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Move over, McDonald’s, this Big Mac Casserole has all the flavors of a classic Big Mac baked into one yummy 30-minute dinner! Packed with lean ground beef, potatoes, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and a drizzle of copycat Big Mac Sauce. It’s an easy, kid-friendly recipe to make on repeat!
Why You’ll Love This Big Mac Casserole Recipe
A bunless, gluten-free, McDonald's Big Mac in casserole form! This Big Mac in a bowl features ground beef and potatoes topped with all of your favorite burger toppings and that special Big Mac sauce! All of the classic flavors of your favorite burger and fries in one dish.
This easy dinner recipe is prepped and cooked in just 30 minutes. It's just as tasty as its fast food counterpart, without all the preservatives and junk. If your family loves burger bowls as much as mine, add my bacon cheeseburger bowls to your rotation next.
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Russet potatoes: Some versions of this casserole call for crispy tater tots, but I prefer diced potatoes as they are healthier and fresher and still have the "french fry" feel. You can try sweet potatoes or gold potatoes, but whichever you use, dice them small so they cook evenly!
- Lean ground beef: Use ground beef for the classic burger feel, or substitute ground turkey for a leaner burger swap.
- Seasonings: Just classic burger seasoning here: onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, salt, and black pepper.
- Shredded cheddar cheese: Use pre-shredded cheddar or grate from a block of cheese. You can swap for another type of cheese, but full-fat cheddar is my go-to.
- Cherry tomatoes: Big Macs don't typically feature tomatoes, so omit if needed. I like the extra veggies.
- Classic Big Mac toppings: shredded lettuce, dill pickle chips, and white onion.
- Big Mac sauce: This special sauce is made of Greek yogurt or mayonnaise, yellow mustard, pickle relish, ketchup, coconut aminos, salt, and paprika.
How To Make Big Mac Casserole
Step 1: Preheat oven to 375. Add oil to a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions & garlic and stir for 2-3 mins.
Step 2: Add onions & garlic and stir for 2-3 mins. Then, add diced potatoes and spices. Finally, add chicken broth. Cook for 10-15 mins, stirring often, until browned and softened.
Step 3: Add the onions and garlic to the bottom of a 9×13-inch casserole dish.
Step 4: Next, cook the ground beef & spices until cooked through. Drain the excess grease. Pour the ground beef mixture into the baking dish on top of the potatoes.
Step 5: Add the shredded cheese on top and bake for 15 minutes until the top of the casserole is golden brown. While it's baking, make your Big Mac sauce.
Step 6: Top the casserole with shredded lettuce.
Step 7: Next, add the tomatoes, pickles, and chopped onion.
Step 8: Lastly, add a drizzle of the Big Mac Sauce and enjoy!
Recipe Tips
- To save time, you can cook the potatoes and ground beef at the same time using 2 different pans, OR follow the steps in my air fryer home fries recipe to make them in the air fryer.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or oven and serve warm.
- I don't recommend freezing these Big Mac bowls, as the fresh veggies will not hold up well in the freezer. You can freeze the sauce or the ground beef and potato mixture for later use. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and use when ready to make your casserole.
Recipe FAQs
In my high protein version, I use Greek yogurt, yellow mustard, pickle relish, ketchup, coconut aminos, salt, and paprika. If desired, you can use Worcestershire sauce instead of coconut aminos, but keep in mind that it's not gluten-free, so you'll need to find a gluten-free version.
A Big Mac features a bun topped with sesame seeds, shredded iceberg lettuce, dill pickles, Big Mac sauce, white onion, cheese, two burger patties, and an extra bun in the middle. It does not have tomatoes, but I added them to these Big Mac bowls because I like tomatoes with my burgers!
More Big Mac Recipes
Big Mac Casserole Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For the potatoes:
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and diced small
- ½ white onion, diced
- 2 cloves minced garlic
- ¼ cup chicken broth
- ½ tsp paprika
For the Burger Meat:
- 2 lbs lean ground beef
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1.5 tsp salt
- ½ tsp pepper
Remaining Ingredients
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1.5 cups shredded lettuce
- ½ cup dill pickle chips
- ½ cup diced white onion
- 8 slices cooked bacon, crumbled, optional
- 1 batch Big Mac Sauce, click for recipe
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375. Add oil to a large skillet and heat over medium high.
- Add onions & garlic and stir for 2-3 mins. Add diced potatoes and spices. Add chicken broth. Cook for 10-15 mins, stirring often, until browned and softened. Add them to the bottom of a 9×13 inch casserole dish.
- Next, cook the ground beef & spices until cooked through. Add it on top of the potatoes.
- Add the cheese on top and bake for 15 mins.
- While it's baking, make your big mac sauce.
- Top the casserole with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and chopped onion and a drizzle of big mac sauce!
Notes
- Nutrition facts do not include Big Mac Sauce or optional cooked bacon.
- To save time, you can cook the potatoes and ground beef at the same time using 2 different pans, OR air fry the potatoes tossed with oil and spices for 15 mins at 400, tossing often, while you cook the beef.
- Use this Big Mac Sauce to make my high-protein version. Ingredients include Greek yogurt or mayo, yellow mustard, pickle relish, ketchup, coconut aminos, salt, and paprika.
- Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or oven and serve warm.
Nutrition
All nutrition facts are an estimate and automatically calculated. While I fact check them using My Fitness Pal, please note that they may not always be 100% accurate and depend on ingredients used. Weigh your total and divide by the number of servings for the most accurate grams per serving size.
So good. I’ve made it multiple times and I don’t deviate. Definitely make the sauce too! I keep the toppings on the counter and everyone can top their own in taco bar style serving. It’s great for meal prep.
This was a huge hit with my family. It definitely took me more than 30 minutes to make with the chopping but I’ll try to do that ahead of time next time.
This is delicious! How do you finish this in 30 minutes though? It takes me 1.5 hours and I’ve made it several times already, lol
My kids ask for this one regularly. It is easy and tastes great.
I made this last night. My family loved it. No leftovers and the sauce was amazing. They said it was one of the best meals I have made. Thank you for an easy recipe.
So glad to hear it, Mary! Thanks!
There are no tomatoes in a Big Mac LOL
Hi! What is the serving size for this meal? We ate it tonight and really liked it!
Hi! It’s 1/6 of the total recipe! You basically just have to eyeball it and visually divide the total casserole into 6 parts.
As I write this I am eating this Big Mac casserole and it’s delish! Very easy to make and truly gives you that fix of a fast food burger but of course so much better for you! Since we are talking Big Mac I sprinkled mine with sesame seeds! Will be making this again! Thanks Mary!
Thanks Kathy!
Hi! I’m planning on making this tonight and was curious if the nutritional info is based on dill pickle chips, or just sliced dill pickles. Your photos seem to have jarred pickles, and the instructions state to add pickles as a topping. Yet the ingredients list dill pickle chips. Can you please clarify? Thanks!
round pickle slices aka pickle chips are what I used for the nutrition info! It’s the same both ways – the recipe just calls for pickles…whether diced or in chip form.
Huge family hit right here. We used actual Chic fila sauce and I crumbled on fresh crispy bacon but otherwise such a winner and easy sell for the entire family (picky eaters included).
Thank you!