Hamburger Helper Shortcuts
Hamburger Helper Shortcuts
I grew up on Hamburger Helper, and many times the hamburger (hamburger meat for all my friends in the deep south of the US) was substituted with ground venison. My early years in the Navy, my wife and I made Hamburger Helper to stretch those dollars between paydays. This boxed kind basically hamburger, pasta (maybe potatoes), spices, milk, water, load of salt and sugar, and a load of preservatives. So I did a bit of research on the internet and found a site that replicated all of the dishes available. The basic instruction is brown the ground beef and drain, then add in the ingredients for each version you wish then simmer. Enjoy. Links to the shortcuts are listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Ingredients
Chili Mac
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 2 1/4 cups hot water
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 1/2 cups dry elbow macaroni
- 1 cup canned tomatoes, diced or stewed
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon oinion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1/2 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded, or Monterey Jack
Lasagna
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 2 1/4 cups hot water
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 1/2 cups egg noodles, or broken lasagna noodles
- 1 cup canned tomatoes, diced or stewed
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, Shortcut
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1/2 cup Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
- Parmesan cheese, as desired
Cheesy Beef Taco
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 2 1/4 cups hot water
- 1/2 cup milk
- 1 cup dry white rice
- 1 cup canned tomatoes, diced or stewed
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1 1/2 cups Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup Fritos chips
Beef Stroganoff (Featured Image)
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 cup hot water
- 2 cups milk, or 1/2 cup sour cream + 1 1/2 cups milk, Shortcut
- 1 1/2 cups small egg noodles
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
Potato Stroganoff
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 cup hot water
- 2 cups milk, or 1/2 cup sour cream + 1 1/2 cups milk, Shortcut
- 1 1/2 cups potatoes, thinly sliced or diced
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms, sliced
Salisbury
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 1 cup hot water
- 2 cups milk
- 1 1/2 cups small egg noodles
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- dash Worcherstershire sauce
Cheesy Italian Shells
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 2 cups milk
- 1 1/2 cups small shell pasta
- 1 cup canned tomatoes, diced or stewed
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, Shortcut
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded
Cheesy Jambalaya
- 500 grams ground beef, (1 lb)
- 3/4 cup hot water
- 2 cups milk
- 1 cup dry white rice
- 1 cup canned tomatoes
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 1 teaspoon dried basil
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon salt, or less to taste
- 1 teaspoon sugar, or less to taste
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded
Instructions
Chili Mac
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat. (Instead of onion powder and garlic powder, I added a diced onion and 2 cloves of minced garlic when I browned the beef.)
- Add the remaining items except the cheese.
- Stir together. Let it come to a near boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the macaroni is tender.
- Stir in the cheese and let it melt in.
- Serve and enjoy.
Lasagna
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items except the two cheeses. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the egg noodles or lasagna noodles are tender.
- Stir in the Mozzarella cheese and sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on the top. Cover for 5 minutes to let the Mozzarella melt in, serve and enjoy.
Cheesy Beef Taco
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items except the cheese and Fritos. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the rice is tender.
- Stir in 1 cup of the Cheddar cheese, sprinkle the remaining cheese on the top then the Fritos, Cover and let sit for 5 minutes, serve and enjoy.
Beef Stroganoff (Featured Image)
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items and mix together. (Mushrooms I used were Straw mushrooms, quartered.)
- Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the egg noodles are tender.
- Serve and enjoy.
Potato Stroganoff
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items.
- Stir together and let it come to a near boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the potatoes are tender and the sauce has thickened.
- Serve and enjoy.
Salisbury
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the egg noodles are tender. Serve and enjoy.
Cheesy Italian Shells
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items except the cheese. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the pasta shells are tender.
- Stir in the Cheddar cheese and cook for another 5 minutes or so to let the cheese melt in, serve and enjoy.
Cheesy Jambalaya
- In a large non stick pan, brown the ground beef and drain off any fat.
- Add the remaining items except the cheese. Reduce heat to a simmer and stir occasionally until the rice is tender.
- Stir in the Cheddar cheese and cover for another 5 minutes or so to let the cheese melt in, serve and enjoy.
Notes
Low cost.
Shortcuts: Italian Seasoning, Sour Cream.
Notes: 1. If using true Thai chili powder, cut the amount back by 1/3 to 1/2 as it is quite hotter than chili powder in the US. 2. The salt and sugar are OPTIONAL! I have made several of these and you can certainly leave out the sugar. Salt is used in the boxed version of this much the way McDonald's uses salt, sugar is used in the box version much the way cereals in the US are made, to get you to not like the meal, but love the meal, and buy more. When I make these, I do not add sugar, but I do add salt, a touch less than what is stated.
Adapted from an internet recipe.
Going to try the Beef Stroganoff tonight, just need the Beef and Mushrooms…Looks like a nice recipe.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
Sounds great, Brian, I look forward to your review.
The Real Person!
The Real Person!
12 Sep 2018, made the Potato Stroganoff, perfect, very tasty, I did cheat and used canned mushrooms.
26 Sep 2018, made the Chili Mac, excellent and tasty. I did add a diced onion and some garlic when I cooked the beef instead of using powdered.
13 Oct 2018, made the Beef Stroganoff, used just over 2 cups of fresh Straw mushroom, quartered, rest of the recipe followed to the letter, perfect and tasty.