Cheeseburger Salad in a Jar with Special Sauce
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my Disclosure and Privacy Policy.
If you love cheeseburgers you’ll love this cheeseburger salad in a jar recipe! Loaded with romaine lettuce, hamburger with ketchup and mustard, cheese, tomatoes, onions, pickles and special sauce, this jar salad is perfect for taking on the go for lunch or your next picnic.
I love dill pickles. When I think of pickles and my favorite foods to eat them with, I immediately think of a cheeseburger. It is certainly a classic combination. While I can eat a cheeseburger without pickle, it just doesn’t feel quite the same with out that added crunch and dill flavor. Wouldn’t you agree? When I was recently challenged to come up with a salad in a jar recipe using Farmer’s Garden by Vlasic pickles, a cheeseburger salad came to mind. While I had never technically seen one before, it didn’t seem like such a stretch. I love taco salads and that seemed so similar. Why not a cheeseburger?
I was asked to use an old Farmer’s Garden by Vlasic pickle jar for my salad in a jar recipe. That was not hard since I already had two on hand from my previous dessert with pickles, including a Pineapple Pickle Bundt Cake and Strawberry Rhubarb Sauce on my other blog, Oh My! Sugar High. (Check them out when you get a chance!) This jar really is a perfect size for the job and makes for a nice presentation. Who needs a mason jar when you have a pickle jar that looks like this?
How to Make a Cheeseburger Salad in a Jar
For the dressing, I thought of thousand island or even better, that special sauce we all know and love on our burgers. That also meant two opportunities to use pickles!
When layering a salad in a jar, it is important to put the dressing on the bottom and the lettuce on the top to avoid wilting. I picked cherry tomatoes and pickles as my bottom layers because I knew they could handle sitting in the dressing. The cheese is the trickiest for placement. I knew I’d be serving these salads with the meat slightly above room temperature because that is my preference. So my freshly shredded cheese did soften a bit. I would recommend letting the meat cool completely if you want to store this for a while in the fridge. And if cold hamburger bothers you, I would suggest keeping the meeting a separate container so you can heat up only that later.
The best part about a salad in a jar is how easy they are to transport and then serve. With the lettuce on top and dressing on the bottom, the contents come out in the perfect order when you dump them onto your plate.
I wondered how much I would like the homemade special sauce. It wasn’t my usual type of salad dressing, but it did not disappoint. I seriously fell in love with this entire salad.
My husband devoured his and told me that I definitely need to make this again. I’d love to bring this for us on our next picnic or outing to the beach! I could make extra and my husband could bring them to work as a nice alternative. The possibilities are endless.
I slightly adapted this special sauce recipe. I diced up a single Farmer’s Garden by Vlasic Kosher Dill spear (removing the heavily seeded area first) instead of using sweet pickle relish. If you don’t have time to make the special sauce or just prefer the taste of thousand island dressing, I’m certain it would taste absolutely delicious as well!
Cheeseburger Salad in a Jar
Ingredients
- 1/2 lb extra lean ground beef
- 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
- 3 Farmer's Garden by Vlasic Kosher Dill Pickle Spears chopped
- 1 small red onion
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 5 romaine lettuce leaves chopped
- 2/3 cup Thousand Island Dressing or Special Sauce
Instructions
-
Cook ground beef in skillet over medium heat approximately 5 to 7 minutes or until fully cooked and no longer pink. (Add 1/4 cup finely chopped onion halfway through if desired.) Stir in ketchup and mustard to cooked beef. Lower heat to medium-low and cook until warmed through. Set aside and cool.
-
Layer contents into two mason or pickle jar (approximately 26 oz jar) starting with dressing then tomatoes, pickles, onions, cheese, cooled beef mixture and finally lettuce.
-
Serve immediately (or soon after) or store in refrigerator up to 4 days.
Now I’ m motivated to see what other types of salad I can make in my old Farmer’s Garden by Vlasic pickle jars.
Do you have a favorite Salad in a Jar?
Farmer’s Garden by Vlasic kicked off a program called Savor Simplicity this past May, meant to celebrate life’s simple joys and share recipes, BBQ tips and summer entertaining ideas. They share so many delicious and unique recipes!
Out of Canning Jars?
If you need more jars, you can have them shipped to you with free two day shipping from Walmart with a purchase of $35 or more. Get these Kerr Wide Mouth 1 Qt Canning Jars right now for under $10! You can also always check our affiliate Amazon for good prices on canning jars.
Disclosure: I received compensation for my time to create this recipe and post. All thoughts are my own.
yum!!! I have been wanting to try salads in a jar and this salad sounds yummy!!!
I started doing the salad in a jar – it’s great!
I’ve never heard of this before, but it looks delicious and I’m willing to give it a try!
This sounds like something I should consider for the nights I get home late from work and am hungry but don’t feel like cooking so late. Perfect!
I would leave out the onion, but otherwise this sounds and looks delicious! I have a coworker who swears by salads in Mason jars. I will have to try making some.
I am so going to make this,I think it sounds so darn good
These are great for on the go to a picnic in the park or just a quick lunch if heading out the door. I love a BLT salad the most with ranch. YUM!
I like the looks and sounds of the special sauce dressing, this salad looks really good.
you really made a winner with this recipe – I’m lovin it!!! A great way to make a healthy meal to take with you on a picnic, etc., just put the jars in a cooler!!! No need to try to compose a salad onsite!!! It is soo cute, they had a good idea using a pickle jar!
this is so neat and convenient! looks really good too. Id love to try it
This recipe looks very tasty. Thanks for sharing!
Seriously brilliant! what a great way to make a salad so much more exciting! Thanks for sharing
I love meals in a jar, this one looks great!!
I have got to make this for my husband! he’s not a huge fan of salads but this is one I think he might actually eat!
Love this idea! Thanks for sharing.