Homemade Hamburger Helper Recipe - easy one pot pasta!
Servings: 6 servings
Calories: 474cal
This Easy Homemade Hamburger Helper is a savory, one-pot meal that's better than the original! Made with tender elbow pasta, savory ground beef, cheese, tomato sauce, and veggies, it's ready in 30 minutes or less!
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Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 red bell pepper (chopped)
- ½ medium onion (finely chopped)
- ¼ cup frozen spinach (thawed and squeezed dry)
- 2 cloves garlic (finely minced)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard
- ⅛ teaspoon red chili flakes
- 2¾ cups dry macaroni (11oz or 320g)
- 1¾ cup milk
- 1½ cup low-sodium beef broth
- 1½ cups marinara sauce
- 1½ cups shredded mozzarella cheese (divided)
Instructions
- Heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef, bell pepper, and onion and cook until the vegetables are softened and the beef is browned, about 5 minutes. Drain excess fat if necessary.
- Add the spinach, garlic, salt, Italian seasoning, paprika, ground mustard, and chili flakes and cook for 1 to 2 minutes.
- Add the uncooked macaroni, milk, broth, and marinara sauce and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook for 12 to 15 minutes, stirring often, until macaroni is al dente.
- Stir in 1 cup of the mozzarella. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella on top, cover, and let sit for 5 minutes to melt before serving.
Video
Notes
**NOTE: Nutrition information is estimated and will vary depending on exact serving size, types and brands of products used.
Ingredients and Substitutions:
- Ground Beef: feel free to swap the beef for ground chicken, pork or turkey. I use lean ground beef so there is not much fat to drain, but if you are using regular ground beef you may want to drain the fat after browning.
- Vegetables: you can swap the peppers and spinach for other vegetables you have hanging around: finely chopped mushrooms, shredded carrots or zucchini, finely chopped kale -- once it all cooks down the flavor melds together and you won't really notice!
- Broth: I use low sodium beef broth so I can control the salt. If you have regular broth you may want to reduce the added salt and adjust as needed. Vegetable and chicken broth may also be substituted.
- Milk: I use low fat milk, but any will do here! Non-dairy milk works just as well.
- Macaroni: any short pasta will work here, but they may require different cook times or amounts of liquid. If you notice the liquid is mostly absorbed but the pasta is not cooked, just add a splash here and there and continue cooking until the pasta is al dente.
Nutrition
Serving: 347grams | Calories: 474cal | Carbohydrates: 59g | Protein: 36g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 0.3g | Cholesterol: 72mg | Sodium: 1166mg | Potassium: 836mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 2073IU | Vitamin C: 31mg | Calcium: 293mg | Iron: 5mg