A healthier gluten-free Hamburger Helper made in one-skillet and takes less than 20 minutes to whip up! A delicious and easy dinner recipe for the whole family and it is so crave-able and a family fave.
When I told Jordan I was making us a “healthy hamburger helper”, he had zero idea what I was referring to.
We both technically have never had the original hamburger helper recipe so call us amateurs, but I have a feeling I would have loved it after having the healthier one.
This is hands down one of the most requested recipes on the blog ever. I looked up the original hamburger helper sold in grocery stores and from the looks of it, felt it was a super easy recipe to mimic.
I also only dirtied one skillet, which is a dream when it comes to cleaning up the kitchen after a meal. This whole recipe will take you less than 20 minutes to make and you will feed your entire family or have dinner for yourself for a few nights. It is a dream recipe scenario!
This recipe is also really light because I don’t use much cheese in it. Just a cup of shredded cheese for that creaminess and no milk or anything. You can of course add more cheese if you are craving. Jord did when he warmed his up!
Ingredients needed to cook this Hamburger Helper:
I am flipping obsessed with how simple the ingredients are for this pasta dish. I had all of these things on hand too, which made it even easier to make. This recipe is also dairy free-friendly, if you want to sub a dairy-free cheese too.
- Grass-fed/grass-finished beef – you can also use ground turkey or chicken if you prefer
- Almond flour – this isn’t a must but I think it helps absorb the broth better while pasta cooks
- Garlic powder, paprika and onion powder
- Bone broth – I used beef bone broth but any broth works
- Dry pasta – I used these brown rice shells
- Tomato sauce – use your favorite pasta sauce
- Shredded cheese – or use dairy-free cheese too
How to make healthy Hamburger Helper:
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat and add the grass-fed beef to skillet and breakdown down into smaller pieces uses a wooden spoon or fork
- Cook on medium heat until the beef is brown and no longer pink
- Drain any excess fat from the skillet then add in the flour, spices, broth, pasta and sauce and mix well
- Bring to a boil then cover and cook on low heat for about 12 minutes (or until pasta is ready and almost all liquid is absorbed)
- Remove skillet from heat and mix in cheese and serve while warm!
A few of my other favorite easy dinner recipes:
Healthier Gluten-free Vegetarian Lo Mein
The Easiest No-Boil Baked Pasta Recipe (gluten-free)
Healthy Vegetarian Enchilada Pasta (gluten-free)
5-ingredient Creamy Squash Pasta (vegan + gluten-free)
PrintOne-Skillet Gluten-free Hamburger Helper
A healthier gluten-free Hamburger Helper made in one-skillet and takes less than 20 minutes to whip up! A delicious and easy dinner recipe for the whole family and it is so crave-able and a family fave.
- Prep Time: 5 mins
- Cook Time: 12 mins
- Total Time: 17 mins
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients
- 1 lb grass-fed/grass-finished beef
- 1 tablespoon almond flour
- 1/2 teaspoon each of garlic powder, paprika and onion powder
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 3 cups bone broth (or any broth!)
- 12 ounces dry pasta (I used these brown rice shells)
- 1/4 cup tomato sauce
- 1 cup shredded cheese (or use dairy-free cheese)
Instructions
- Heat a large skillet over medium/high heat and add the grass-fed beef to skillet and breakdown down into smaller pieces uses a wooden spoon or fork
- Cook on medium heat until the beef is brown and no longer pink
- Drain any excess fat from the skillet then add in the flour, spices, broth, pasta and sauce and mix well
- Bring to a boil then cover and cook on low heat for about 12 minutes (or until pasta is ready and almost all liquid is absorbed)
- Remove skillet from heat and mix in cheese and serve while warm!
Notes
*Store leftovers in fridge for 5 days
Elizabeth
Just made this and honestly I’m shocked by how delicious this is. I subbed ground turkey and veggie stock and I also added in a whole shredded zucchini. Delicious! My kids love it and so do my husband and I. Will definitely be making this again.
Rachel
wwwoooohhhooo!!!
Bonnie
This was a very good, very easy and quick gluten free weeknight meal. Thank you!
Rachel
yay!!
Shannon
Rachel, this was AMAZING!!!!! SO easy to make and tastes delicious.
Rachel
aaawww thank you!!!
Christine
Looks delicious. This might be a dumb question but I’m confused on the amount of dry pasta. In one spot it says 2c in another it says 12oz, but assuming 2c is 16oz, how much pasta is recommended? Thank you.
Rachel
12 ounces 😀
Carolyn Keel
This was so easy and tastes amazing!!!! This will definitely be in our meal rotation 🤗 We also had your pizza bagels for lunch today.
Rachel
yyaaayyyyy!!!!!
Courtney
I loved this! My mom is a super picky eater so it was a great meal to make with her. I used orecchiette and it was a great noodle for the cheesiness!
Rachel
wwooohhooo love that idea!!
Katie romney
Hi. Have you made this with a meatless ground beef? If so, what brand did you use and/or can you recommend one.
And did you use chedder or mozzarella cheese? Thank you
This looks delicious
Rachel
i usually use cheddar!! i haven’t don’t a meatless beef. but a lot readers have and loved it!!
Melissa
Any recommendations for sauce substitute that does not contain tomatoes?
Rachel
Hmm not that I know of!
Jo
I’m willing to bet that if you roast bell peppers squeeze out the excess liquid and run it through food processor you’ll get a great bell pepper sauce that you could use for this recipe
Tatiana
What you are looking for is Nomato sauce. You can make it from scratch or buy it at a health food store. Another way to look it up is “AIP tomato sauce”
Shantel
Yummy!!!!! Loved it. My new go-to when I’m not sure what to make!
Olivia
So delicious!! Easy and quick to make. The kids and husband loved it! We’ll be bookmarking this recipe for sure!
Rachel
aaawww yay thank you!!!!
Amanda
This is AMAZING! I have not had hamburger helper in almost 5 years because I needed it to be gluten free. I did add 2tbsps of milk just to make it a but creamy.
Thank you!!!
Rachel
YAAYY thank you!
Steve
Had a craving for hamburger helper, something I haven’t eaten in 20+ years. Wife found this recipe, substituted the shells for an alternative gluten-free option and used non-dairy cheese. HITS THE SPOT! Very good, thanks for the recipe.
Rachel
aaawww yayyyyy
Valerie R
Winner winner perfect dinner! I made this when Rachel first posted it then kinda forgot about it. Well… it will be on the winter food rotation for sure! Easy and super delicious! I’m GF and DF so I used the banza pasta and put cheese on my husband’s and son’s when I played theirs. Honestly, I’m already excited for leftovers for lunch tomorrow.
Rachel
thank you so much!!!!!!
Cynthia
Best healthy version of box hamburger helper ever!! It was effortless to whip up. And as a momma of a new born and a 2.5 year old, time is precious! This literally took less than 10 minutes to get it all cooking, and then it was done. Also, with sleep deprivation from new born phase, I accidentally used an entire can of organic tomato sauce. BUT, it was okay because calculating the measurements, it was 1.75 cups, so I just then used 2 cups of bone broth. Haha. Thank you for the recipe!!!
Rachel
awww thanks cynthia!!
Mary
I’m so excited to make this this week. I never grew up with hamburger helper either but I love anything with ground beef. And we actually have all these ingredients on a regular basis!
mckenna
what’re the macros / nutrition on this?
Rachel
feel free to input into online calculator!
Sarah
Great recipe for a quick dinner that pleased the whole family, even a picky two year old! My only note was that I personally love more flavor and probably tripled the amount of paprika, onion and garlic powders.
Rachel
yay thank you so much!!!
Heather
This has become a favorite of mine! I usually add diced onion and a shredded carrot or two!
Rachel
YAY thank you so much!!!
Brooke B.
An absolute dinner staple around here! Delicious, easy, and healthy! A perfect trifecta!!
Rachel
wwwoohoooo!!!
Jen
I have made this almost everywhere now, it’s so good and my celiac daughter can’t have enough. The Eddie family lives it and now friends have started making this. Thank you so so much for sharing!!!!
Rachel
yayyyy thanks!
Jen
I have made this almost everywhere now, it’s so good and my celiac daughter can’t have enough. The Eddie family lives it and now friends have started making this. Thank you so so much for sharing!!!!
Erin
Worked with gluten-free elbow macaroni as well! I did have to watch it a bit more carefully. I also substituted blended up cottage cheese for the heavy cream at the end for a protein/lower fat option. I didn’t need as much salt as was suggested. Really good!
Rachel
happy to hear!!
Kaitlin
This was very good and nice and lite. It was not a heavy hamburger helper you would normally have like in the packaged stuff. I added some season salt to mine but other than that it was yummy. Will definitely make again.
Rachel
yay thanks for sharing!
Tami
This was so delicious! Paired it with a fresh salad and dinner was ready to go. Quick, easy and tastes just like my childhood. Thank you!
Rachel
yay thank you!!
Kristine
Great food! My family loved it. I did substitute some of the broth with the beef liquid and used broke up spaghetti noodles. No tomato sauce it still came out tasting great.
Rachel
love it!!
Melissa
This is a staple in my recipe collection. Every time I make it, it’s a hit with my husband and kids! I double the recipe, add a whole onion, and instead of tomato sauce I add a can of diced tomatoes. Adds a bit more body and stretches leftovers just a bit 😉 5 stars in my opinion!
Rachel
obsessed!!!