You don’t need to buy a box of Hamburger Helper for something this easy, and the taste is so much better! Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff is quick to make with a few simple ingredients. You can eliminate many preservatives when you prepare recipes from scratch.
You don’t need to buy a box of Hamburger Helper for something this easy, and the taste of this homemade hamburger stroganoff is so much better! This hamburger helper recipe is quick to make with a few simple ingredients – ground beef, soup mixes, sour cream, and pasta. You can eliminate many preservatives and high sodium when you prepare recipes from scratch.
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The Untold Story About Hamburger Helper
Haven’t we all just taken that red and white box for granted? But, did you know that Hamburger Helper was introduced during a beef crisis? In 1972, a change in the population of anchovies used in animal feed caused beef prices to skyrocket. Hamburger Helper was launched to help people stretch their beef and their dollars. The box mix paired with just one pound of beef put dinner on the table for America’s families. Read more by clicking here.
Now you can make this classic comfort food from your childhood and your college days from scratch in one pot in just thirty minutes. Even the pasta gets cooked right in the pot! This homemade creamy hamburger helper recipe stretches your food budget, and you get to control what goes into it.
In no time at all, you can prepare a large meal for not a lot of money, and it doesn’t get better than that! Enjoy this quick and delicious hamburger stroganoff recipe, and you won’t go back to the box. Don’t be afraid to swap out the pasta for noodles that you have on hand. I often use a meal made like this hamburger stroganoff recipe to use up the odd bits of pasta that I have leftover.
Ideas for Changing This Hamburger Helper Recipe
This beef stroganoff recipe is very flexible, and I’m sure you’ll find ways to customize it to your liking. Here are a few ideas.
- For a heartier dinner, you can go up to 2 pounds of ground beef.
- If you really like mushrooms, add a couple of small cans of them.
- Switch the mushroom soup with a roasted garlic variety.
- To make a more complete meal, add some fresh broccoli or other vegetables. You can definitely hide vegetables that your kids will eat in this recipe.
- If you want a cheesy dish, use cheese instead of sour cream. Throw in some diced tomatoes and really enjoy something nice!
Ingredients
Here is what you need to make this Beef Stroganoff recipe:
- Ground Beef – ground chuck is my preferred
- Lipton Onion Soup Mix
- Bow Tie Pasta – you can use any type of pasta you have on hand
- Cream of Mushroom Soup
- Sour Cream
How to Make Homemade Hamburger Helper Beef Stroganoff
Brown the ground beef and then drain off fat in a large skillet that has a lid.
Add the onion soup mix and water and mushroom soup. Mix well and bring to a boil.
Add the bow tie pasta and bring back to a boil.
Reduce the heat to medium-high and cover.
Cook for 10-12 minutes.
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
Be sure to check out more of my copycat food recipes and budget-friendly meals.
Thanks to Maclll for sharing this recipe.
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 and then drain off the 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.
Dana
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.
Stephanie Manley
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.
Renee
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.
Mar Cia
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.
Tammy Barnett
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.
Larry Saunders
Try adding half water and half apple juice. It will make the recipe an even greater hit.
Courtney
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.)
Shannon
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.
madeleine
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.
Gloria
I made this for dinner last night. I was surprised. It was awesome, so tasty! My family loved it!
patsy
I’d like to see a recipe for how to make Jimmy Dean Sausage at home.