3 Ways to Make Hamburger Helper - wikiHow (2024)

Reviewed byJennifer Levasseur

Last Updated: May 13, 2022

Ingredients

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1. 1

   Brown the hamburger on the stove. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat for five minutes. Add a small amount of cooking spray or oil to the pan, then immediately add the hamburger. Break up the meat as it cooks with a spoon or spatula.

   • You want the meat to cook until it is well-browned all over and no pink remains. At medium-high heat this will usually take five to seven minutes, but feel free to cook longer as needed.^[2]
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   Drain the grease from the hamburger. Depending on how lean your ground beef was, you may have just a little grease in the pan or quite a bit. There are a few different ways to drain it — see below for suggestions.

   • One easy option is to set a metal colander in a large glass bowl, then pour the contents of the pan into the colander. The grease will drain into the bowl, where you can allow it to cool and transfer to the garbage.
   • Another option is to set a lid over the pan, then shift it so a small crack remains at one side. Carefully tilt the pan to drain the grease into a container that won't melt from the heat, then discard in the garbage.
   • Don't pour grease down the drain. It can solidify, clogging the drain.

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   Add milk, water, pasta, and sauce mix. Stir these ingredients in the pan to combine well with the hamburger.

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   Heat to a boil. Return the pan to medium-high heat. Let the mixture heat, stirring occasionally to keep it from sticking. Watch for bubbles.

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   Turn down heat and simmer. Once the mixture reaches a healthy boil, turn the heat to medium or low. The bubbling should slow down to a slow, steady simmer.

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   Simmer, covered, for 10 to 20 minutes. Add a lid to the pan. Allow to simmer, stirring every few minutes to ensure even cooking and prevent sticking. As the mixture cooks, the sauce will gradually thicken and the pasta will gradually soften.

   • 13 minutes of cooking time is usually about enough, but depending on the level of heat, your casserole may cook more or less quickly, so test the pasta often.
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   Remove from heat when pasta is al dente. The casserole is ready to eat as soon as the pasta reaches a pleasingly soft texture that still has some firmness to it. You should feel just the slightest resistance when you bite or cut into the pasta. This texture is called "al dente."

   • Let the casserole cool down for at least 2 or 3 minutes before serving. The sauce will continue to thicken as it cools.

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1. 

   1

   Microwave beef on high until cooked all the way through. If you're in a rush, Hamburger Helper can be prepared entirely in the microwave with the same basic approach as above. To start, crumble your beef into a large microwave-safe bowl. Heat the meat on high for about five to seven minutes or until any residual pinkness is gone. Break up the meat and stir at the three-minute mark.

   • Don't forget to crumble the meat as you put it in the bowl and to break it up halfway through the cooking process. Microwaving a single solid block of ground beef will lead to uneven cooking.
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   Drain the grease. Any of the draining techniques covered in the section above will work just as well here. Remember that, to avoid clogged drains, pour cooled grease into the garbage, not the sink.

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   Add pasta, milk, hot water, and sauce mix. Stir well to combine in the bowl with the cooked ground beef.

4. 4

   Microwave on high for about 14-19 minutes. Stop the cooking to stir the mixture every five minutes or so. Don't cover the bowl completely as it cooks. You can use a microwave-safe lid to reduce splatters, but leave it open a crack so that steam and pressure do not build up in the container.

   • Use oven mitts or a towel to protect your hands when you stir. After a few minutes of cooking, the bowl will be very hot.
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   Remove from microwave and let cool when pasta is al dente. Test the pasta for done-ness every time you stop to stir the casserole. Your dish is ready to serve when the pasta has a semi-soft texture that offers a little resistance (in other words, when it's "al dente"). Carefully transfer the hot bowl out of the microwave and let it cool somewhere safe for high temperatures (like an unused burner on the stove).

   • As in the method above, the cooling period is important — the sauce will continue to thicken even after the bowl is removed from the heat.

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1. 

   1

   Brown and drain the ground beef as normal. If you don't have a package of Hamburger helper handy, you can make a very similar recipe yourself from common kitchen ingredients. Start just like you would in the sections above: by browning the ground beef. Heat a frying pan on the stove, add oil or cooking spray, then add the beef to the pan. Use your spoon or spatula to break up the meat as it cooks.

   • As above, you're ready to proceed when the ground beef is well-browned all over and no pink remains.
   • Drain the excess grease from the pan when the beef is browned exactly as in the sections above.
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   2

   Add the pasta, milk, and water. Stir these ingredients well to combine. Let them heat to a boil, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking.

   • In the recipe above, elbow macaroni are suggested, but any similarly-sized pasta should work well. Don't use a pasta with significantly smaller- or larger-sized pieces — these can have different cooking times.
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   Add the seasonings. When the mixture reaches a boil, add the cornstarch, chili powder, garlic powder, sugar, salt, paprika, cayenne, and red pepper flakes. Stir until the mixture is uniform and well-combined.

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   Simmer. Reduce the heat to medium or low so that the bubbling becomes slow and steady. Cover and cook at this heat for about 10-12 minutes. Stir every few minutes to prevent sticking.

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   Remove from heat and add cheese. When the pasta is al dente (softened but with some firmness remaining), turn off the heat. Sprinkle the shredded cheddar cheese over the casserole. Stir well to combine.

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   Let cool and serve. As with the other recipes, the liquid when you're cooking Hamburger Helper from scratch will continue to thicken as the casserole cools. Let the dish sit for at least two to three minutes before serving.

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