One Pot Homemade Hamburger Helper is just like the classic favorite Cheeseburger Macaroni that we all know and love! This homemade version is made in one pot, rich and cheesy and tastes so much better than the boxed version!
Even as an adult I get cravings for those childhood favorites like hamburger helper. My favorite hamburger helper growing up was cheeseburger macaroni. It's such a classic flavor combination! Now that I'm grown up I may have the craving, but, the boxed version just doesn't suit my taste anymore.
I love a good one pot recipe too. One pot meals like my Homemade Hamburger Helper and this One Pot Creamy Parmesan Chicken and Rice are just as easy to make (if not easier) than any boxed meal. They are super budget friendly and made with ingredients we usually have in our pantry. Plus, they have a really great flavor without packaged powdered products so we know what we are getting!
How to Make Homemade Hamburger Helper:
To make this cheeseburger macaroni hamburger helper there is no reason to dirty more than one dish! Start with a large skillet and brown your ground beef until it's no longer pink. Then, drain ALL of the grease from the skillet. I also like to wipe my skillet out with a paper towel for this recipe, although that is completely optional.
Next, you will turn your stove heat down to low and stir all of your seasonings into your meat. This recipe has been tested and tried many times and the seasoning combo provides just the right amount of flavor without the dish being too salty. Don't worry about the hot sauce, it doesn't make the dish spicy, it just adds a nice kick of flavor!
The next step is to add your macaroni and beef broth. I recommend using low-sodium broth if possible. You can also use chicken broth, vegetable broth, or simply water for this recipe if necessary.
Give everything a really good stir to make sure the ketchup, mustard, and seasonings are all well mixed in. Use the back of your wooden spoon if you need to make sure the macaroni is submerged under the broth.
Then, you will simply cover your dish with a tight-fitting lid and let it simmer for 12-15 minutes until your macaroni is soft. I recommend lifting the lid and stirring once or twice during the process.
You will notice that there is absolutely no milk in this recipe. During recipe testing, I found the flavor much better leaving the milk out. The addition of sour cream at the end gives a great creaminess and zing of flavor!
Once your macaroni is completely cooked you will remove your pan from the heat. Then, stir in the sour cream until it is well incorporated. Then, you can place your pan back on the warm burner and add in the shredded cheese mixing until well combined.
I recommend using freshly shredded cheddar right off the block if possible. It melts so much better than the bagged pre-shredded stuff!
Enjoy!
~Nichole
One Pot Homemade Hamburger Helper
Ingredients
- 1 Pound Ground Beef
- 1 Tablespoon Ketchup
- 1 Teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- 1 Teaspoon Hot Sauce Optional
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- ½ Teaspoon Seasoned Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Salt
- ½ Teaspoon Pepper
- 1 ½ Cups Macaroni
- 3 ½ Cups Broth or Water
- ½ Cup Sour Cream
- 2 Cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Instructions
- Cook the ground beef in a large skillet over medium high heat until no longer pink. Drain grease and return meat to the pan.
- Reduce heat to low and add the ketchup, mustard, hot sauce, seasonings, macaroni and broth to the pan and stir well to combine.
- Cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes until macaroni is cooked through.
- Remove pan from heat and stir in the sour cream.
- Return the pan to the warm burner and stir in the shredded cheese until well combined.
Video
Notes
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I made this for my family Monday night of this week. It was a BIG hit with no leftovers whatsoever! My husband says we are never making boxed Hamburger Helper again! ha ha I did add freshly grated cheddar and 1/4 of a small block of Velveeta Cheese. It was perfectly creamy and the flavor was 10 times better than boxed mixes! I will be putting this on my recipe rotation for sure!
Made this tonight and it was very good and full of flavor! The macaroni was done but the dish looked way soupier than the video. I was not sure if I should drain it or not. I decided to add the sour cream and cheese and see how it looked….turned out great! It did take longer than 20 minutes for me, but it was still a quick and easy dish. I served it with roasted broccoli. Will make it again!
I’ve made this twice now and I love how easy/quick it is. My husband and 3 kids gobble it up, too!
I found this recipe last minute when my 10 year old asked for hamburger helper for dinner but we didn't have any. And I have to say, it was a HUGE hit with the whole family! We had all of the ingredients on hand with the exception of elbow pasta, but I substituted rotini and it worked out well. I didn't stray from the recipe outside of veganizing it with impossible meat, violife shredded cheese, and forager sour cream. The kids devoured it and asked for seconds. We'll definitely be making it again!
Excellent! Tips: Use low sodium beef broth (too bland if you use water) and increase to 2 cups macaroni. I use whole grain elbow to make a bit healthier. I make this for twin toddler grandchildren and freeze leftovers for toddler mealls - freezes well.
I am not a great cook, but I am learning. My husband wanted hamburger helper so I found this recipe. It is much healthier than a box and he absolutely loved it. The flavor is so good. The sauce was soupy at the end. I didn't think I simmered it enough so went 30 minutes. My husband was hungry so I had to take a little of the sauce out when serving him. The leftovers thickened up when cooled.
If you put a bit of tabasco green sauce like maybe a teaspoon or tablespoon, you will have to taste test it, i recomend to put it after you cook it. Along with using siracha for the optional hot sauce in the recipe makes this dish really tasty
Made this about 10 times so far. Still thin at the final step, but will thicken up if given time. Also use a box of Mac and cheese and add the cheese pouch too. Love it. Thanks.
So much better than the box mix! I was skeptical at first because of the ketchup and mustard but it's amazing!
Best easy meal!
Awesome!!
My husband loves hamburger helper but the boxed mixes are too high in salt content. Will definitely be making this as an alternative.
My 8 year old daughter is an extremely picky eater, but tonight she cleaned her plate and told me it was the best dinner ever. Music to my ears! 🤎🤎
It turned out great! I haven’t had hamburger helper in about 10 years. Taste just like I remember!
This was great! I ended up with a lot of liquid in the pot after the noodles were done so I had to drain some off before I added the dairy but otherwise it was perfect. Will be putting this into our rotation
My family loves this recipe! I’ve made it 3x in two weeks and see many more iterations to come. Thanks for sharing!
More salty than I’d like so next time I’ll either use low sodium broth or take out the salt. Overall delicious. We also added steamed broccoli.
If you want it creamy , instead of sour cream, I used cream cheese (same amount) and it was amazing.
Excellent and Easy recipe! My Dad loved and I have already had 2 people as for the recipe