These Meal Prep Low Carb Big Mac Salad Jars are like a healthy cheeseburger – you probably already have the sauce ingredients!
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How to make Big Mac salad
The secret to making a fantastic Big Mac salad, or any salad in a jar for that matter, is layering correctly. These salad jars are easy to assemble, but be sure to follow the layering instructions for the best results.
The only preparations you need to make are to fully cook the ground beef in a skillet and to mix the sauce together.
Then you can start layering. Be sure to do so in this order:
- Salad dressing
- Cooked ground beef
- Onions
- Pickles
- Tomatoes
- Cheese
- Lettuce
This order will keep the salad dressing and ground beef from wilting the lettuce. Packing the onions on the warm ground beef will give them a chance to soften a bit.
Ingredients and substitutions
- extra-lean ground beef – you can totally use ground turkey or chicken to make these jars even healthier
- yellow onion – any type of onion will do
- dill pickles – any type of pickle will work, but dill pickles will give you that signature burger flavour
- plum tomatoes – Big Macs technically don't have tomatoes so feel free to leave these out. I just like to add a bit more colour and nutrition to these salads
- cheddar cheese – any type of cheese will work
- romaine lettuce – iceberg lettuce is more authentic to a Big Mac but this particular lettuce isn't as nutritious as romaine or other types of leaf lettuce. Romaine has a similar crunch to iceberg but packs more nutrition in per serving so that's why I use it with these jars. Feel free to use spinach, kale, arugula, Boston lettuce or any other type of greens you'd prefer to switch it up!
Big Mac sauce
- light mayo – feel free to use regular fat mayo or vegan mayo; unfortunately Greek yogurt or sour cream will not give you that signature flavour so mayo is the way to go here
- ketchup – there's no great substitute for this
- relish – you can chop up 1 tbsp of pickles instead
How to make the Big Mac sauce
This salad dressing couldn’t be easier. You already have the three ingredients in your house! Mayo, ketchup and relish are all you need.
You’ll find lots of copycat recipes online that include vinegar, but I’ve discovered you really don’t need it.
The measurements I’ve given will make more than you need for four salad jars. But don’t worry because it will keep in the refrigerator for a long time. Make a big batch and keep it for making these Big Mac salad jars in the future or just to have on hand for salad night at home.
What store bought sauce can I use instead?
There are now versions of Big Mac sauce that you can buy at the store. Feel free to keep a jar in the refrigerator and add it to this or any other salad.
There are other salad dressings that would also taste great on this. It’s basically a salad with ground beef so anything you like can be used. Some of my favorites are:
- Thousand Island dressing (the ingredients are very similar to what you will find in this Big Mac sauce)
- French dressing
- Mustard vinaigrette (it tastes just like one of the burger toppings!)
- Salsa will make it taste more like a taco
- Greek dressing will give it the feel of a gyro
How to serve salad jars
Mason jars are the perfect container for storing salads. They each have a lid. They’re vertical so they fit better in the refrigerator. Plus, they are easy to wash and reuse. You can find them in any store, and they are inexpensive. You never have to worry about plastic containers leaching questionable chemicals into your food either.
However, mason jars can be very difficult to eat from, especially if you don’t have the wide mouth variety.
Pour your salad onto a plate to make it easy to mix everything together and eat.
Storing Big Mac salad jars
The prepared salad jars will last in the refrigerator for up to five days. This means they are perfect for meal prep.
This recipe will make four servings. You can have nearly a whole week’s worth of lunches ready in about 30 minutes.
If you are preparing lunches for a crowd, you can easily double or triple this recipe.
The Big Mac dressing will also last for a long time in the refrigerator. If it becomes a family favorite, you can make a large batch to use any time!
Freezing the ground beef
While you can’t freeze salad, you can make the ground beef in advance and freeze for up to four months. You’ll want to thaw it in the refrigerator overnight before adding to your salad jar.
What you can also do is store the ground beef separately and reheat in the microwave or a skillet with a pinch of water to revive the beef and make it taste just like new!
More mason jar meal prep recipes
Meal prep tools
- These are the Mason jars I use.
- You can even get Big Mac sauce online if you're too lazy to make the sauce
- And of course I get all my grass-fed beef from Butcher Box!
Big Mac Salad Jars {Meal Prep, Low Carb}
Ingredients
- 1 lb extra-lean ground beef
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 1/2 cup dill pickles, chopped
- 2 plum tomatoes, diced
- 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 cups romaine lettuce, chopped
Big Mac sauce
- 1/2 cup light mayo
- 2 tbsp ketchup
- 1 tbsp relish
Instructions
- Cook ground beef with salt in a medium-sized skillet over med-high heat until fat has absorbed and beef is fully cooked, about 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, mix Big Mac sauce ingredients together. Divide sauce among 4 mason jars. Top with ground beef, then layer with onions, pickles, tomatoes, cheese and lettuce.
- Store in the fridge up to 5 days - serve by dumping into a large bowl and enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Madeline says
426kcal is equivalent to 426000 calories I would have to say this is incorrect. Did you mean 426cal per jar?
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Madeline – it is 426 calories per jar.
Susan Ritchie says
Actually food is measured in kilocalories or Calories- I frequently see kcal used as an abbreviation. This article explains https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-food-manufacturers/
Ginger Pope says
Thanks, I can’t wait to try this recipe.
Francesca says
Where does the 1/2 tsp salt go?
It’s not in the directions or in the video….I’m confused.
Taylor Stinson says
It goes in with the beef – I have just updated the recipe to reflect that. Sorry for any confusion!
Iris says
When refrigerating the salad, do you eat the beef cold or do you have to heat it up?
SUsan says
This sounds yummy do you have a suggestion for a sugar free big Mac dressing. No sugar at all so no artificial sugar either. Thanks
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Susan – I’m afraid you would have to try sugar free ketchup and relish. I wish I had more helpful suggestions.
Veronica says
What size mason jar do you use for these salads? Thanks! 🙂
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Veronica – I have the mason jars I use linked right above the recipe card under the Meal Prep Tools heading 🙂
MandiP says
Super easy and super delicious! Will make again!
Andrea Morse says
You’re recipe for “Big Mac” sauce is how I’ve been making Thousand Islad salad dressing for decades!
Tabitha says
I notice it says 15 grams of carbs. Is that for all 4 salads or per salad ?
Taylor Stinson says
Hi Tabitha – all nutritional info is per salad.
Katelyn Elmore says
Is the nutrition for 1 jar or the 4??
Taylor Stinson says
It’s for one jar 🙂
Linda says
Incredible!!!! I can’t believe how much this tastes like a Big Mac. This recipe has been moved from my “recipes to try” board to my “favourites” board. I will be checking out your other recipes for sure. Thank you so much.