Lightened-Up Homemade Hamburger Helper Recipe
Apr 03, 2016, Updated May 12, 2021
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Lightened-Up Homemade Hamburger Helper – Ditch the boxed mix Hamburger Helper and make this easy, one-pot, healthier homemade version!
Homemade, real-ingredients-type One Pot Hamburger Helper, you say? Yes, WE CAN! I am definitely down with dat.
Hi Hi! Happy Happy Sunday! How are you?! How are things going?
Lemme tell you about things around here… you won’t even believe this right now: IT’S SNOWING. I’m sitting on the couch and looking out the window where it was sunny 2 minutes ago, it rained 4 minutes before that, and now it’s snowing. ❄ ☔ P.S.? It’s April.
Just let me tell you one more thing real quick. Photographing yellow food is freakin’ brutal! Or maybe it isn’t, but the photographer was too lazy to figure out a better way?!
Nahhhh. It’s the yellow food.
Okay, so I have some major things to tell you. First of all, today we are giving a big huge virtual hug to our, yours and mine, favorite high school boxed meal!
I don’t know about you, but my parents worked and came home waaaay after my sister and I came home from school, so reaching for the boxed-mixes was our thing at least once a week.
Over the years, as we’ve tried to cut back on fake-ish food, I have found it really, really therapeutic recreating packaged food products, and making them completely homemade. Hamburger Helper is one of ’em.
Working off of my One Pot Spinach & Feta Macaroni and Cheese is actually how I made it to this recipe right here. Made with whole wheat pasta, ground turkey, vegan cheddar, and almond milk, we’ve got a lot of delicious but simple and healthier yummies factoring in here. It’s very easy to prepare and cooking all in one pot makes it a snap for clean up.
You must make this, good people of the world. It makes the perfect weeknight dinner, and it’s the greatest excuse to transport back to your high school days.
ENJOY!
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Hamburger Helper Recipe
Ingredients
- ½ tablespoon olive oil
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 pound lean ground turkey
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1½ cups elbow macaroni, I use DeLallo whole wheat macaroni
- 1 cup cubed vegan cheddar cheese, I use Daiya, but you can also use regular cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 cups milk, any milk you like
- ½ cup chicken broth
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Instructions
- Sauté the onions. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat in a deep-sided, nonstick skillet or a Dutch oven. Add onions and cook for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in the garlic and cook for 20 seconds.
- Brown the turkey. Add the ground turkey and season with chili powder, paprika, salt, and pepper. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the meat is browned. Then, remove from heat and drain out the liquid.
- Combine. To the browned turkey meat, add the pasta, cheese, flour, milk, chicken broth, and Worcestershire sauce and stir to combine.
- Cook. Bring the mixture to a boil, stirring frequently; lower to a simmer and cover with a lid. Continue to cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until the pasta is tender and thoroughly cooked.
- Serve! Remove your hamburger helper from the heat and taste for seasonings. Adjust accordingly, and then serve.
Equipment
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
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I just love recipes like this, and I’ve been good at, as you say, “cutting out the fake-ish foods!” This is a fabulous recipe and can’t wait to try it myself!
Where were you when I was in college eating this out of the box like three days a week?! I really could have used this lightened up version! Thanks for sharing! At least I’ll have it for MY children!
I wish I’d had this recipe back in the day when I was raising kids. It would have been a much healthier alternative to the Hamburger Helper we ate for convenience.
The perfect comfort food! Scratching my head over the chicken broth comment above. What’s wrong with chicken broth??
OH I am saving this!!! I have to try it!!
Katerina I love how all of the ingredients marry each other to produce a fabulous dish xoxo
Sounds very tasty.
Hamburger Helper made me think I was a good cook when I was 19. 🙂 Your recipe looks so much better/healthier but still easy. Thanks! P.S. your yellow food photography is very inviting.
My sister and I thought we were gourmet chefs!! haha 😀 Thank you, Ginny!! xo
I love this recipe! It looks and sounds amazing. We used to have hamburger helper too sometimes when we were little. I love this homemade version! One pot too, sold!
Chicken broth? Really!! Nope
What’s wrong with chicken broth?
Chicken broth works perfectly for this dish!