About

This delicious vegetarian Keto recipe has all the flavor of a halloumi burger, minus the heavy carbs. Our open low carb burger uses gem lettuce leaves as the base for our layered toppings of tomato, avocado, crispy onions, and pan-fried halloumi. The burgers are then drizzled with a zesty tahini dressing to serve. Perfect for a low carb lunch or dinner option.

How To Make a Keto Burger

It’s super simple to make your favorite burgers low carb friendly. Once you have decided on your Keto fillings, you can then choose a low carb ‘bun’. You can either use a low carb traditional style burger bun, or for a quick and easy alternative, you can hold your fillings in a simple lettuce wrap. Lightly grilled portobello mushrooms caps also make a great Keto friendly bun. For this recipe, we have sat out burger toppings on a lettuce leaf and left the sandwich open. You can top with an extra leaf if preferred or even serve the filling in your favorite Keto burger bun. Please be sure to adjust your macros to account for any changes or additions made to the original recipe.

Can I Use a Different Cheese?

We have chosen halloumi for our Keto bun as it is loaded with flavor and has the perfect texture for frying. Most halloumi is vegetarian and free from rennet, but you will need to check your specific brand. If you would like to use an alternative cheese, paneer or queso blanco would both be suitable options as they also have a high melt point and retain their shape when cooking. Simply fry them as you would the halloumi until golden.

Ingredients

  • 5 ounce savoury halloumi by tesco
  • 2 inner (small) leaf romaine lettuce
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon lemon juice
  • 1 small – 2 2/5" diameter tomato
  • ½ each avocado
  • ½ teaspoon tahini
  • ½ small red onion
  • ⅛ teaspoon salt, sea salt
  • ⅛ teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

  1. Heat half a tablespoon of olive oil in a non-stick skillet over a low/medium heat. Thinly slice the onion. Add the onion to the skillet and pan-fry gently for a few minutes until tender, lightly golden, and starting to crisp. Remove from the skillet and set aside.
  2. Wipe any excess oil from the skillet and turn the heat up to medium/high. Slice the halloumi lengthwise into two even-sized rectangles. Place the halloumi pieces in the hot, dry skillet. Cook for 2 minutes until browned, then turn and cook on the second side for a further 2-3 minutes until golden all over.
  3. Add the remaining olive oil, tahini, garlic powder, salt and lemon juice to a small bowl. Mix well until smooth and combined. Taste and adjust seasonings as required.
  4. Arrange the lettuce leaves on serving plates. Thinly slice the tomato and avocado. Arrange the tomato and avocado in the lettuce cups.
  5. Place the fried halloumi on top of the avocado. Scatter over the fried onions. Drizzle over the tahini dressing and serve immediately with your preferred Keto sides.

Nutrition Facts

  • Servings: 2
  • Calories: 377.6kcal/1579.8kJ (per serving)
  • Fat: 31.2g (per serving)
  • Carbs: 7.1g (per serving)
  • Protein: 1.6g (per serving)