to taste
- Cherry tomatoes halved, to taste
Instructions
- Burger Sauce: Stir together all ingredients in a bowl or jar. Cover and refrigerate if making ahead of time.
- Fries: Cook according to the package directions. For speed, I will usually follow the air fryer instructions, especially since it's just a partial serving and they fit in one batch. If baking fries in the oven, put them in first thing (before preparing the burger sauce) as they'll need longer to cook.
- Beef: While the fries are cooking, add ground beef to a large skillet set over medium heat. Break it into crumbles as it cooks, seasoning with Worcestershire sauce and the Montreal steak seasoning once all of the beef is in small pieces. Continue to cook and crumble until the beef is fully-cooked, blotting or draining away fat as you like.
- Assembly: Toss equal amounts of lettuce and coleslaw mix in bowls, then top with beef, cheese, onion, pickles, tomatoes, and fries. Finish with a heavy drizzle of burger sauce.
Notes
- Measure shakes of garlic powder and onion powder into your hand, then add to the sauce, just in case the shaking goes awry.
- Burger sauce can be made up to two days ahead of time, kept refrigerated in an air-tight container or jar.
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Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.
Food Safety and Nutrition Disclaimer
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