If you have lots of ground beef and little time, you might be looking for some easy ground beef recipes!
As a beef cattle farmer, business owner and busy mom, I definitely know the feeling of long days and time slipping away. There’s some days I just don’t get my meals planned out and meat thawed in enough time. Luckily, ground beef is so easy to thaw in less than 20 minutes by sticking it in a warm oven.
Then, what to do with it? I know I’ve struggled in the past with coming up with new ideas. Which is why I was inspired to write this post for you.
In this post, I will share:
- Lots of new ideas for easy ground beef recipes.
- These include ideas for 60+ simple meals with hamburger your family will love to eat.
- And some quick ground hamburger ideas that I like to throw together. My husband lovingly refers to these as “slop meals.”
Stuffed Simple Meals with Hamburger
These meals have a dough, lettuce or bread shell with meat and other yummy things stuffed inside. The possibilities here are endless. Here’s a few recipes my families love.
Stuffed peppers
Using big fresh bell peppers we grow, stuffed peppers are amazing to enjoy in the summer and fall. I have also stuffed peppers to freeze to enjoy through the winter months. Guess what? They’re still delicious!
Basically, I brown ground beef and onion and mix a little home canned tomato sauce. Season to taste with pepper and salt. And whatever seasoning you think might be good.
Mix in some cooked Minute Rice and as much cheese as you want. Now, you’re ready to stuff.
Wash the peppers. Cut off the tops and remove seeds. I also like to even out the bottom of the pepper but don’t cut too much or the filling will fall out! Then, fill the pepper with the filling and top with more cheese.
Finally, bake the peppers at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes. Then, enjoy!
Bierocks or Runza Cabbage Burgers
My German husband loves anything with sauerkraut. So, he just loves Runzas and Bierocks.
I make a much more mild bierock that I can eat (I despise sauerkraut).
For my Beefy Birthday Bierocks Recipe, go here
Since we live near Nebraska, he can run up and get a Runza whenever he wants. But if you are looking for a recipe to make, here is a good one to try that is like the real thing.
Cheeseburger Ring
Brown 1 pound of hamburger with your favorite tomato based sauce. Then, make a crescent ring with dough on a baking sheet.
Next, slice up block cheese into small rectangles and place them around the ring. Add in the meat and then more cheese. Then, fold crescents over the meat. For a topping, brush olive oil or egg wash on top. Bake according to the dough you use.
When it’s nice and brown and cheesy on the inside, slice and serve.
BBQ Pups
Kids love these! Cook hamburger fully. Then put BBQ sauce all over the hamburger. Roll out two canned biscuits or crescent roll dough or your choice of dough into a triangle or square. Mix BBQ mixture and cheddar cheese. Stuff into dough and make calzone-like pockets. Bake according to dough.
Cheeseburger Lettuce Wraps
I’ve made these cheeseburger lettuce wraps before (could definitely leave out the cheese if you want). But why would you???
Basically, you can make cheeseburgers on the grill or brown ground beef with cheese and wrap them in lettuce. Such a simple thing to put together and delicious.
Pocket Burgers
Another fun recipe for picky kids. Just use your favorite dough or ready made crescent dough.
Brown ground beef with a little onion and cheese. That’s it!
Then, make pockets by wrapping the meat/cheese with the dough. Bake according to dough requirements. Serve with french fries or a veggie.
Crazy stupid good.
Get My Recipe for Onion Rings Here
Cheeseburger Lettuce Wraps
I’ve made these cheeseburger lettuce wraps before (could definitely leave out the cheese if you want). But why would you??? Basically, you can make cheeseburgers on the grill or brown ground beef with cheese and wrap them in lettuce. Such a simple thing to put together and delicious.
Pocket Burgers
Another fun recipe for picky kids. Just use your favorite dough or ready made crescent dough.
Brown ground beef with a little onion and cheese. That’s it!
Then, make pockets by wrapping the meat/cheese with the dough. Bake according to dough requirements. Serve with french fries or a veggie.
Crazy stupid good.
Get My Recipe for Onion Rings Here
Easy egg rolls
First, cook 1 pound of burger. Then, add 1 can of chop suey veggies. Roll in egg roll skins and fry until crispy. Serve with sweet & sour sauce.
Cowboy Pie
Here’s another great recipe!
Brown ground beef. Then, add in ranch style beans, tomatoes and corn. Put into a baking dish and add mashed potatoes over the top.
Then, of course, you should sprinkle cheese over the top. Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 minutes. You can also freeze this for later.
For more ideas on how to eat healthy when you don’t have time to cook, read here
Italian Meals
Meatballs
There’s so many options for meatballs! They are so easy to make and easy to freeze. Different meat balls require different seasonings.
Swedish: Since I am of Swedish heritage, I have grown up on Swedish Meat Balls. However, for now, visit this page for similar recipe.
BBQ: This is super simple. Just make your hamburger balls and cover them with BBQ sauce of your choice. This is what one we love. Then, bake in the oven for 30 minutes or put them in the slow cooker.
Porcupine: The texture of these is what designates them as “porcupine.” Mix ground beef, onion, minute rice and tomato sauce together and form into small balls. Slow cook in the crock pot. Or you can cook more quickly in the oven for 30 minutes or on the stove top.
Or here’s another version of porcupines: Brown about 1 lb of ground beef, season with salt and pepper. Add about a quart of stewed tomatoes. Chopped onions if you like, 2 Tablespoons EACH of butter and sugar. Add about 1 cup of rice. If you use uncooked rice, add more tomatoes. Form into meat balls It can be slow cooked or microwaved 5 minutes on high, then half power for about 20-30 minutes.
Smoky: My absolute favorite meat ball recipe. My aunt created it and there’s a secret ingredient that makes it amazing.
For my Auntie’s complete recipe, go here
Spaghetti
So easy. Just brown hamburger, onion and Italian seasoning. While hamburger is cooking, start water in a pot to cook noodles.
When hamburger is browned, add in pasta sauce. I make my own and can it but here’s a good sauce I like to use if I need to.
Cook noodles until soft and drain. Serve noodles topped with the thick hamburger spaghetti sauce and enjoy!
Homemade pizza
Who doesn’t love pizza? We try to have pizza night each and every Friday night. And, of course, we love homemade pizza at home with a movie.
Homemade Pizza Crust: I use the one and only Pioneer Woman’s pizza crust. Get Her Recipe Here. It makes 2 crusts.
Then, brown the ground beef (2 lbs). Spread dough onto prepared pizza pans. Then, spread pizza sauce on top of the dough.
Sprinkle the hamburger evenly over the sauce. Add in more toppings and cheese. The possibilities are endless. I love putting green peppers, onions and cheese on my pizza. My daughter loves just plain cheese so I usually do a half cheese pizza for her.
Lasagna
One of my favorites ever. It’s a layer casserole made in a casserole dish. You can also make this in the crock pot.
Basically, the first thing is to brown the hamburger. Gather tomato sauce, uncooked lasagna noodles, cottage cheese and the hamburger.
Then, layer:
- Noodles
- Sauce
- Shredded cheese of your choice
- Hamburger
- Cottage Cheese
- Repeat
Make these layers thin so you have enough for 2 or three layers. Bake at 350 degrees for about an hour. Or cook slow in the crock pot. Here’s another variation for lasagna:
Potato Lasagna
Very similar to traditional lasagna above but you use potatoes instead of noodles. Also, use fiesta nacho cheese instead of cottage cheese.
So, here are the steps:
- Spray a 9×13 pan.
- Cut potatoes thin and layer the bottom of the pan.
- Brown ground beef
- Layer the pan:
- Potatoes
- Shredded Cheese
- Tomato Sauce
- Beef
- Fiesta Nacho Cheese
- Repeat
Then, cover with tin foil and bake at 375 degrees F for at least an hour. Every oven is different so times may vary. The potatoes will need to be soft so the thinner you cut them the less cook time will be needed.
For tips on growing great potatoes, go here
Yumasetta!
Another great recipe for picky eaters. First, brown a pound of ground beef and drain it. Then, add a can of tomato soup, stir. Set aside.
Next, boil a bag of egg noodles. After you cook and drain the noodles, add a can of cream of chicken soup to noodles. Also, fill the empty can up 3/4 of the way of milk to get the extra out. Then, layer like lasagna in a prepared 9×13 pan:
- Noodles
- Hamburger
- Slices of cheese (of your choice)
- Peas (or other veggie)
- Repeat
Then, brown in the oven (375 degrees F) for 15-20 minutes. Easy Peasy!
For another easy peasy beef recipe, go here
Mexican Hamburger Meals
We have Mexican type meals a LOT. They are so easy and my family loves them. These are a few of our favorites all made with fresh ground beef.
Also, the toppings and combinations to put into these Mexican meals are endless. Use what you desire. Here’s a listing of all the Mexican meal ideas to make with ground beef.
Tacos
So stupid easy. Just brown hamburger and add in seasoning.
Enchiladas
Similar to above except using enchilada seasoning.
Taco Salad
Use taco seasoning to your liking, or just omit completely and just season with salt and pepper! We use tortilla chips or Doritos, ground beef, lettuce, black olives, black beans, and Dorothy lynch or ranch dressing, but you could use whatever your family likes.
Use actual taco salad shells or chips or just salad.
Chile relleno casserole
If you’re into really spicy meals, try this one. Here’s the ingredients:
- 2 10 oz cans whole green chile, cut open, remove seeds and dry
- 1 lb ground beef, browned
- 3/4 lb cheddar cheese
- 3/4 lb Monterey Jack Cheese
- 6 T. Flour
- 4 eggs beaten* 1 cup milk
First, preset oven to 350 degrees F and grease a 9X13 in. pan. Place 1/2 chilies in pan. Sprinkle half hamburger and half cheese. Then half flour and start over with the layers.
Mix milk and eggs together and pour over the top. Bake for 45-60 minutes until brown.
Taco Macaroni Bake
A little bit different mix is to throw it together into a baking dish. Made similar to lasagna but not really layered.
- 2 Pounds Bite-sized cooked pasta
- 2 Pounds Brown and drain ground beef.
- Favorite Taco Seasoning – See above for mine
- 8 ounce Package Cream Cheese
- 1 Bottle Salsa
- 1 Bottle Taco Sauce
- Mix cream cheese and beef together.
- Mix beef into pasta.
- Spread 1/2 the sauces in a large casserole pan.
- Then, spread pasta and beef mix into sauces.
- And spread the rest of the salsa and taco sauce on top.
- Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees F for about 20 minutes.
- Remove foil and sprinkle with cheese. Bake for about 5 more minutes or until cheese is melted.
Extra tip: You can double this recipe to freeze for later when you need an instant meal.
Beef/cheese quesadillas
Another family favorite for us. I use olive oil in my pan and cook them on stove top until they are nice and brown.
For this simple beef quesadilla recipe, go here
Nachos
One of the easiest recipes in this roundup. It’s a dump and melt the cheese process that you can throw in the crock pot and spread over chips.
For my recipe for yummy beefy nachos, go here
Traditional Favorite Easy Ground Beef Recipes
Handcrafted Grilled Hamburgers
Ground beef is great by itself in a hamburger. I prefer a grilled burger over anything else.
For my recipe and instructions for crafting the perfect hamburgers for grilling, go here.
And if you want homemade ketchup recipes, go here.
Top it with a fried homemade pickle here.
Easy Shepards Pie
Old time recipe you read about in Game of Thrones or Robin Hood. This is the traditional of all traditional recipes in the history of traditional recipes.
- 1st layer: 1 can peas or frozen equivalent(cooked)
- 2nd layer: 1 lb seasoned ground beef, browned
- 3rd layer: Mashed potatoes
Top with cheese if you want and layer into a bread-size pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes.
The next recipe can also be made in bread pans, too.
Meatloaf
This meat loaf recipe has veggies in it! Three kinds of meat, rice and and sauces to make it juicy.
- 2 lbs Hamburger
- 1 lbs ground pork
- Shredded zucchini
- Bread crumbs
- Seasoning – salt, pepper, paprika, garlic, onion powder (can leave out), thyme and what ever you like.
- Couple drops liquid smoke (not too much)
- Steak sauce
- 3-4 raw eggs
- 1 cup Instant rice
- BBQ sauce (instead of Ketchup)
- Shredded spinach
- Shredded cheese (not too much)
- Hard salami (diced very small)
Mix ingredients well and press in to a 9×13 cake pan or bread pans. Cover with a 30/70 mix of BBQ sauce and Ketchup. Cook at 375° until done, let cool slightly serve with mash potatoes and a green veggie of choice.
If you have picky eaters, you can puree the spinach and zucchini instead. These make great open face or regular sandwiches for left overs.
Juicy Burger
Another twist on a burger. Check out this recipe:
- Ground beef
- Onions (or not)
- Brown sugar
- Squirt of ketchup
- 2 Tbs dry mustard
- Squirt bbq sauce
- Dash of Worcestershire sauce
- Salt, pepper, garlic, paprika to taste. You can add tomato paste, broth, different spices
Mix together, form into patties and throw on the grill.
Patty Melts
Basically hamburger with cheese over the top or mixed in. Mix shredded cheese of your choice with hamburger before forming it into patties. YUM!
Tater tot casserole
- 1 Bag Frozen Tater Tots
- 1 lb Browned Ground Beef
- Bag Frozen Peas
- Cheese
- 1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup
- 1 Cup Milk
Mix ingredients together in a 9X13 Baking Pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25-30 minutes.
Sloppy Joes
Make traditional sloppy joes with tomato sauce and seasoning in a crock pot. Serve with buns.
Or try this version:
Brown hamburger, drain and add Tostidos Con Queso cheese dip, serve on buns. Or this version:Brown 2 lbs burger, add 2 cans of condensed Campbells vegetable beef and barley soup. Rinse cans with 1/4 of water. Heat and stir. Serve on buns or toast or even mashed taters. Caution on salt with burger because soup has a lot of salt.
Bisquick Impossible Pies
You need Bisquick to make these. It’s just not the same otherwise.
I make mine in muffin tins and freeze leftovers. They easily reheat in the microwave for a quick meal. I like seasoned ground beef, frozen peas and carrots mix (or mixed veggies) as filling, top with your choice of cheese.
Bacon wrapped mini meatloaf
Anything is better with bacon. See the meat loaf recipe above for ingredients. Line the meatloaf pans with bacon before filling with the meat loaf.
Frito pie
Yes – The same ones you can get at the county fair or baseball game.
All you need is: Ground beef, dried mustard, ketchup, salt & pepper. Grated cheese. Maybe some lettuce and tomato. Serve over Fritos or tortilla chips.
Hobo dinner
Make hamburger patties or use leftovers. Place hamburger patty seasoned to taste on a sheet of aluminum foil, add sliced potatoes and carrots topped with salt and pepper. You can use garlic salt in place of salt. Drizzle with olive oil. Seal foil packet place on baking sheet and bake in oven at 400 degrees for 40 minutes. You could also cook this in the crock pot. Makes a packet for each person.
Soup + Stew
I don’t have a lot of my soup recipes as blog posts on my blog yet, so I’ve linked to some of my favorites.
Beef Barley soup
Here’s a yummy recipe from Kalyn’s Kitchen
Chili
This is my recipe. I interchange different meats that I have, so substitute ground goat for ground beef. Feel free to use my Goat Chili Recipe but use beef instead of goat.
Taco soup
Here’s the recipe I turn to from Countryside Cravings
Bacon cheeseburger soup
Here’s the recipe I use from 12 Tomatoes
Lasagna soup
This is a yummy one from Cooking Classy.
Vegetable Beef Stew with Ground Beef
This is a recipe my mom used, so I’ve eaten and made it a long time. Use whatever veggies you have on hand. Just throw it all in!
Brown 1 pound ground beef and mix with veggies in a large pot on the stove or in your crock pot. I love Swanson’s Beef Broth. You can also add in some cooking wine or balsamic vinegar to taste. Also, add salt and pepper to taste.
Cook until it is nice and warm. Perfect for cool Fall and cold Winter nights.
Yummy “Slop Meals” with Hamburger
My favorite to make during crunch time. My husband refers to these as slop meals because they are thrown together and most generally ends up very slop-like. But they are delicious. Here’s the list:
Slop
My mom made a variation of this and she called it ‘slop’. I make it all the time in my house. She only used beef, elbow noodles, ketchup and mustard.
I sometimes change up the sauce and other ingredients (besides the beef and noodles, those are standard)- the possibilities are endless. I also like it with baked beans mixed in.
Here’s a similar skillet meal with summer squash – Use Beef instead of Sausage
Smothered hamburgers
Also known as Salisbury steak. with a mushroom and onion brown gravy. (Another one of my kids’ favorite meals!) Make hamburger patties, cook until done and smother with the gravy. Serve with veggies and potatoes.
Hamburger Dips
Brown hamburger. Then, add a can of pork n’ beans and a can of tomato soup, simmer together and serve with a dinner roll to dip. How easy is that?
Another dip recipe has cheese in it. Brown 1 lb. of ground beef. Drain any extra grease. Add a can of tomato bisque soup and a can of cheddar cheese soup. You could also use Velveeta.
Heat up to boiling. Enjoy with chips.
If you want this cheesy concoction as a meal, add in pasta shells. Boil until the pasta is tender and enjoy!
Hamburger macaroni
A similar recipe to Goulash. Brown 1 pound hamburger in a cast iron skillet, drain off grease. Cook elbow macaroni with canned tomatoes. You can add or subtract the quantities depending on the number of people, but I would use 1 lb. hamburger, 1-2 cups macaroni with 1-2 pints tomatoes.
Use enough liquid to cover the macaroni. Cook until pasta is tender. Onion makes this dish more flavorful. You can also add in mushrooms and hot peppers depending on what your crowd likes. Also, you can’t ever go wrong with cheese.
Porcupine Slop
Minute rice, crumbled hamburger, cream of whatever you have on hand, and shredded cheese was a staple in my house growing up. It was made on the stove top in big enough batches that it lasted 3 or 4 days.
Cowboy’s Favorite Slop
Pound of hamburger, pound of bacon, large can of baked beans. Brown and crumble the hamburger, dice, cook, & drain the bacon. Stir all together and let simmer at least 30 minutes.
Veggie Ranch Slop
Ranch dip, mixed veggies, ground beef, and a little chili powder. I usually use onion soup mix for flavor.
Mean Green Slop
Browned hamburger then added green beans and one can of cream of chicken soup and some Lowry season salt and garlic salt to taste.
Easy Peasy Beef Mac N Cheesy
All stove top… cook noodles and add a pound of burger, some veggies on the side or peas mixed in.
Go Here for the Entire Recipe
Spanish Slop with Beans
All you need is hamburger, spanish rice and kidney beans. Eat it by yourself or in a soft tortilla shell. Yum!
Dirty Rice Slop (With Texas Toast)
Browned ground beef, cream of mushroom soup (1 can condensed), 1 package of red beans and minute rice….all mixed together. Can serve alone or on top of a piece of Texas Toast.
You can also add spicy stuff, peppers, cheese, whatever extras you like. Always better on day two.
Goulash
One of the easiest meals to make. I just use tomato soup, noodles and seasoned hamburger. Let it cook slow until noodles are soft.
Hamburger Gravy
One of our lazy meals is hamburger gravy. Just brown hamburger, drain and make brown gravy (I use this one) in the same pan with the beef. Serve with mashed potatoes. Can also serve over bread with potatoes on the side like a hot beef sandwich.
I add onions to mine (because they’re easily hidden in the gravy if they’re finely diced so my family doesn’t notice), but you can also omit them and it’s pretty much just as good.
Take Your Pick Of These Amazing Easy Ground Beef Recipes!
I know there are many many more recipes out there. I will be adding to this post over time if I find a really good new recipe.
That’s why this post is called “60+” easy ground beef recipes. It started out with around 60 and I’m hoping this post will live on and continue to grow and help you and others to plan out easy meals for your family.
If you’d like to add your favorite hamburger recipe to the list, please comment below or email me. Part of a balanced day is having a plan for what we will eat for the day. I hope this post has helped you to choose something easy and stress free to fit on your table that your family will enjoy.
Also, keep in mind these easy ground beef recipes are very adaptable using different ingredients and seasonings. You can easily make simple meals with hamburger into family favorites. So, enjoy reading through these quick ground hamburger ideas. Don’t forget to save this list to Pinterest so you can find it later.
15+ Ways to Use Venison that Everyone Will Love
Friday 21st of December 2018
[…] Read More… […]
Ultimate Beef Grilling Guide for Delicious Steaks and Burgers
Saturday 26th of May 2018
[…] 60+ Easy Ground Beef Recipes Your Family Will Love to Eat […]