Growing up, that familiar red and white box was a staple in our family pantry—quick, easy, and budget-friendly. But the first time I made Hamburger Helper from scratch, I was amazed at the difference. The flavors were richer, the sauce creamier, and I could control exactly what went into our family dinner. Now, this homemade version is a regular in our meal rotation—it costs about the same as the boxed version but tastes like a completely different (and far superior) dish. Plus, it still comes together in just 30 minutes in one pot!
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Why Make Hamburger Helper From Scratch?
You don’t need to buy a box of Hamburger Helper Stroganoff—it is so easy to make, and the taste is so much better! Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff is quick to prepare with a few simple ingredients. You can eliminate many preservatives and reduce sodium when you prepare recipes from scratch.
This one-pot meal gives you all the comfort food satisfaction of the classic boxed dinner but with fresher flavor and better ingredients. Best of all, it’s just as easy and budget-friendly as the original!
Homemade Hamburger Helper Stroganoff ingredients
Here is what you need to make this Beef Stroganoff recipe:
- Ground Beef – Provides protein and rich flavor as the base of the dish; ground chuck is preferred for its fat content and flavor
- Lipton Onion Soup Mix – Adds depth of flavor with dried onions, beef stock, and seasonings without needing to chop fresh onions
- Bow Tie Pasta – Creates the perfect texture and holds the creamy sauce in its crevices
- Cream of Mushroom Soup – Provides creamy texture and mushroom flavor that’s essential to stroganoff without needing to prepare a roux
- Sour Cream – Adds tangy creaminess and authentic stroganoff flavor that balances the richness of the beef
How to Make Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff
- Cook ground meat in a large 10-inch skillet that has a lid over medium-high heat. Drain off the fat and return the beef to the skillet.
- Add the onion soup mix, hot water, and mushroom soup. Mix well and bring to a boil.
- Add the bow tie pasta and bring it back to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to simmer and cover. Cook for 10-12 minutes.
- You can garnish with chopped green onions or chopped parsley if desired.
Ideas for changing this Hamburger Helper Beef Pasta – you can add your twist
This beef stroganoff recipe is very flexible, and I’m sure you’ll find ways to customize it to your preferences. Here are a few ideas to get you started making your fresh twist to this basic recipe.
- You can go up to 2 pounds of lean ground beef for a heartier dinner.
- Instead of using hot water, you could swap the water for beef broth; this will give you more flavor but will have a higher sodium count.
- If you like mushrooms, add a couple of small cans of them.
- Switch the mushroom soup with a roasted garlic variety of mushroom soup.
- To make a complete meal, add some fresh broccoli or other vegetables. You can hide vegetables that your kids will eat in this recipe.
- If you want a cheesy dish, use cheese instead of sour cream. Add diced tomatoes and you’ll really enjoy something nice!
- If you want to dial up the flavor, consider adding a couple of teaspoons of Dijon mustard to the sauce mix.
- Add a chopped bell pepper when you add the noodles.
- Instead of using water, you can use beef stock
Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 packet Lipton Onion Soup Mix
- 4 1/2 cups water
- 1 pound bow tie pasta
- 10 ounces cream of mushroom soup
- 3/4 cup sour cream
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat. When the meat is browned drain fat.
- Â Add the onion soup mix, water, and mushroom soup. Mix well and bring to a boil.
- Addthe bow tie pasta and bring back to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-high,cover, and cook for 10-12 minutes.
- Take off the heat and gently stir in the sour cream.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions
You can swap the sour cream for heavy cream or even creme frache. The consistency will be creamier without the characteristic tang of sour cream.
You can use any shape of pasta you desire, you could swap the pasta for egg noodles, a gluten-free or grain-based pasta if you desire.
Storing, freezing, and reheating leftovers of Hamburger Helper Stroganoff
- Store in an airtight container in your refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- Freeze – Store in an airtight container in your freezer for up to 3 months.
- Reheat—This can be easily reheated in the microwave when covered. You may want to stir in a small amount of sour cream as the pasta will absorb some of the sauce when it is stored.
What should you serve with Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff?
This is a very versatile dish. The flavors blend with so many things! I personally love to serve this dish with a salad, saute some yellow summer squash, or serve it with some green beans.
Easy Ground Beef Dinner Recipes
- Hamburger Helper Lasagna
- Ground Beef and Green Beans Casserole
- Meatloaf Restaurant Copycat Recipe
- Sloppy Joe Recipe
- Hamburger Casserole
- Homemade Ground Beef Casserole
- Mexican Cornbread with Jiffy Mix
- Stuffed Cabbage Roll Casserole
- Hash Brown Ground Beef Casserole
- Coney Island Chili
More Budget-Friendly Recipes
- Roasted Chicken Leg Quarters
- Instant Pot Italian Sausage Pasta
- Ground Sausage Casserole Recipes
Check out more of my copycat food recipes and budget-friendly meals.
Thanks to Maclll for sharing this recipe.
this was so good it made me fucking bust at the dinner table. thanks!
Made this tonight for dinner. I followed the other comment about adding sliced mushrooms while the ground beef was cooking. I only added 8 oz because that is what the store had. I also added a teaspoon of crushed garlic (probably would have added more, but was out), onion power, and lots of pepper. I also added Worcestershire sauce (about two tablespoons), paprika (maybe a teaspoon) and some Louisiana hot sauce (maybe a tablespoon). I once heard that when every you feel like a recipe is missing something, add paprika. My worry was the recipe being flat and gummy. With these additions, it came out great. My husband even said I should make it more often.
I will have to give that a try, add paprika. I tend to err on the side of if it’s missing something, it’s salt.
I made this using 16 oz of sliced white mushrooms. I added them to the ground beef when it was nearly cooked. The liquid from the mushrooms allowed me to eliminate all of the water. The consistency was just right.
This was very yummy! I used wide egg noodles, beef broth in place of water and a brown gravy pack instead of the onion soup pack along with the can of mushroom soup. I used salt, pepper and som garlic powder. It turned out great. The sour cream adds a nice creamy touch.
I made this tonight and tried to make it healthier with using lean ground chicken, fiber rich pasta, low fat mushroom soup, and reduced fat sour cream. With one packet of the beefy onion soup mix it seemed very bland to me, so I added the second pouch of seasoning mix then noticed between the two packets it totaled 600% of your daily value of salt. To me, this outweighs the benefits of making it yourself with healthier ingredients. It was good but I’m not sure if I’ll make it again. I will probably make my own seasoning mix next time and use low sodium beef broth. Good recipe though in general. My husband really loved it.
Try adding half water and half apple juice. It will make the recipe an even greater hit.
You can easily and cheaply replace the cream of (whatever) soups in most recipes by making a white sauce instead. This allows you to control the fat & sodium as well as adjusting for dairy issues.
The ratio is 1 T butter to 1 T flour to 1 cup milk. Double the amounts if you are replacing a whole can of soup. Melt the butter in a skillet over med-low heat and stir in flour until combined. Add the milk and stir constantly with a whisk to remove lumps. Keep stirring intermittently until the sauce thickens. Add salt & pepper to taste. Set aside and add to your casserole in place of your cream soup. If you miss the mushrooms, you can saute some in a little more butter and add it to the sauce. You can also add things like garlic powder & onion powder if you like them.
If you can’t eat dairy use oil or dairy-free margarine and substitute unsweetened & unflavored soymilk. (If you use soy milk, add a pinch of nutmeg to cut the soy flavor.)
A normal can of cream of soup is only 10.5 oz…2 cups of milk for the cream sauce recipe that you provide is 16 oz while 1 cup would be 8oz… just thinking of fat and sodium content here, so maybe 1.5 tables butter, 1.5 tablespoon flour and 1.5 cups milk would be more equivalent to the can of soup? That would be 12 oz of cream sauce… Much closer to 10.5 oz that this recipe calls for, and also less fat and sodium. Hope this helps.
i didnt really care for this recipe. it took quite a while for the pasta to cook and it seemed like if there was more liquid, it probably would have cooked faster. and the taste was just ok. i taste like it WAS out of a box.
I made this for dinner last night. I was surprised. It was awesome, so tasty! My family loved it!
I’d like to see a recipe for how to make Jimmy Dean Sausage at home.