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Homemade Hamburger Helper

Super easy and frugal recipe for healthy homemade hamburger helper. A favorite beef pasta casserole (next to stroganoff). It cooks in one pot in less than 20 minutes!
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5 from 4 reviews

Super easy and frugal recipe for healthy homemade hamburger helper. A favorite beef pasta casserole (next to stroganoff). It cooks in one pot in less than 20 minutes! Pairs perfectly with a side of delicious rosemary olive oil bread or light and fluffy homemade dinner rolls.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 lb ground beef
  • 28 oz tomato sauce (try my homemade recipe)
  • 1–2 cups chicken stock (try my homemade recipe)
  • 1 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • ½ tsp chili powder
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 8 oz small pasta (i.e. macaroni or shells)
  • 2 cups frozen peas
  • 1–2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

  1. Place ground beef in large, 5-6 quart pot. Turn the heat on medium and break it up into smaller chunks using a wooden spoon. You don’t have to actually brown the beef; it’s just easier to break it up into smaller pieces at this point.
  2. Add the tomato sauce, spices, and pasta, and bring the mixture to a medium simmer. The sauce should be making bubbles, but it shouldn’t be splattering everywhere.
  3. Let the mixture cook for about 10-15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so, breaking up the meat, and making sure the noodles are submerged in the sauce as much as possible.
  4. Check the pasta for doneness at the 10-minute mark and continue to cook until the noodles are al dente. Add additional chicken stock, ½ cup at a time, if the sauce becomes too thick before the noodles have had a chance to cook. The sauce will thicken and evaporate as it cooks.
  5. When the noodles are just about done, stir in the frozen peas. When the peas are warmed through and the pasta is done, remove from the heat.
  6. Gently stir in 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Taste and add more cheese as desired.
  7. Serve warm.

Notes

  • Tomato Sauce. This can be actual tomato sauce, or it can be whole or diced tomatoes you pureed. It doesn’t matter really what you start with, but give it a whiz in your blender (I have this one) so that it becomes a sauce.
  • Chicken Stock. Vegetable stock or even water would work too (here’s how to make homemade stock).
  • Onion Powder + Garlic Powder + Chili Powder + Pepper + Salt. Pretty much the standard arsenal of spices.
  • Pasta. Macaroni is the most popular, but I’ve used rotini, shells, and penne too.

Nutrition

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Find it online: https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/homemade-hamburger-helper/