The Big Mac. I can recall when it first came out. It was 1968 when it went nationwide. Most of us couldn't eat a whole one. So we would go to McDonalds, get one, split it and the fries and call it a meal! I recently, about three years ago, bought one. I remembered how good it tasted. There was a grill-like character to the sauce was fresh and cold. The lettuce had crunch and the pickles were tangy. And the cheese? It was thickly sliced and cheesy.
Should I mention here that my attempt to munch down memory lane failed miserably? There's a reason and I'll explain that at the bottom. In the meantime, please enjoy a healthier version of the Big Mac designed for today's health conscious life.
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 8 oz lettuce or spinach
- 1 cup tomatoes (chopped)
- 1/2 small onion chopped (optional)
- 3/4 cup cheddar cheese (shredded)
- 1/2 cup dill pickles (diced/chips)
- Sesame seeds
- 1/2 cup mayo
- 2 tbsp pickles
- 2 tsp mustard
- 1 tsp white vinegar
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1.5 tbsp powdered erythritol
- Cook ground beef in a skillet with salt and pepper.
- Puree mayo, pickles, mustard, white vinegar, paprika and sugar in a blender.
- Add more water if needed.
- Refrigerate until ready to serve.
- In a large bowl, add lettuce, cheese, tomato, onion, ground beef, and pickles.
- Top with sesame seeds.
- Toss with dressing
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, many McDonald's restaurants cooked burgers on flat-top grills with more variation from store to store. The sesame seed bun recipe has been modified over the decades to improve shelf life, softness, and consistency. The one we used to have was denser. Food manufacturers have changed ingredients, preservatives, and oils to meet regulations and consumer preferences which has had an affect on the sauce flavor. McDonald's now commonly uses dehydrated onions that are rehydrated before serving on many burgers and before it used finely chopped fresh onion. Beef, cheese, pickles, lettuce, and other ingredients now come from different suppliers and are produced under modern standards. They used to be gleaned locally.