This Healthier Homemade Hamburger Helper is a delicious one-pot spin off on your favourite childhood meal – it's got extra veggies, too!
Ingredients and substitutions
- Olive oil – any neutral oil will work in place of olive oil. Neutral oils can be grapeseed oil, canola oil, avocado oil, etc.
- Extra-lean ground beef – ground turkey or ground chicken can also be used in this recipe.
- Yellow onion – red onion, sweet onion or shallots can substitute yellow onion.
- Garlic – use fresh or jarred minced garlic in this recipe.
- Celery – use any vegetables of choice (like red or orange bell peppers, zucchini and carrots) for this recipe.
- Red pepper – use any bell pepper of your choice or substitute with a poblano pepper for additional heat; you can also leave it out, I just add it to sneak extra veggies in there!
- Beef broth – chicken or vegetable broth can also be used.
- Diced tomatoes – freshly diced tomatoes can be used as a substitution.
- Dried basil – use dried thyme or Italian seasoning.
- Dried oregano – use dried thyme or Italian seasoning.
- Rotini pasta – any short pasta (like penne, scoobi doo, macaroni, etc.) can be used in this recipe as a substitute for rotini.
- Sour cream – Greek yogurt will work instead; or you can add 2 tbsp of heavy cream.
- Cheddar cheese – use any shredded cheese blend of your choice.
- Parsley – use any fresh herbs you'd like. Basil would be another great garnish.
How to make homemade hamburger helper
Step 1: Sauté the onions and garlic.
In a large deep skillet, heat olive oil over med-high heat. Add onions and garlic, sauteeing for 2 minutes until fragrant.
Step 2: Brown the ground beef.
Add ground beef and cook until browned, another 2 min. Add celery and red pepper, sauteeing for another 2-3 min.
Step 3: Add the veggies.
Add dried basil, oregano, salt and pepper, sauteeing another 30 seconds.
Step 4: Stir in the rest of the ingredients and cook for 15 minutes.
Add broth and diced tomatoes. Stir to combine, then add dry pasta and bring to a boil, cooking on medium heat and stirring occasionally for about 15 minutes until pasta is completely cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed.
Step 5: Stir in sour cream and serve.
Stir in sour cream and cheese, then remove from heat.
Step 6: Serve and enjoy!
Top with parsley (optional), then serve and enjoy!
How can I improve my hamburger helper?
This hamburger helper homemade healthy recipe is filled with real meat, cheese and even sneaks a couple veggies in there so this is a hearty, wholesome and nutritious version of the boxed meal.
Here's how to make this healthy hamburger helper better for you:
- Using extra-lean ground beef – even better if you use ground chicken or turkey.
- Adding celery, red pepper and parsley – veggies will round out the meal to make it healthier. You could also add in some carrots and spinach to make it even more nutritious.
- Using real cheese instead of the powdered stuff – you'll add more protein and won't be adding any preservatives.
- BONUS – use whole wheat pasta to add even more nutrients and fibre.
Frequently Asked Questions
Boxed Hamburger Helper is filled with preservatives and really has no nutritional benefits whatsoever. You buy a box with dried seasoning and pasta, add ground beef and call it a day. Don't get me wrong, indulging a craving for it every once in a while is perfectly fine but this healthier homemade hamburger helper takes the same amount of effort, is way better for you and in my opinion tastes better.
This healthy hamburger helper recipe has 589 calories per serving.
To make healthier homemade hamburger helper, you can use ground turkey or ground chicken instead of ground beef, and swap out the regular sour cream for low-fat sour cream. You can even use whole wheat pasta instead of regular pasta!
Storing and reheating
Store any leftovers of this healthy hamburger helper in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Once stored, it will last in the fridge for up to 5 days, making it a great meal prep recipe.
To reheat, take a portion from the fridge and sprinkle some water over top, then microwave for 2 to 3 minutes or reheat it in a pot on the stovetop.
Freezing this recipe
Divide any leftovers of this healthier homemade hamburger helper into individual-sized or family-sized portions. Separate it into portions to make for easier reheating. Place the portion into airtight freezer-safe containers or in freezer bags and freeze for up to 3 months.
When ready to reheat, place the frozen hamburger helper into the refrigerator to thaw overnight and then reheat as normal. You can also reheat from frozen for 6 to 8 minutes, stirring halfway through. Just make sure to sprinkle some water over top first so it doesn’t dry out.
More easy one pot recipes
Meal Prep Tools
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls for your leftovers.
- And of course I get all my grass-fed beef from Butcher Box!
Homemade Hamburger Helper {One Pot}
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 lb extra-lean ground beef or ground chicken
- 2 small yellow onions, diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 3 celery stalks, diced
- 1 red pepper, diced
- 6 cups beef or chicken broth
- 1 796mL can Finely diced tomatoes if you can't find finely diced, use an immersion blender to roughly blend them for a second or twice – you still want some chunks but you want it to be in between a dice and puree
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 lb dry rotini pasta (4 cups of dry pasta)
- 1/4 cup sour cream
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup parsley, chopped (optional)
Instructions
Stovetop instructions
- In a large deep skillet, heat olive oil over med-high heat. Add onions and garlic, sauteeing for 2 minutes until fragrant. Add ground beef and cook until browned, another 2 min. Add celery and red pepper, sauteeing for another 2-3 min.
- Add dried basil, oregano, salt and pepper, sauteeing another 30 seconds before adding broth and diced tomatoes. Stir to combine, then add dry pasta and bring to a boil, cooking on medium heat and stirring occasionally for about 15 minutes until pasta is completely cooked and most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Stir in sour cream and cheese, then remove from heat. Top with parsley (optional), then serve and enjoy!
Instant Pot instructions
- Add olive oil to Instant Pot and turn to saute mode. When oil is hot, add onions, garlic and ground beef, breaking up with a spoon and sauteeing for 4-5 minutes until browned.
- Add in remaining ingredients in order that they are listed except for sour cream, cheese and parsley, adding in pasta last.
- Cook on high pressure for 3 minutes (Instant Pot will take about 15 minutes to preheat then cook the 3 minutes). Do a quick release of the pressure, then stir in sour cream and cheese, garnishing with parsley. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Comments & Reviews
Jenny says
I was so excited to make this. Anything that I can make quickly that doesn’t come stock full of preservatives is high key in my book. However, I’m not sure why it came out more than a soup. As soon as I put the 6 cups of bone broth in, I felt like it was WAY too much. I kept checking the recipe to make sure I didn’t miss anything. I’m just confused…
Taylor Stinson says
There’s definitely meant to be a bit of extra liquid to make it saucy but the pasta should soak up the majority of it and then the cheese makes it creamy and saucy. Did you use a different type of pasta or less pasta than instructed? Did the pasta cook all the way through in the broth? Sometimes a bit of extra cooking time helps the pasta soak up more liquid. Another issue could be that you cooked the pasta ahead, it’s supposed to be added in dry and then cooked in the broth.
Tara says
This Homemade Hamburger Helper is the best ever! So simple in the InstantPot, even quicker with the prep steps!
I accidentally made too much which seemed soupy, but in the end, the leftovers were even more fantastic!😋 Kid-friendly & comforting!
Nyah says
I made this today and it was fantastic! Tastes just like boxed hamburger helper but better!
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed 🙂