Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Noodle
on Feb 13, 2023, Updated Jan 29, 2024
No need to buy store bought when you can make this Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Noodle right at home. With a few simple ingredients and 30 minutes time, you can avoid the boxed stuff.
I always found really great deals on boxed Hamburger Helper when I spent time using coupons. My family loves the stuff, especially my hubby. Our favorite has been the Beef Noodle variety. We think it’s the BEST Hamburger Helper recipe.
Why You’ll Love This Easy Homemade Hamburger Helper Recipe
- It’s a great ground beef recipe for a busy weeknight meal. Copycat Hamburger Helper is perfect for making when you are pressed for time. You can quickly brown ground beef and have dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes.
- The recipe is a from scratch version, it’s so much better than the store-bought boxed version.
- You can easily customize to your families likings. Even the pickiest eaters will devour this dish. See some variation ideas below.
- Make it all in one pan. This is a One Pot Meal that makes for easy after dinner cleanup.
Did you grow up with Hamburger Helper on your dinner table? I know I did. My mother always reached for the boxed stuff when she was busy. I can’t say as I blame her. I have memories with helper being in our dinner rotation frequently. It was one of my childhood favorites and I love this stuff to this day.
Over the years, Betty Crocker has made quite a few different variations of the quick and easy dinner idea. When surfing the web, I came across a blog, The Chickens In the Road. This site has quite a few different recipes for Hamburger Helper but they did not have one for our favorite Beef Pasta.
I decided to create a from scratch Hamburger Helper Beef Noodle version. As it turns out, it was so quick and easy to make. I had everything right in my pantry to make homemade.
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Ingredients To Make Hamburger Helper
- Ground Beef – It’s best to use a lean ground beef. The less fat content makes for a less greasy dish. You could also substitute the protein with ground chicken or ground turkey to make the meal a bit healthier.
- Pasta – I kept our replicated hamburger helper authentic by using wide egg noodles.
- Bouillon Cubes – I use 3 cubes for this recipe. Readers have since commented that they have successfully used 2 cubes or subbed with Beef Broth in place of the Bouillon and water. These modifications do make the dish a bit healthier and with lower sodium.
- Water – As noted above, you can make the hamburger helper without the Bouillon Cubes and replacing the water with broth.
- Milk – I use a whole milk when making this beef pasta recipe for my family. Readers have mentioned subbing the 2 cups of milk with 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream. I have not tested but they have had great results.
- Cornstarch – Will thicken the beef sauce.
- Garlic Powder – adds some additional flavor.
- Onion Powder – keeps the recipe kid- friendly but makes the dish less bland.
- Sugar – Balances the flavors from the savory ingredients.
- Salt & Pepper – in my original recipe I included measurements. Since having feedback from readers (Thank you much), I am going to mention salting and peppering to taste.
How to Make Hamburger Helper
Note: detailed measurements and instructions are located in the recipe card below.
- Mix together cornstarch, sugar, onion powder and garlic powder in a small bowl and set aside.
- Brown the ground beef in a skillet over medium-high heat. Then then drain off excess grease.
- Make bouillon mixture by microwaving water and then dissolving the cubes. Add to the ground beef.
- Stir in milk and then seasoning mix until fully incorporated. Add in egg noodles then bring to a boil before reducing heat to low.
- Cover Beef Noodle and let simmer for about 15 minutes or until egg noodles are tender.
Variations for this Easy Hamburger Helper Beef Pasta Recipe
- Protein: As mentioned, ground turkey, ground chicken, sausage or vegetable protein can be used as a substitute for the ground beef.
- Pasta: Most any will work with this recipe, even a whole wheat pasta. Consider using elbow macaroni, shell pasta, farfalle, penne or a bowtie… use your family favorite. Note that my recipe has only been tested with egg noodles. If using a different noodle you may need additional liquids and a bit longer cook time.
- Veggies: Consider adding your family favorite canned vegetables to your hamburger pasta. We like to add mushrooms, corn, peas, green peppers and onions. You could even add some spinach. Just add the vegetables near the end of cooking.
- Spices: Paprika, chili powder, a dash thyme or even a sprinkle of red pepper will amp up the flavor profile. Experiment with spices that you like most.
- Cheese: You could certainly top the hamburger pasta with cheddar cheese, or maybe provolone. Add at the end of cooking then place a lid over the pan for a few minutes to melt.
- Sour Cream: Many readers have mentioned adding a bit of sour cream to their Homemade Helper for extra creamy pasta. This will make the dish a bit more like a Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff. Just add 1/2 cup of sour cream near the end of cooking.
- Dairy Free: This recipe can be made without the milk. But, it will need to be replaced with water, beef broth, vegetable broth or unflavored soy milk. Some readers have used oat milk but noted this substitution does change the flavor profile.
FAQs about Hamburger Helper
Hamburger Helper is the product created to stretch meat in meals. The concept is to provide the starch or fiber (usually pasta) along with a seasoning packet (with associated nutrients and preservatives) in a box. This is then combined with browned meat and specified liquids and allowed to simmer until a one pot meal is ready.
Hamburger Helper is made by General Mills through their Betty Crocker division.
The product was invented in the labs of Betty Crocker and introduced in 1971 to help families working on a budget use less meat when making a meal.
There are dozens of flavors of Hamburger Helper, not to mention Cheeseburger Helper, Tuna Helper and Chicken Helper. You can find the current product lineup on their site.
You make it in the same basic way we make our home made Hamburger Helper, except they use a powdered beef flavor in with the spice packet to eliminate a step (and add preservatives).
They are basically the same. This is an example of marketing. Thanks Hambuger Helper.
The simple answer is no, but you’ll need to add something to replace it. Milk is what makes the final dish creamy. What to use depends on whether you are dairy averse or just out of milk. You could use heavy cream, evaporated milk or even plain yogurt diluted with a little water. If you want to avoid dairy, unflavored soy milk, oat milk or even just bouillion can work.
Using whole milk adds more milkfat to the final dish. If it is still not enough for you, you can add a tablespoon of butter, sour cream or cream cheese during the last 5 minutes of cooking.
No. The pasta should cook in the pan during the normal process described in the Hamberger Helper recipe.
This depends on what you feel is lacking in the final dish. If it is just bland, you can increase the amount of dry bouillion and dry spices by about 25%.
Tips for Making the Hamburger Helper Beef Pasta
- Cook in a large skillet or grab your favorite Dutch Oven– either will work great for this recipe.
- After browning the meat and you are ready to drain the excess grease consider using the “paper towel” method to remove the unwanted fat. Press all of the cooked meat to one side of the pan. Then use a clean paper towel to soak up the grease. No need for a strainer!
- If your sauce appears thick and you have quite a bit of cook time left (the pasta is not yet al dente), you can add add about 1/4 -1/2 cup additional liquid. I use additional water.
- To dress up the finished meal, garnish with a little fresh parsley.
Leftovers and Reheating Hamburger Helper
- If you miraculously have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container. It will keep in the fridge for about 3 days.
- To reheat Hamburger Helper, simply add a cap full of milk and cook in a pan over low heat. Stir occasionally. Pasta is ready to serve after noodles and ground beef are at desired temperature.
- Hamburger Helper can be stored in the freezer, but it does not freeze well. The noodles can become very mushy when frozen and then reheated.
What to Serve with Hamburger Helper
Hamburger Helper is a meal in itself. There really is no need for side dishes. That’s what makes one pot meals great. But, here are a few ideas if you are looking to stretch the helper to feed a larger family.
- A simple tossed garden salad is perfect. Add on some CopyCat Olive Garden Dressing!
- Bread – Grab a french loaf or even leftover hamburger or hot dog rolls. Then, top it with my Garlic Butter Spread for a quick and easy side.
- Vegetables – any of your favorites alongside. Give my Roasted Green Beans a try. They are simple to make and everyone will enjoy them.
Other Delicious Ground Beef One Pot Meal Recipes
- This One Pot Pepperoni Pizza Pasta Meal comes together in no time at all and was a perfect meal for my larger family. This pasta dish can be made with your favorite pizza toppings.
- If you are needing a simple and comforting meal, you will want to make this One Pot American Goulash. This dish is super simple, all made in just one pot on your stove top.
Did you make this recipe? If so, be sure to rate with a star rating and drop a comment below.
Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Noodle
Ingredients
- 1 lb Ground beef
- 2 cup Wide Egg Noodles
- 1 1/2 cup Water
- 1 1/2 cup Milk
- 3 Beef Bouillon Cubes
- 1 tbsp Cornstarch
- 1 tsp Garlic Powder
- 1/2 tsp Onion Powder
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 1/2 tsp Black Pepper
- 1 tsp Salt
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together cornstarch, sugar, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. set aside.
- Brown ground beef in a large skillet and drain excess fat.
- Boil water in microwave safe bowl.
- Add bouillon cubes and stir until dissolved.
- Add bouillon mixture to skillet and stir to incorporate.
- Add milk and stir to incorporate.
- Add seasoning mixture and stir until blended.
- Add egg noodles, stir and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 12-15 minutes or until noodles are tender.
- Remove from heat and let stand for several minutes to thicken.
Notes
- Cook in a large skillet or grab your favorite Dutch Oven- either will work great for this recipe.
- After browning the meat and you are ready to drain the excess grease consider using the “paper towel” method to remove the unwanted fat. Press all of the cooked meat to one side of the pan. Then use a clean paper towel to soak up the grease. No need for a strainer!
- If your sauce appears thick and you have quite a bit of cook time left (the pasta is not yet al dente), you can add add about 1/4 -1/2 cup additional liquid. I use additional water.
- To dress up the finished meal, garnish with a little fresh parsley.
Love this. I use Better Than Bouillon and a tsp of Worcestershire sauce instead of the bouillon cubes, and I only use 1/2 tsp of garlic. It is delicious and simple to throw together at a fraction of the Hamburger Helper price.
I have made this several times as is written except my husband is on a very low salt diet. With a few substitutions he his able to eat and enjoy this dish. I don’t add salt, I use no salt bullion and very lean meat. And like other comments I like knowing what is in it. Thank you
I thought this was a tad salty. 3 bouillon cubes plus a teaspoon of salt. Other than that it is a great recipe. Next time I won’t add as much salt, if any. I will also add a teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce.
I made as written but didn’t have egg noodles so used elbow mac. Also, I Better than Bouillon instead of bouillon cubes (I think it has less sodium). So good! My picker eater asked for seconds! I like that I can make this fresh, no preservatives and I know exactly what’s in it. Great recipe!
Very quick, easy, and good
I made this tonight for the first time with a few personal touches – added sautéed onions and mushrooms that I’d deglazed in Marsala wine, used 2tbsp of Better than Bouillon instead of cubes, eliminated the salt in the seasoning mixture but, doubled the onion powder and, added in a dash of Worcestershire and Soy sauce. I also did ground turkey instead of beef because we use what we have but, it turned out absolutely delicious (WAY better than the box). My family inhaled it and I said I needed to make it one of our “standards” from now on. Thanks SO MUCH for the inspo and starting recipe!
This was delicious. I used spiral noodles and it turned out great.
This was easy, quick, and fantastic. Hit the spot.
Great recipe! I’ve lost count how many times we’ve made this. Tastes great every time and I’ve even memorized it.
I made this tonight for me and my 4 kiddos and wow it did not disappoint!! Wasn’t sure how close it would be to the boxed stuff and it was BETTER! My one son who doesn’t like the regular boxed hamburger helper actually really liked this. 5 out of 5! Thanks for sharing.
This is SO good. I’ve made it a few times now. It’s just as easy as the box and tastes exactly, or better, than the box. My only issue is the sodium. I’m trying to watch it so I only used 2 cubes instead of the 3 and omitted the salt completely. Neither hubby nor I missed the salt and it was still really, really good.
I agree. The bouillon cubes have enough salt, adding more makes it way too salty. The dish ended up being so salty that we couldn’t eat it.
I made this tonight for dinner. So disappointed. It was so salty that we had to throw it out. I would use 3 cups of low sodium beef broth and 1 cup of milk and salt at the end if necessary. I will try the recipe again with these modifications.
This recipe is exactly what I was looking for. It’s delicious, quick and versatile. I’m putting it on a regular rotation. Thank you so very much for sharing!
Love it! Tastes great. Thank you.
Replace water and b cubes with 2 1/2 cups beef broth low sodium. Decreased salt to 1/2 t, add 1/4 cup sour cream. Increase noodles to 3 cups. Great recipe!
Cousin Ash,
Use sour cream INSTEAD of or in addition to milk? When to add sour cream?
thanks!
I made this recipe using 2 cups of water and only 2 beef cubes, 1 cup double cream instead of milk, used all the recommended seasoning and also added a bit of soy sauce. It came out delicious!
😋 yummy! Finally something close to the original good stuff! I skipped the milk(added extra water) and added more pepper
I’ve always loved hamburger helper but this recipe kicked boxed hamburger helper to the curb!!! So easy to make and much more flavorful!! Loved it!
I made it with no salt, less bullion added a punch of thyme, a dash of worcheshire sauce and browning sauce. Everyone thought it was good
Waaaay too much salt. 3 bullion cubes plus another tsp of salt was just..way too much. 1100mg of sodium / half a cube. Not healthy. I had one plate and barely made it through. The rest of the recipe was good and it would have been really good if the salt wasn’t all you could taste. The few bites that I could taste the actual food and seasoning were very good which is why I am giving 3 stars. Next time I make this I will half both the cubes and the salt, or maybe even no extra salt.
Can’t imagine how salty this must be using bouillion. Yikes!
Skip the bouillion and water. Besides…water has no flavor.
Instead use 2 1/4 cups canned Beef Consommé’ and increase milk to 2 1/4 cups. Need the liquids for the noodles. It’s delicious and a much richer flavor.
I thought this tasted exactly like Hamburger Helper even with my small changes. I used a pound and a half of beef and one pound of pasta. One pound of pasta needs 5 cups of liquid so I used a cup of milk and the rest water (adjusting bouillon for 4 cups). I left the seasonings as written with the exception of salt (only used it to season the beef) and pepper (sprinkled it in instead of using the full measure). I love these kinds of recipes because one box isn’t enough to feed my family of 6. Thank you!