Big Mac Casserole

by Sabrina Snyder

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13 Comments

5 from 6 votes
8 servings
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
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Big Mac Casserole is a kid friendly dinner with all the flavors of a Big Mac meal in one dish. Don’t forget the Special Big Mac Sauce!

This cheeseburger-inspired Tater Tot Casserole is about to be your family’s new favorite Weeknight Dinner just like Sloppy Joe Casserole. Your kids will be asking you to skip the drive thru and make this instead!

Sabrina’s Big Mac Casserole Recipe

Thanks to a generous serving of a spot-on Big Mac Special Sauce Copycat, every bite of this tasty casserole is like eating a Big Mac and fries all at once! The famous sauce can be made in just minutes for this easy casserole. Don’t forget to make a little extra to upgrade your savory, beefy dishes all week long. 

Recipe Card

Dinner, then Dessert

Big Mac Casserole Recipe

Big Mac Casserole is a kid friendly dinner with all the flavors of a Big Mac meal in one dish. Don't forget the Special Big Mac Sauce!
Yield 8 servings
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 55 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Dinner
Cuisine American
Author Sabrina Snyder
A white dish of Casserole ready to serve
PrintRate

Ingredients
 

  • 2 pounds ground beef , 85/15
  • 1 cup Big Mac Sauce , recipe
  • 1 cup onion , diced
  • 1 tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon pepper
  • 6 slices American cheese , chopped
  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese , divided
  • 32 ounces frozen tater tots

Toppings

  • 1 cup iceberg lettuce , shredded
  • 1/2 cup tomatoes , diced
  • 2-3 slices American cheese , diced into small pieces

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  • In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until browned and onions are translucent.
  • Add the Big Mac Sauce, American cheese, ½ cup shredded cheese, garlic powder, salt, and black pepper to the skillet and mix well.
  • In a 9×13 pan layer the beef, then the remaining cheese and finally line up the tater tots before baking for 45 minutes uncovered.
  • Top with diced tomatoes, shredded lettuce, and American cheese to serve.

Notes

Big Mac Sause Recipe
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
    ¼ cup creamy French dressing
    2 tablespoons sweet relish
    1 tablespoon ketchup
    1 teaspoon white vinegar
    ¼ teaspoon onion powder
    ⅛ teaspoon kosher salt
  • Mix until combined. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Nutrition

Calories: 710kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 32g | Fat: 49g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 121mg | Sodium: 1562mg | Potassium: 786mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 529IU | Vitamin C: 12mg | Calcium: 365mg | Iron: 4mg

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About This Recipe

This quick and delicious casserole is one that the whole family will go crazy for and you will love too! It has all the flavor of a junk food feast without any of the preservatives and it’s much more budget friendly. All you need is some ground beef, pantry seasonings, cheese, and a bag of frozen tots, plus a big helping of that amazing special sauce! The meat layer comes together in minutes and the whole dish is ready in under an hour for a hearty, filling one pan dinner that tastes better than any drive-thru burger meal.

Ingredients

  • Big Mac Sauce: This signature sauce, inspired by McDonald’s, provides the distinctive “Big Mac” flavor. It’s similar to a Thousand Island dressing but a bit more vinegary and sweet. There is a spot-on copycat recipe for this delicious secret sauce in this post.
  • Seasonings: Cooking the onions in the beef give it a savory, slightly sweet, aromatic flavor. The seasoning blend of garlic powder, salt, and black pepper give the beefy mixture that hamburger taste without overpowering or competing with the special sauce.
  • American Cheese: Chopped American cheese adds a creamy, slightly tangy, goodness to the beefy filling. American cheese melts really well so it gives a smooth texture to the meaty casserole filling.
  • Cheddar Cheese: Shredded cheddar cheese provides a sharp, tangy flavor that contrasts nicely with the milder American cheese. It also melts beautifully, giving it a gooey, melty top layer.
  • Tater Tots: These potato bites offer a crispy, golden exterior and soft interior, and make the perfect topping for easy casserole dishes. You don’t want to defrost them beforehand or they will overcook and they won’t have the right texture. 
  • Toppings: It wouldn’t be a Big Mac dish without some classic Big Mac toppings. You definitely want fresh crisp lettuce and juicy diced tomatoes to break up the savory, rich burger and fries flavors of this heavy casserole. And of course, some extra melty American cheese never hurt anyone!
  • Ground Beef: An 85/15 blend of ground beef is good for baked dishes because it stays moist thanks to the bit of fat. It doesn’t have as much fat as 80/20 beef so you don’t need to drain the meat. If you do use a higher fat beef, drain the meat so your filling isn’t greasy.

Can this be made ahead of time?

Yes, this casserole is a great dinner to make ahead of time! You can either double the recipe and freeze one pan for later, or divide the original recipe into two smaller foil pans. An 8 × 8 pan will feed about 4-5 people. Prepare the filling and layer the casserole as usual. Wrap the pan tightly with plastic wrap, then foil, before freezing up to 3 months. It can be baked from frozen. Remove plastic wrap and foil before baking from frozen for about an hour.

What To Pair with Big Mac Casserole

Casserole makes an easy weeknight meal with kid friendly veggie sides like Roasted Broccoli. Go big with the McDonald’s cheeseburger flavor and serve along with Big Mac Salad. Serve your cheeseburger casserole with favorite burger toppings, like tomato and pickles, and a drizzle of extra Big Mac Sauce.

How to store

  • Serve: Casserole is best served hot and fresh for the crispiest tots. Keep at room temperature for up to 2 hours before storing.
  • Store: Transfer casserole to an airtight container, or cover with foil, and refrigerate for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven to crisp the tots back up.
  • Freeze: For best results, freeze this casserole in a freezer safe baking dish, covered tightly with plastic wrap and foil, for up to 3 months. Bake from frozen or thaw overnight in the refrigerator before reheating.

Alternative Cooking Techniques

Slow Cooker

  • Cook the beef and onions in a skillet until no longer pink and onions are soft.
  • Drain the grease and transfer beef mixture to a slow cooker.
  • Stir in remaining ingredients except half the shredded cheese and tater tots.
  • Cover the meat with the reserved shredded cheese and tots over cheeseburger filling.
  • Cover top of crockpot with a paper towels to absorb moisture.
  • Secure the lid and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours, or high for 2 to 3 hours.

Frequent Questions

What size baking dish should you use?

For this Big Mac Casserole recipe, you should use a 9×13 inch casserole dish. This size will provide ample space for all the ingredients to layer evenly and cook properly.

What is Big Mac sauce made of?

Big Mac sauce, inspired by McDonald’s, is allegedly made from mayonnaise, sweet pickle relish, yellow mustard, vinegar, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika, but the exact amounts of each ingredient are unknown. This recipe uses French dressing and a bit of ketchup to get the spot on flavor without the guess work.

What does Big Mac Sauce taste like?

Big Mac Sauce has a distinct, tangy flavor with a slightly sweet undertone similar to Thousand Island Dressing. It’s creamy and rich, thanks to the mayonnaise base, with the tanginess largely coming from the pickle relish and vinegar. The blend of spices gives it a savory depth and a hint of smokiness.

What goes in a Big Mac? 

A traditional Big Mac from McDonald’s consists of two beef patties, American cheese, iceberg lettuce, pickles, minced onions, and the iconic Big Mac Sauce, all sandwiched between a three-part sesame seed bun. The middle bun, known as the u0022clubu0022 layer, is an additional layer of bread placed between the two beef patties.

Variations

  • Bacon: Bacon makes everything better! Add 6-8 slices cooked, crumbled bacon to the cooked beef mixture or mix in 2-3 tablespoons bacon bits.
  • Meat: Use any ground meat instead of ground beef like ground turkey, ground sausage, or ground chicken. If using a leaner ground meat, add a tablespoon oil to the skillet when browning.
  • Big Mac Sauce: The copycat Big Mac Sauce is where it’s at but you can use Thousand Island in a pinch. Add a tablespoon of sweet pickle relish and an extra bit of ketchup to get the dressing closer to the special sauce flavor.
  • Potatoes: You can swap the frozen tots for frozen french fries, sweet potato puffs, shredded hash browns, or diced potatoes. If you use thawed potatoes, just reduce the cooking time by 15-20 minutes.

More Delicious Big Mac Recipes

Big Mac Tater Tot Casserole collage

Photos used in previous versions of the post

ingredients in a bowl before they are mixed together
Square of Big Mac Tater Tot Casserole on white plate
Baking pan of Big Mac Tater Tot Casserole
Big Mac Tater Tot Casserole collage

About the Author: Sabrina Snyder

Sabrina is a professionally trained Private Chef of over 10 years with ServSafe Manager certification in food safety. She creates all the recipes here on Dinner, then Dessert, fueled in no small part by her love for bacon.

Sabrina Snyder is a professionally trained personal and private chef of over 10 years who is the creator and developer of all the recipes on Dinner, then Dessert.

She is also the author of the cookbook Dinner, then Dessert – Satisfying Meals Using Only 3, 5 or 7 Ingredients, published by Harper Collins.

She started Dinner, then Dessert as a business in her office as a lunch service for her coworkers who admired her lunches before going to culinary school and becoming a full time personal chef and private chef.

As a personal chef Sabrina would cook for families one day a week and cook their entire week of dinners. All grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning was done along with instructions on reheating. As a private chef she cooked for private parties and cooked in family homes in the evenings for families on a nightly basis after working as a personal chef during the day.

Sabrina has been certified as a ServSafe Manager since 2007 and was a longstanding member of the USPCA Personal Chef Association including being on the board of the Washington DC Chapter of Chefs in the US Personal Chef Association when they won Chapter of the year.

As a member of the community of food website creators Sabrina Snyder has spoken at many conferences regarding her experiences as a food writer including the Indulge Food Conference, Everything Food Conference, Haven Food Conference and IACP Annual Food Professionals Conference.

Sabrina lives with her family in sunny California.

See more posts by Sabrina

Dinner, then Dessert, Inc. owns the copyright on all images and text and does not allow for its original recipes and pictures to be reproduced anywhere other than at this site unless authorization is given. Read my disclosure and copyright policy. This post may contain affiliate links.

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Comments

  5. Fantastic! This will be used again, but I added pickles on top of the tator tots when I took it out of the oven. Love it!

    Reply

  6. I made this tonight with your recipe for the Big Mac sauce. My husband and my son absolutely LOVE it! They both asked me to make it again. This recipe is a keeper.

    Reply