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Bacon and BBQ Burger Salad

  bbqbaconsalad

When my husband and I first started dating, we would meet up at our favorite local burger joint every Sunday evening. You see every Sunday night during the summer was half price burger night outside on the deck of the restaurant.

We were both young and poor and this was a fun, inexpensive date for us (our bill never went over $10!). We’d soak up the summertime sun, eat our burgers and talk about whatever two people young in love talk about.

This burger joint had the best burgers ever. They were so creative with what they could do with a simple hamburger and we decided that over the summer, we would try every single burger that this place offered.

We came to a hands down conclusion that the “western burger” was our favorite. It had a sweet sticky sauce coating the burger, making it extra messy. Which was awesome (not) because I would get in the car and see I still had it all over my face (thanks, Zach). The sticky coated burger was piled high with lettuce, tomato, onion, avocado, bacon, pickles, cheese and that sticky sauce would be dripping everywhere. It was the bomb and we loved it.

Bacon and BBQ Burger Salad

When we removed grains from our diet, I came up with this salad to replicate the tastes and flavors of our favorite burger. It quickly became a favorite and a heavily requested meal. This recipe is that western burger in salad form and I can’t even begin to tell you how good it is. The “sticky sauce” that coats the beef is more than enough for a dressing so no extra dressing is necessary. Trust me on that – I’m the one who always asks for extra salad dressing, so if I say you don’t need dressing, you really don’t need dressing. 

I hope you love it as much as we do! And I’d love for you to comment below and tell me about your favorite burger so I can try it in salad form 🙂 

Bacon and BBQ Burger Salad Recipe

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

 1 ½ lbs ground beef

1-2 heads of romaine lettuce, torn into pieces

1 slice of bacon per serving, cooked and crumbled (if you are serving 4, you’d need 4 bacon slices)

1 medium red onion, sliced thin

1 avocado, diced

1 pint of cherry tomatoes or 3 roma tomatoes, diced

1/2 dill pickle spear per serving, diced (if you are serving 4, you’d need 4 dill pickle halves), diced

½ heaping cup BBQ sauce*

1 ½ T yellow mustard

1 ½ T dijon mustard or spicy mustard

Optional ingredients: grated cheddar cheese if you tolerate dairy

 *This is by far our favorite BBQ sauce to use, but you can use any BBQ sauce you wish.

DIRECTIONS:

In a skillet over medium high heat, brown your ground beef. If there is a lot of excess fat, drain most of it off. Remove the skillet from the heat and add in the BBQ sauce and mustards. Mix well, coating all the beef. Set aside while you prepare the rest of the salad.

Divide the lettuce onto each plate or salad bowl. Pile on the ground beef on each plate/bowl. If you are using cheese, add it now so it will slightly melt. Next add your bacon, chopped tomatoes, pickles, avocados and onion. Serve immediately and enjoy!

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29 comments

  1. Avatar

    Hi. Very nice post and recipe. Since i have a web site that is gathering recipes from all around the world regarding BBQ can i please post there your recipe.

    THX in advance!

  2. Avatar

    This is so good! I’ve been trying to eat more salads so when I saw this I knew I had to try it! I will be making it again!

  3. Avatar

    One of our favorite salads now! 🙂

  4. Avatar

    Made this tonight for dinner and my husband declared it a favorite! Delicious!!

  5. Avatar

    Thanks for sharing this and the story behind it. I just made it for my young family. Hubby didn’t grow up eating very well and often we butt heads when it comes our eating lifestyle. He really loved this salad though! my five year old boy kept saying over and over how much he loved it, I’ve never seen him eat so much lettuce, tomato, or avocado, even my 24 month old daughter ate quite a bit of it. Thank you, Thank you!! I am adding this to our little list of favorite meals. 🙂

  6. Avatar
    Danielle Wilcock

    I tried this today after a friend recommended it in my fitness group. As a mom who stays home 5 days a week with three kids I want to say THANK YOU for making such a quick and easy but hearty and tasty salad option for us. I was impressed with how much my daughter (2yrs) ate everything. You were completely correct about not needing salad dressing. We made a few adjustments for our preference (cooked onions rather than raw & chopped carrot instead of cheese). We will definitely be making this again. I’m jealous that my Hubby gets to take the leftovers to work. Thanks again, I cannot wait to try more recipes!

  7. Avatar

    Loved this recipe! My favourite burger is from a Greek place in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is with ground lamb, feta cheese, olives, and homemade tzatziki sauce and of course cucumber, lettuce, tomato. Since I am celiac, I just order the burger without the bun. I am going to try and make the salad version this weekend -thanks for the idea!

  8. Avatar

    Making it tonight for my two small children and myself and can not wait for it, my mouth is watering already

  9. Avatar

    Omg I loved it and has shared it with everyone I know, and fyi my 6 and 3 yr old asked me when we were having it again! So easy to makr

  10. Avatar

    Eating this right now! It’s so delicious, and such a great way to make salad fun and exciting! There’s so many things you can do with it. I used a great organic bbq sauce from our local farmers market and added a little shredded pepper jack cheese. To die for! Thank you!

  11. Avatar

    I’ve made this MANY times now, and I’ve never thought anything but “wow, that’s my favorite salad in the world.” This makes my meat and potatoes husband happy on salad nights 🙂 This recipes is just plain good 🙂

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