Ground beef protein bowl – an easy, high-protein meal that’s hearty, delicious, and versatile – and it takes less than 20 minutes to make!
Ground meat is one of my favorite ingredients to prep for the week. It’s easy to customize, high in protein, and can be used in pasta dishes, rice bowls, soups, and more. This ground beef protein bowl has been on repeat in my house lately! It’s a savory and delicious meal that takes less than 20 minutes to make, even quicker if you have some prepped ingredients, as I did.
One of my favorite strategies for pulling together meals quickly is to have ingredients prepped and ready to go. I recently posted my process for ingredient prepping, and I made this bowl with some of those ingredients, making it quick and easy. If you want to read that post, I also shared other meal ideas using the same ingredients.
This ground beef protein bowl provides 66 grams of protein, depending on your brands. It also has fantastic textures! I’m a texture girl, so I always consider this when building a meal. Cottage cheese is savory, salty, and creamy, and I love using it as a sauce. The beef is chewy, and a light sauté on the peppers maintains some of their texture and sweetness. A generous sprinkling of my favorite bagel seasoning adds crunch and a pot of garlic and onion flavor!
Ground Beef Protein Bowl
Why We Love It
- Versatile. My favorite thing about this bowl is its versatility. Use any meat or veggies you like!
- Nutritious. It’s loaded with protein, fiber, nutrients, and heart-healthy fats.
- Quick. This meal takes 20 minutes from start to finish, even faster if you have some items prepped.
- Iron-rich. The ground beef and spinach provide both heme and non-heme iron.
- Diet-friendly. It’s gluten-free, low-carb, and dairy-free with your favorite plant-based cottage cheese.
Ingredients You’ll Need
The ingredients in my ground beef protein bowl are simple. I provide suitable swaps under “variations and ingredient substitutions” below.
- Ground beef. I used cooked, lean ground beef, which provides approximately 22 grams of protein per 3-ounce serving. I doubled that amount, so the ground beef alone offers 44 grams of protein!
- Cottage cheese. Instead of making a sauce, this ground beef protein bowl uses cottage cheese as its base. It’s creamy, savory, and salty, making it the perfect base. Cottage cheese also provides an additional 20 grams of protein.
- Seasonings. One of my biggest tips for working with ground meat is not to be afraid of seasoning! I pumped up the flavor with oregano, Aleppo pepper, and a pinch of Redmond Real Sea salt.
- Veggies. I’m using a combination of bell peppers, spinach, and scallions, but the beauty of this bowl is that you can swap those out with any veggies you like. I reserve the top green part of the scallions to sprinkle on top. They’re not just for color. They add a nice pop of freshness.
- Olive oil. We need a little olive oil to sauté the veggies, and it also provides some healthy fats.
- Bagel seasoning. This is optional, but I always use it for extra crunch and flavor. I talk about my favorite bagel seasoning all the time on Instagram stories. Most brands list salt as the first ingredient, which means you can’t go heavy-handed without making your dish too salty. I love this brand because it’s more balanced, and you can be generous without adding too much salt.
How to Make This Ground Beef Protein Bowl
Another thing to love about this ground beef protein bowl is that everything cooks in one pan. As always, detailed instructions are included in the recipe card below.
- Place a medium-sized nonstick skillet on the stove over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, bell peppers, and scallions when the pan is hot.
- Cook the bell peppers for 3 to 4 minutes or until they begin to soften. I like to keep some texture in the veggies, but you can cook them longer if you want yours softer.
- When the peppers are done, remove them from the pan and add the ground beef and seasonings.
- Cook the ground beef for a few minutes or until warmed through. Remember that we’re starting with beef previously cooked as part of weekly ingredient prep, so this should only take a few minutes. If starting with raw ground beef, add the seasonings with the meat, and cook until there is no more visible pink.
- Add the spinach to the beef and cook for one to two minutes longer, depending on your preference. I cook mine for about a minute because the residual heat will continue to wilt the spinach.
- To assemble the bowl, spread the cottage cheese on the bottom and spoon the ground beef mixture on one side and the bell peppers on the other.
- Sprinkle with the top part of the scallions and bagel seasoning, and enjoy!
Pro tip: The cottage cheese and bagel seasoning are a little salty. Add salt to your taste.
Helpful Tips
- If the texture of cottage cheese bothers you, add it to a small blender or food processor first. This makes it incredibly smooth and creamy. In my opinion, a Nutribullet works the best for this. When I use my small food processor, it isn’t as silky and smooth. A Magic Bullet is more affordable and would be as effective!
- Make these ground beef protein bowls throughout the week as part of your weekly meal prep. Cook extra beef and veggies, and assemble the bowl when you’re ready to eat.
- Using lean ground beef reduces saturated fat and allows you to add healthy fats, such as olive oil.
Variations and Ingredient Substitutions
- As mentioned above, you can use any veggies you want. The options are endless!
- Top it with a drippy egg, and call it breakfast. The runny yolk acts like a second sauce and is delicious!
- Change the seasonings to completely change the bowl’s flavor profile. Instead of oregano and Aleppo pepper, add garlic, ginger, and soy sauce for Asian flavors. Add cumin, garlic, and chili powder to the ground beef for Southwest flavors.
- Add beans for extra protein. Black beans would work perfectly in the ground beef protein bowl, but use what you like.
- Add some rice or cauliflower rice if you have a larger appetite or want to divide this between two bowls. I recently made a rice bowl with cottage cheese and was obsessed!
Ways To Add More Protein
Here are some high-protein foods you can play around with in your ground beef protein bowls.
- 6 ounces of ground cooked chicken = 20 grams of protein.
- 6 ounces of cooked ground turkey = 27 grams of protein.
- One cup of quinoa = 8 grams of protein and is the only complete source of vegetarian protein.
- One cup of cooked lentils = 17 grams of protein.
- One cup of cooked beans = 9 to 15 grams of protein, with black beans being the highest.
- One serving of high-quality Greek yogurt or skyr = 18 to 22 grams of protein
- 1 tablespoon of hemp seeds = 3 grams of protein.
- 1/2 cup of sun-dried tomatoes = 3.5 grams of protein plus a ton of flavor.
- 1/2 cup of peas = 4 grams of protein.
- 1/2 cup of edamame = 8 grams of protein.
- One small avocado = 2 grams of protein plus a ton of healthy fats and fiber..
How To Store
- This is meant to be eaten as soon as it’s prepared, but you can prep the ingredients and store them separately to assemble these bowls throughout the week!
If you’ve tried my ground beef protein bowl or any recipe on my site, please leave a comment below!
Check out our vegetarian, dairy-free, gluten-free, and low-carb recipes if you have food sensitivities! |
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Ground Beef Protein Bowl | Easy High Protein Meal
Ingredients
- 6 ounces cooked, lean ground beef
- 1 cup 2% fat cottage cheese
- 1 cup diced bell peppers
- A big handful of fresh spinach
- 1 scallion, sliced and separated
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1/2 teaspoon Aleppo pepper
- Salt to taste
Instructions
- Place a medium-sized nonstick skillet on the stove over medium-high heat.
- Add olive oil, bell peppers, and scallions when the pan is hot.
- Cook the bell peppers for 3 to 4 minutes or until they begin to soften.
- When the peppers are done, remove them from the pan.
- Add the ground beef and seasonings to the same pan.
- Cook the ground beef for five minutes or until cooked through.
- Add the spinach to the beef and cook for one to two minutes longer.
- To assemble the bowl:
- Spread the cottage cheese on the bottom.
- Spoon the ground beef and bell peppers on top.
- Sprinkle with the top of the scallions and bagel seasoning, and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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