Big Mac

Name: Big Mac
Prep time: 12 min
Cook time: 21 min
Total time: 33 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: United States
Ingredients: 400g Minced Beef; 2 tbs Olive Oil; 2 Sesame Seed Burger Buns; Chopped Onion; 1/4 Iceberg Lettuce; 2 sliced Cheese; 2 large Dill Pickles; 1 cup Mayonnaise; 2 tsp White Wine Vinegar; Pinch Pepper; 2 tsp Mustard; 1 1/2 tsp Onion Salt; 1 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder; 1/2 tsp Paprika

By The Spice & Simmer Kitchen · Published May 3, 2026

A one-pot Beef recipe with United States flavors, built for busy weeknights when you want real food without a sink full of dishes. Comes together in roughly 51 minutes, serves about 4, and uses ingredients you can find at any normal grocery store. The technique is simple: build a base in your pot, layer in the main ingredients, simmer until everything has had time to talk to each other, and serve straight from the pan. If you're cooking for picky eaters, this one tends to land — the flavors are recognizable, the texture is comforting, and there's nothing weird hiding in the ingredient list. Perfect for the kind of evening where you want dinner on the table by 7pm and the kitchen empty by 7:30.

Ingredients

Makes 4 servings · 33 min total

400g Minced Beef
2 tbs Olive Oil
2 Sesame Seed Burger Buns
Chopped Onion
1/4 Iceberg Lettuce
2 sliced Cheese
2 large Dill Pickles
1 cup Mayonnaise
2 tsp White Wine Vinegar
Pinch Pepper
2 tsp Mustard
1 1/2 tsp Onion Salt
1 1/2 tsp Garlic Powder
1/2 tsp Paprika

Step-by-step instructions

For the Big Mac sauce, combine all the ingredients in a bowl, season with salt and chill until ready to use.
To make the patties, season the mince with salt and pepper and form into 4 balls using about 1/3 cup mince each. Place each onto a square of baking paper and flatten to form into four x 15cm circles. Heat oil in a large frypan over high heat. In 2 batches, cook beef patties for 1-2 minutes each side until lightly charred and cooked through. Remove from heat and keep warm. Repeat with remaining two patties.
Carefully slice each burger bun into three acrossways, then lightly toast.
To assemble the burgers, spread a little Big Mac sauce over the bottom base. Top with some chopped onion, shredded lettuce, slice of cheese, beef patty and some pickle slices. Top with the middle bun layer, and spread with more Big Mac sauce, onion, lettuce, pickles, beef patty and then finish with more sauce. Top with burger lid to serve.
After waiting half an hour for your food to settle, go for a jog.

Why this works on a weeknight

Big Mac lands at about 33 minutes total — a little longer than our 30-minute target, but most of that time is hands-off simmering, which is why it earned a spot in our Skillet & One-Pan collection. The technique is forgiving, the ingredient list is grocery-store standard, and the active cooking time is short enough that you can answer a text message in the middle without ruining dinner.

Cleanup notes

This is a single-pan recipe, so the cleanup is exactly one pan, one cutting board, and one knife. While the dish rests, fill the pan with hot soapy water — by the time you are done eating, the residue lifts off with a single pass of a sponge. Skip the steel wool on cast iron; a stiff brush and warm water are all you need to keep the seasoning intact.

Make-ahead and leftovers

Leftovers keep covered in the fridge for up to three days. Reheat in a dry pan over medium-low with a splash of water or stock to loosen the sauce. Big Mac actually improves overnight as the flavors keep talking to each other, so doubling the recipe and packing tomorrow's lunch is a high-leverage weeknight move.

Filed under 🥘 Skillet & One-Pan Beef United States