Easy Homemade Hamburger Helper Recipe
This easy homemade hamburger helper recipe is perfect for busy weeknights! Made with simple ingredients, this easy recipe can be on the table in just 30 minutes, and is sure to be a hit with the whole family! Not to mention it tastes way better than boxed stuff!
I like it’s safe to say Hamburger Helper was one of our childhood favorites, or at least something most of us ate quite a lot growing up. Even if you didn’t eat it often, most of us know Hamburger Helper by name and are familiar with its promise to be a quick and easy weeknight dinner.
And it always was, at least for us. My mum loved to pick up a few boxes now and then from the grocery store. Not only was it cheap, but it was also fast and easy to make.
We’d eat it for lunch or serve it with a simple side salad for a family dinner. It always tasted good, and was something so easy we could all make it, regardless of how old we were.
Over the years, though, Hamburger Helper has become one of those things; it’s good, and it’s easy, but it’s full of terrible ingredients.
And let’s be honest, not really worth the price these days either. It probably doesn’t come as any surprise that this led to me creating my own, just as easy and delicious copycat version at home!
I also wanted to make this recipe as part of a mini series of quick and easy from-scratch recipes I’ve been working on.
I wanted to start the year by sharing some good-for-you, good-tasting, home-cooked meals, to help encourage everyone that cooking from scratch really can be easy!
This homemade version of Hamburger Helper is the perfect starting point for anyone looking to start cooking more meals at home, not to mention it’s cheap and can be on the table in under 30 minutes!
How To Make Homemade Hamburger Helper
Ingreidents
- ground beef, you can also use ground turkey
- onion, chopped
- Ketchup, you can also use tomato paste, but I like the extra flavor the ketchup adds
- garlic powder
- chili powder
- Beef broth, you can also use chicken broth or vegetable broth.
- Uncooked elbow macaroni, feel free to use a different pasta shape if you like, just be sure to use a short pasta.
- shredded cheddar cheese
- Worcestershire sauce
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions
In a large saucepan or deep frying pan, brown the ground beef with the chopped onion over medium heat. Once the beef is completely cooked, drain off the excess fat.
Add the ketchup, garlic powder, and chili powder, and stir to combine. Add the Worcestershire sauce and beef broth, and increase the heat to high, cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture comes to a boil.
Then add your uncooked macaroni and stir to combine. Reduce the heat, and cook, stirring often, until the macaroni is al dente and has absorbed most of the liquid in the pan. About 10-15 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat, then stir in your shredded cheese until it is completely melted, season with salt and pepper, taste, and adjust the seasoning if needed. Allow your Hamburger Helper to sit for about 5 minutes before serving. This allows the sauce to thicken a little more, and gives the noodles more time to soak up the flavor. But you can also skip this step to save time!
Serve and enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Any leftover Hamburger Helper can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days! Homemade hamburger helper can easily be reheated on the stovetop, just be sure to add a splash of water or milk to keep the noodles from sticking!
Feel free to use any of your favorite cheeses for this recipe. Pepper jack cheese, Monterey jack cheese, mozzarella cheese, and colby cheese are all great! I would highly recommend using real cheese, though.
You can also add any of your favorite veggies to this recipe! Green beans, bell pepper, spinach, and chopped tomatoes are all great!
I love to serve this recipe topped with extra cheese and a spoonful of sour cream. But it’s also great topped with crushed red pepper flakes, or a dash of hot sauce. You can also serve it with a side salad, and your favorite garlic bread!
Be Sure To Check Out These Easy Dinner Recipes Too!
Chicken Broccoli Divan Casserole
Stovetop beef stroganoff | ready in 30 min!
Homemade Dirty Rice(Cajun rice recipe)
Homemade Hamburger Helper
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef you can also use ground turkey
- 1 onion chopped
- 1/4 cup ketchup you can also use tomato paste, but I like the extra flavor the ketchup adds
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp chili powder
- 3 cups beef broth you can also use chicken broth or vegetable broth.
- 1 cup Uncooked elbow macaroni feel free to use a different pasta shape if you like, just be sure to use a short pasta.
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- 3 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- sea salt and freshly groud black pepper
Instructions
- In a large saucepan or deep frying pan, brown the ground beef with the chopped onion over medium heat. Once the beef is completely cooked, drain off the excess fat.
- Add the ketchup, garlic powder, and chili powder, and stir to combine. Add the Worcestershire sauce and beef broth, and increase the heat to high, cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture comes to a boil.
- Then add your uncooked macaroni and stir to combine. Reduce the heat, and cook, stirring often, until the macaroni is al dente and has absorbed most of the liquid in the pan. About 10-15 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat, then stir in your shredded cheese until it is completely melted, season with salt and pepper, taste, and adjust the seasoning if needed.
- Allow your Hamburger Helper to sit for about 5 minutes before serving. This allows the sauce to thicken a little more, and gives the noodles more time to soak up the flavor. But you can also skip this step to save time!
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
