It’s Not Fancy, But My Family Loves Me For This.
In my life as a mom, I have different reasons to pull out different recipes.
- Need more protein? This one.
- Want fast flavor? This one.
- Prepping for the week? This one.
- Feeding a crowd? This one.
Then there is the elusive category of “Need Something My Whole Family Will Love.” When I need to feel confident that all kids and adults in the house will enjoy a meal, that’s when I pull these burger bowls out.
Burger bowls aren’t really new concept, but these are the things I’ve been doing over the last few months that make me love them so much:
- The method for cooking the beef (bigger, juicier chunks!)
- Ranch fries. (Waffle fries = fork friendly, and the ranch coating needs no explanation. YUM.)
- House sauce. (Creamy, bitey, delicious.)
Technically the house sauce puts the ingredient list at the higher end of an SOS level, but I wouldn’t be doing right by anyone to not include it. It’s luscious but also kind of sharp and delicious. And, if it’s just not doable (been there), grab a store-bought burger sauce!
Hope you love these!
PS. If you love easy dinner recipes, don’t miss these ones!
Video To Make These Burger Bowls
Burger Bowls with House Sauce and Ranch Fries
Total Time: 30 minutes
Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
A burger in a bowl! Ranch-seasoned fries topped with juicy burger chunks and all the fixings, with a drizzle of house sauce to take it over the top!
Ingredients
Units
Scale
Burger Bowls:
- 1 lb. ground beef (85/15 for the juiciest)
- 2 teaspoons burger seasoning (one teaspoon per side)
- Shredded lettuce
- Diced tomatoes
- Diced burger pickles
Ranch Fries:
- 1 22–ounce bag frozen waffle fries
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 1-ounce packet ranch seasoning mix (or 3 tablespoons)
House Sauce:
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 2 tablespoons ketchup
- 1 teaspoon horseradish
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 clove grated garlic
Instructions
- For the ranch fries: Bake the fries according to package directions. Add butter to the sheet pan and toss to get the fries kinda juicy. Then toss those juicy fries with ranch seasoning, adding more or less depending on how many fries you make, and your level of ranch obsession. Yummy.
- For the sauce: Whisk your sauce. Taste and season with salt. Or, use a store-bought burger sauce!
- For the beef: Heat a cast iron over high heat with no oil (use a well-seasoned pan). You want that pan to be very hot so it’ll sear the beef. Season one side of the ground beef with 1 teaspoon burger seasoning. Add the ground beef to the hot pan, seasoning side down (see video for how I did this straight from package). Resist the urge to break it up immediately – leave it undisturbed for several minutes to get a nice browned crust. The fat will start to render and it should start to develop some browning.
- To finish the beef: Sprinkle the exposed side with the other teaspoon of seasoning. After a few minutes, flip the beef in large chunks – you want to break it up into fork-sized bits, but not too small – this just keeps it juicy and makes it more pleasant to eat with a fork. Once it’s well-browned, remove from heat.
- Assemble: Put it all together! The juicy burger crumbles, the ranch fries, the toppings, the house sauce. It’s SO yum.
Notes
Burger Seasoning: This is the one I’ve been using! (affiliate link) But there are many options we’ve tried from the grocery store and they’ve honestly all been pretty good. Hard to go wrong. If you don’t have a burger seasoning and want to use just salt and pepper, I would use 3/4 teaspoon of kosher salt per side on the beef.
About the beef: The goal is juicy, medium-big chunks with a nice golden brown crust. Using a very high heat to get the sear helps do this quickly so the beef doesn’t get dried out. I will even pull the beef off the heat when the insides are still a little pink, if I’ve gotten that nice crust on the outside. Kind of the same way you would do for a regular burger.
About the pan: You can use a different type of pan; the reason I recommend cast iron is because it gets very hot and will be easiest to give you that nice sear. But I’ve also made the beef in a nonstick pan and it still does okay! Not a big deal if you don’t have a cast iron.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: burger bowls, burger in a bowl, burger salad
