Cheeseburger Soup
The whole cheeseburger in a spoon — bacon, cheddar, pickle and all — at less than half the fat of the classic pot.
Burger-in-a-Bowl Lore
Cheeseburger soup is what happens when it's too cold to stand at the grill. It's the backyard burger — beef, bacon, melted cheddar, a hit of mustard and pickle — eaten with a spoon instead of two hands. The classic pot gets there with fatty beef, a roux built on bacon grease, whole milk and half a pound of sharp cheddar. This one keeps every one of those flavors and swaps the parts doing the damage.
Portion Matrix (Finished Soup)
Cheeseburger Soup
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Macros: USDA FoodData Central (93% lean beef, russet potato, fat-free milk, vegetables) + label data for center-cut bacon, 50% reduced-fat cheddar, whipped cream cheese and fat-free Greek yogurt • the classic version is calculated the same way from the same pot with the original ingredients • calculated across the full ~2,200 g finished pot • calories rounded to nearest 5.
The Numbers Up Front
Total Cooked Yield: ~77.5 oz / 2,200 g — 4 big bowls
Default Portion: 1 bowl, ¼ of the pot (~19 oz / 550 g) — 445 cal • 42g protein • 17g fat • 27g carbs
Lighter cup: 12 oz / 340 g — 275 cal • 26g protein • 11g fat • 17g carbs
✂️ Trim Trim Trim
Six swaps, and the pickle juice at the end is what makes it taste like a burger.
① Regular bacon → center-cut or turkey bacon, crisped in the air fryer and blotted.
② 80/20 beef → 93% lean. Still tastes like beef, which 99% lean doesn't.
③ Whole milk → fat-free milk + whipped cream cheese + fat-free Greek yogurt. Skim alone is thin; the cream cheese and yogurt bring the body back without the fat.
④ Sharp cheddar → 50% reduced-fat cheddar. Melts clean and still tastes like cheddar.
⑤ Bouillon → low-sodium beef broth, with Worcestershire to deepen it.
⑥ Bacon-fat roux → a cornstarch slurry. Thickens just as well with none of the fat.
Net effect per bowl: −335 calories and −36g fat, with the protein holding steady against the classic recipe.
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📊 Before & After(per bowl, ¼ of the pot)
| Calories | Protein | Fat | Carbs | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Classic Cheeseburger Soup (bacon, 80/20 beef, bacon-fat roux, whole milk, 200 g sharp cheddar) | 780 | 43g | 53g | 30g |
| ⭐ Lo-Cal Hi-Pro Version | 445 | 42g | 17g | 27g |
| You Saved / Gained | −335 cal | −1g protein | −36g fat | −3g carbs |
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