How do you go through life without needing to grab a burger every now and then? Even a veggie burger! My answer is you cant! We all know that when you are dieting you are supposed to stay away from burgers and pizza but on the keto diet you can literally have your cake and eat it too! You can make deconstructed hamburgers- just remove the bun and use lettuce. And of course you can have crockpot crust-less pizza too 🙂
You can pretty much find a substitute for anything you crave on the keto diet and that is one of the reasons I just love it! Its not like being on a diet, its more about creative with your foods and exploring new possibilities.
Plenty of people struggle with burgers, even though they should be one of the simplest things to make. The reason, I think, is that they never really learned how—and have made something simple, complicated. This is my return to the basics, and one I return to on a regular basis when I just want a burger. As always, modify according to your tastes.

DECONSTRUCTED BURGERS
Ingredients
Burgers
- 1 pound ground beef
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
- 1 tablespoon bacon fat or fat of choice, such as ghee or lard
- 3 ounces cheese as desired
Burger Sauce
- 1/4 cup mayonnaise
- 1 tablespoon ketchup sugar-free (or substitute with sugar-free tomato paste)
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon pickle grated
- salt to taste
- pepper to taste
Toppings
- 1 head iceberg lettuce
- 2 tomatoes sliced
- 8 pickles sliced
Instructions
- Start by making your burger patties. Gently divide your ground beef into four portions of roughly equal size, using your hands to shape each loosely into a burger shape. Be careful not to squeeze or pack too roughly, or you will lose juiciness as your patties cook. Season with salt and pepper to desired preference on each side.
- Heat a large pan greased with bacon fat (or your fat of choice) over high heat, using a spatula to transfer your burger patties to the hot pan. Cook 3 minutes, flip over with the spatula and cook an additional 2-3 minutes, topping with cheese in the last minute before removing from heat and setting aside.
- Meanwhile, make your burger sauce by mixing mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, lemon juice, and grated pickle in a bowl, seasoning with salt and pepper as desired.
- Finally, to assemble the deconstructed burgers, tear off your lettuce leaves and place in a serving bowl. To put the burgers together, use the lettuce leaves as a bun, adding sauce and serving with desired toppings.
Notes
- Large pan
- Spatula
- Chopping knife
- Cutting board
- Bowls
- Serving plates