A Muffin Tin Is All You Need For Deliciously Juicy Burger Bowls

If you're craving a burger but don't want the carbs that come with it, there are plenty of ways to skip the bun. Lettuce wraps are a classic, but another way to avoid carbs is with burger bowls, a creative way to transform ground beef and toppings into a delicious cup-shaped meal. Similar to meatloaf cups but cooked with a divot in the center to hold your burger toppings, burger bowls are a gluten-free, keto-friendly alternative to a summertime favorite. And if you have a muffin tin, it's easy to cook these keto-friendly bites right in the oven. 

With little prep work involved, burger bowls make a fuss-free and fast weeknight dinner. They're also simple to customize — every element from the meat to the toppings can be changed to your preferences. You can even serve the toppings separately and let family members or guests build them as a hands-on experience.

It's easy to adapt your favorite burger meat recipe to this recipe. Go plain with a simple salt and pepper mix, or add extras, such as garlic powder, Worcestershire sauce, or finely minced onions and garlic. And don't worry about overworking the meat. Unlike burger patties, which will lose their tenderness if you over-mix them, burger bowls will hold their shape better with a little extra mixing.

When filling the muffin tins, be sure to make large wells in the patty mixture — larger than you think you'll need. The meat will cause the beef to shrink while cooking, so it's good to overcompensate a little, especially around the edges. Use an offset spatula to carefully remove the burgers after cooking so they retain their shape. 

Optionally, you can grease the pans before baking to ensure the cups come out clean. But if you use 80/20 ground beef, the fat from the mix should keep the meat from sticking.

You can go classic with burger bowls, with a beef base and traditional burger toppings including cheddar, pickles, and ketchup. But there are plenty of ways to get creative, too. Try turkey instead of beef, topped with cheese, avocados, and thinly sliced red onions. Or go for a buffalo burger for extra protein and add sautéed mushrooms and Swiss.

If you want to stick with beef, try spicing things up with pickled jalapeños and sharp pepperjack, or a combination of tangy bleu cheese and smoky bacon. You can even fry an egg and make a breakfast burger bowl.

Anything you can think of that would make a good burger combination can be translated into a burger bowl. You can even try veggie or fish-based burger mixes to accommodate vegetarians and pescatarians. Serve them alongside salad or other vegetables for a fun, easy meal.