Cheeseburger Casserole is a one pot, 30 minute recipe that’s outrageously good. Beefy, cheesy and saucy, it tastes like cheeseburgers in pasta form. It’s a homemade Hamburger Helper – a tastier and much healthier version of the popular boxed pasta!
I love a good one pot recipe, and this one sits alongside reader favourites including Greek Chicken & Lemon Rice, Sausage Bake with Vegetables and Gravy, Baked Chicken with Garlic Butter Rice and the one skillet Asian Beef Noodles!
“It’s beefy, cheesy and saucy – Hamburger Helper tastes like cheeseburgers in pasta form!”
Cheeseburger Casserole
The first time I published this recipe, I said that I burnt my mouth taste testing this straight out of the pot.
And almost 3 years later, I’m saying the same thing – yet again, I burnt my mouth.
I took a small taste to check for seasoning. Had a swoon moment, then scooped up a huge spoonful and shovelled it in my mouth.
And totally scorched the entire roof of my mouth. OUCH.
Here’s an up close and personal look at the offender. Look at it. Can you blame me for my lack of self control??
Another ground beef recipe!
I’m a big fan of ground beef (mince) recipes because it’s economical, requires no chopping and it’s a terrific sponge for flavour.
So for those of you who put a packet of beef mince in your shopping basket this week, this Cheeseburger Casserole is for you! The key ingredients are fairly standard pantry items. And the items that are not can be substituted:
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carrot, celery and corn are optional. Feel free to add other chopped veg
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some subs available for the spices
The cheese is not optional. If you skip it, then this pretty much becomes a bolognese, hmm??
One pot! 20 minutes!
The beauty of this recipe is the speed at which it has to be cooked. You cannot cook the pasta for longer than 12 minutes, otherwise your sauce will disappear and you’ll end up with overly soft pasta.
It’s a 19 minute job on the stove:
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Onion, garlic, celery, carrot – 4 minutes
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Brown beef – 3 minutes
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Add the other stuff and stir – 2 minutes
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Cook – 8 minutes (no peeking!)
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Stir & Cheese – 1 minute
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Melt -2 minutes
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TOTAL 20 minutes
(PS I used to work in finance. This is the extent of the maths I do nowadays 🤓)
This Cheeseburger Casserole is a recipe from my good friend Jo from Jo Cooks. It’s one of many fabulous one pot recipes in her cookbook, 30 Minute One Pot Meals.
I originally shared this recipe back in 2016 to celebrate the release of her cookbook. It was fabulous then, and it’s just as fabulous now. ❤️
Sometimes, I reduce the amount of pasta (because I always have half packets 250g/8oz lying around!) and up the veg quota. Zucchini and red peppers /capsicum are ideal. Jo also suggests topping it with diced tomato which is a great topping.
If you do this, then you might not need a side salad. But if you do, try your garden salad or steamed vegetables with French Dressing, Balsamic Dressing or my favourite Italian Dressing. Or make a big batch of Broccoli Salad that will last you days and days! – Nagi x
PS And if you feel like a total carb blow out, add a side of Better-Than-Dominos Garlic Bread. *She swoons at the thought and her skinny jeans are cursing*
More One Pot Ground Beef / Mince recipes
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Chili Mac – mash up of Mac and Cheese with Chilli Con Carne, so good!
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Asian Beef and Ramen Noodles – one skillet, 15 minutes
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Taco Soup – don’t knock it until you’ve tried it, it’s amazing!
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Browse all One Pot recipes and Ground Beef / Mince recipes
Cheeseburger Casserole
Watch how to make it
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Cheeseburger Casserole (Homemade Hamburger Helper)
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 small carrot * , chopped (optional)
- 1 celery stalk * , chopped (optional)
- 500 g/ 1 lb ground beef (mince) , preferably lean
- 12 oz / 340g dried macaroni , uncooked
- 1/2 cup frozen corn * , optional
- 2 cups chicken broth/stock, low sodium
- 1 tbsp hot sauce or Sriracha sauce , adjust to taste
- 1 tsp American chili powder (Note 1)
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp garlic powder , or sub onion powder
- 800 g / 28 oz crushed tomato
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1.5 - 2 cups (150 - 200g) cheddar or tasty cheese, shredded (Note 3)
- 1 cup (100g) mozzarella cheese , for topping
Garnish (optional)
- 1 green onion , sliced
Instructions
- Heat oil in a dutch oven or large deep skillet over medium high heat.
- Add onion and garlic, cook 1 minute.
- Add celery and carrot, cook 3 minutes until soft.
- Increase heat to high and add beef. Cook, breaking it up as you go, until no longer pink - 3 minutes.
- Add remaining ingredients EXCEPT cheese. Stir to combine, add macaroni, then turn down to medium or medium low so it's simmering gently.
- Cover, cook 8 minutes. Pasta should be just about cooked, and still nice and saucy.
- Add cheddar cheese, stir. Top with mozzarella cheese.
- Cover with lid, cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Remove from stove. The pasta should now be cooked - tender but firm, not mushy, slick with sauce, not dried out.
- Serve immediately, garnished with green onions, if using.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
This is the same Dozer photo I shared when I first published this recipe back in 2016 – Dozer looking at Jo’s cookbook instead of the food.
We all know I was holding a treat just out of frame to make him do that.
But she loves the photo so much anyway, I can’t change it!!
Can this be made without the tomatoes?
So yummy! I used penne instead of macaroni because that’s the only pasta i had..I added around 2-3 mins. It was still a little bit soupy though. But it dried up more on the table. Still delicious and a very easy dish to make.
Thank you! N x
Gah! Do not make this when you are trying to eat reasonable portions! I had seconds, then a few scoops for bedtime snack, then again this morning for breakfast. I didn’t top with cheese, and had to tweak the liquids a bit because my box of pasta was 14 ounces. I’ll do this again!
This tastes so good, the only thing is the topped cheese never melted, it kind of just kept sinking into the sauce and staying hard, I added more but same thing. The sauce was really soupy and the pasta was still a bit too aldente – I ended up finishing it quickly in the oven to account for the above cheese and pasta issues. Nagi’s recipes usually work out exactly for me so not sure where I went wrong but I now know for next time and will adjust a few things. Again, flavours are so yummy and it’s not a waste-still a great dish!
Awesome as usual! Love your recipes and Doggie
Lovely flavours Nagi! I’m not sure what happened…when I added the grated cheddar (not pre-grated) it didn’t melt into the pasta sauce, it looked curdled and was chewy.
Any ideas?
Thank you.
Oh no Annie, you didn’t boil it did you? N x
I think I did. It was still bubbling away when I added the cheese. Should I have turned off the heat prior to adding the cheese? 🤦🏻♀️ Thanks Nagi!
So I made this again. I turned off the heat before adding the cheese & waited a minute or two, but my cheese still clumped into tiny chewy pieces 😣
Any ideas what I’m doing wrong? x
This was full of flavour. We loved very mouthful. This made plenty so we have leftovers for dinner tomorrow night. Thanks Nagi, another winner.
Perfect Tracy!! N x
So easy. So tasty. Made double batch for camping this weekend. Layer of cheese in between two layers of the macaroni mix for easy reheating. Sampled a small bowl and also burnt my mouth. And I would totally do it again!!
Absolutely wonderful flavors, the hot sauce is a must, just had to tweak it a bit by transferring to an oven dish before the final cheese and adding panko breadcrumbs and 20 mins in the oven for a golden brown top
Added Gherkins (instead other carrots etc.)
Yummy, made enough to freeze. Thank you Nagi
I love this idea Ellie – yum! N x
Does this recipe freeze well?
Hi Sarah, yes 100%!! N x
This was absolutely delicious! Wow!!!!
Delicious, easy and so quick to make! Will definitely keep this recipe around. I’ve shared it with some of my other momma friends who might need some more quick dinner ideas. My kids loved it too which is always a win. Great recipe!
Umm, where do I buy the sugar noodles from??
Sorry Nagi, couldn’t help myself!
Just goes to show I’m only human and make mistakes. You know it’s a real person doing the work behind these recipes! – Nagi
I had some smooth ricotta & cherry bocconcini in the fridge, so I added these at the end & decreased the shredded cheeses- Yummy!
Yet another winner in our household. Thanks, this is my go to website for recipe ideas.
U did it again, Nagios- delicious and easy…so yummy
Thanks so much Angelina!! 🙂 N x
This dish is fantastic! It is in regular rotation, to the point I more or less can do it from memory. Every single time – top notch, combining macaroni cheese with pasta bolognese.
I make a couple of adjustments – substituting the celery for some zucchini, and going generous with the hot sauce.
Overall, great meal.
DLISH, well seasoned and very tasty.
Thank u.
I’m just learning to cook so I was a bit hesitant with so many ingredients. It was so simple (everything already at home!) And tasted so good. I many try a different type of pasta next time.