Big Mac Smash Tacos

By The Modern Nonna

on Jun 06, 2023, Updated May 30, 2025

4.64 from 52 votes
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These Big Mac Smash Tacos are 500/10! If you love McDonalds, then you’ll love this recipe. This is a smash 🍔 burger on top of a tortilla and then topped with my delicious homemade Mac Sauce. Every bite you take is heavenly so don’t be afraid to double the recipe as your family won’t be able to get enough. This recipe is the best way to get fast food at home, and honestly, it takes ⏲️ less time than the drive-thru!

Table of Contents

Big Mac Smash Tacos. Three open-faced cheeseburger flatbreads topped with melted cheese, lettuce, chopped onions, sliced pickles, and sauce, on parchment paper. A small bowl of extra pickles is in the background.

Why You’ll Love Big Mac Smash Tacos

These Big Mac Smash Tacos will leave the whole family satisfied. The flavors are exactly like the fast food favorite, but ultimately healthier because it’s made fresh at home with ingredients you can control. My homemade Mac Sauce is perfection, and tastes just like the real thing: creamy, tangy, and sweet, and great with burgers, hot dogs, or as a dip for fries. These use tortillas as a bun and fry up in minutes, so you’ll have dinner on the table in a flash.

How to Prepare

🍅 Prepare the Mac Sauce: to a mixing bowl, add the mayonnaise, sour cream, yogurt, tomato paste, honey Dijon, relish, and pickle juice.

🥄 Stir it all together and set aside or keep it in the fridge until ready to serve.

Getting the Mac sauce ready for the Big Mac smash tacos. All ingredients are added in a bowl.
An image whisking the ingredients for the sauce.
The mixed sauce in a bowl that's set aside.

🌀 Take a small pack of ground beef and divide it into 5 equal portions (about 1/3-1/2 cup of meat). Then roll each portion into a ball and set aside.

🫓 Take a small flour tortilla and one portion of the ground beef. Press the ground meat onto the tortilla making sure you press it flat and into one even and thin layer.

5 balls equally divided on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
An image of the tortilla with a ball of meat on top
An image of the meat pressed onto the tortilla in one even thin layer.

🧂 Add a tiny pinch of salt and pepper on top.

🫓 Repeat to make 5 tortillas.

🔥 Heat up a pan on the stove on medium-high heat.

🥑 Add a touch of avocado oil (or use avocado oil spray) and place the tortilla meat side down. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and caramelized.

a photo of the meat pressed on the tortilla.
A photo of the tortilla flipped meat side down in the pan.
Big Mac Smash Tacos

🧀 Now, flip it over, add the cheese, reduce the heat to medium-low, and put a lid on the pan.

🥬 Once the cheese has melted, take the tortilla off the heat, and top it with lettuce, finely chopped onions, and a drizzle of the Mac sauce.

Adding a piece of cheese on top of the meat.
Cheese on top of the meat with a lid on top. Last step of the Big Mac smash taco.
Four flatbread Big Mac smash tacos topped with ground beef, shredded lettuce, pickles, cheese, and a creamy sauce are arranged on parchment paper and a wooden board, with a small bowl of sliced pickles nearby.

Nonna’s Tip 🥒

If you don’t have/like relish you can finely dice 1 pickle and add some pickle juice into the sauce instead.

Variations and Substitutions for Big Mac Smash Tacos

  1. Use any 🫓 tortilla you like to make these Big Mac Smash Tacos. Flour tortillas are my favorite for this recipe.
  2. Any ground meat will work but I like ground beef the most in this recipe.
  3. You can make the Mac Sauce with JUST mayo, JUST sour cream or JUST yogurt if you want to change it up or lighten it up. I like a combination of all three.
  4. If you don’t like relish, finely dice 1/4 cup of 🥒 pickles and add it in instead with some pickle juice.
  5. Top with any cheese you love: 🧀 cheddar, mozzarella, Monterey jack, or, Swiss, Gouda, or havarti.
  6. Add a little spice to the Mac Sauce with a dash of 🌶️ hot sauce, sriracha, or finely chopped jalapeños.
  7. Feel free to add your favorite toppings, such as 🍅 tomatoes, avocado, pickles, or diced jalapeños.

Similar Recipes

Best Served With

  • Serve these Big Mac Smash Tacos with a side of 🍟 french fries or onion rings, and extra Mac Sauce to dip.
  • Serve with a big, fresh 🥗 salad like my Lemon Parmesan Salad or Simple Green Salad
Three open-faced cheeseburger flatbreads topped with melted cheese, lettuce, chopped onions, sliced pickles, and sauce, on parchment paper. A small bowl of extra pickles is in the background.

Big Mac Smash Tacos

The best part of this recipe is that it takes exactly 5 minutes on the stove. You press the meat thinly onto a small flour tortilla, lightly oil the pan (or grill) and cook it meat side down for 2-3 minutes until golden and caramelized.
4.64 from 52 votes
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Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Makes: 5 tacos
Author: The Modern Nonna
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 5 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

Equipment

Measuring Cups + Spoons
Liquid Measuring Cup
Mixing Bowls
Nakiri Knife
Cutting Board
Large Sauté Pan

Ingredients 

  • 450 grams ground beef, or any ground meat you like
  • pinch of salt and pepper
  • 1 tablespoon avocado oil
  • 5 small flour tortillas

Mac Sauce

  • ¼ cup mayonnaise
  • ¼ cup sour cream
  • ¼ cup plain yogurt
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 tablespoon honey Dijon mustard
  • 11/2 tablespoons relish, or a whole pickle diced
  • 1 tablespoon pickle juice , optional

Additional Toppings

  • grated or sliced cheese, I like aged Havarti or Cheddar
  • finely chopped lettuce
  • finely chopped onion

Instructions 

  • Prepare the Mac Sauce by adding all of the ingredients into a measuring cup or mixing bowl and stir together. Set it aside or in the fridge.
    Note: If you don't have/like relish you can finely dice 1 pickle and add some pickle juice into the sauce instead.
    A glass bowl containing mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, chopped pickles, and sour cream, arranged in separate sections on a white surface.
  • Take a small pack of ground beef (or ground meat of choice) and divide it into 5 equal portions (about 1/3-1/2 cup of meat). Roll each portion into a ball and set aside.
    A white plate holding five raw ground beef balls, arranged in a circle, on a light marble surface.
  • Take a small flour tortilla and one portion of the ground beef. Press the ground meat onto the tortilla making sure you press it flat and into one even and thin layer with your fingers.
    A white plate holds a round piece of flatbread topped with raw ground meat and sprinkled with seasonings, set on a light marble surface.
  • Add a tiny pinch of salt and pepper on top. Repeat this step for each one and set aside.
  • Heat up a pan on the stove on medium-high heat. Add a touch of avocado oil (or use avocado oil spray) and place the tortilla meat side down.
    A single tortilla is cooking in a black frying pan on a light-colored marble surface.
  • You should hear it sizzle. Let it cook for 2-3 minutes or until golden and caramelized. Flip it over, add the cheese of choice, reduce the heat to medium-low and put a lid on the pan so the cheese melts for another minute or so.
    A black skillet contains a round piece of dough topped with cooked ground meat and shredded cheese, sitting on a light-colored, textured surface. A white spatula is partially visible under the skillet.
  • Take it off the heat, top with lettuce, finely chopped onions and the Mac sauce. Enjoy!

Video

Notes

  • Low-Carb or Gluten-free Tortillas: Use any tortilla you like to make these Big Mac Smash Tacos. Traditional flour tacos, whole wheat, low-carb, and gluten-free all work with this recipe!
  • Ground meats: Any ground meat, such as turkey, lamb, or chicken, will work – but I like ground beef the most in this recipe.
  • Mac Sauce alternatives: You can make the Mac Sauce with JUST mayo, JUST sour cream or JUST yogurt if you want to change it up or lighten it up. I like a combination of all three.
  • Relish substitute: If you don’t have relish on hand, finely dice 1/4 cup of pickles and add it in instead with some pickle juice.
  • Cheese alternatives: Top with any cheese you love: Cheddar, Mozzarella, Monterey Jack, Swiss, Gouda, or Havarti. 
  • Spice it up: Add a little spice to the Mac Sauce with a dash of hot sauce, sriracha, or finely chopped jalapeños.
  • Toppings: Feel free to add your favorite toppings, such as tomatoes, avocado, pickles, or diced jalapeños.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 taco, Calories: 494kcal, Carbohydrates: 23g, Protein: 20g, Fat: 35g, Saturated Fat: 12g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 7g, Monounsaturated Fat: 13g, Trans Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 80mg, Sodium: 606mg, Potassium: 397mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 292IU, Vitamin C: 2mg, Calcium: 118mg, Iron: 3mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
COOKED IT? SLAYED IT? 💅
Tag @themodernnonna so I can hype you up 👏 and don’t forget to rate ⭐, drop a comment 💬, and show some love right here on the recipe!

Common Questions

Can I use a different type of ground meat?

Yes, you can use any ground meat you like, such as turkey, chicken, pork, or a plant-based meat substitute.

Can I use different tortillas?

Yes, you can use corn tortillas, whole wheat tortillas, or your favorite gluten-free variety.

Can I prepare the Mac Sauce ahead of time?

Yes, you can prepare the Mac Sauce in advance and store it in the refrigerator for up to three days.

What cheese works best for this big mac smash taco recipe?

Havarti or cheddar is recommended, but you can use any cheese that melts well, such as Swiss, Gouda, or American cheese.

What other toppings can I add to these smash tacos?

Feel free to add your favorite toppings, such as tomatoes, avocado, pickles, or diced jalapeños.

Categorized as:

Hi! I'm Sneji. Nice to meet you!

I am more commonly known as “The Modern Nonna” on social media where I create easy home cooked meals with a modern twist. I was born and raised in Sofia, Bulgaria and learned how to cook at the best culinary school in the world – my grandma’s kitchen. I lived in Greece on the Island of Crete with my parents for a while and then moved to Toronto, Canada when I was in grade 5. I started to really cook and experiment with food 11 years ago when I was 21 years old. Everything I currently know is a reflection of some part of my life…

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Keep up to date with me on social media! Follow @themodernnonna

4.64 from 52 votes (42 ratings without comment)

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30 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    My family loved this! I used ground chicken. I added salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder to the ground chicken.
    I made caramelized onions.
    I served with sliced tomatoes, shredded romaine, sliced American cheese, sliced pickle, homemade Mac sauce. Flour tortilla smash

    Reply

  2. This looks amazing! When you make the sauce, are you using a sweet relish or a dill relish?

    Reply

    1. Hi, Rachel! I like to use dill relish, but you can use any kind you like. You can even dice a whole pickle if you don’t have relish on hand. ❤️

      Reply

  5. 5 stars
    Unbelievably good, won’t bother with McDonald’s again! Love knowing exactly what’s going into it and being able to use a good quality mince. Thank you!

    Reply