Homemade Cheeseburger macaroni is just about as easy as the boxed mix with lots of cheesy homemade flavor. Best of all, it’s on the table in less than 30 minutes!
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Holly’s Recipe Highlights For Cheeseburger Macaroni
- Flavor: On the table in less than 30 minutes, the homemade version of Hamburger Helper has an easy seasoned cheese sauce.
- Recipe tip: Once the pasta is cooked, remove it from the heat before adding the cheese. This keeps the cheese from separating.
- Recommended tools: I love this meat chopper for cooking ground meat.
- Budget tip: Add extra pasta and sauce to stretch it even further. This recipe can also be made with less meat.
- Time-Saving Tip: Pre-shredded cheese can be used in this recipe, the sauce will not be quite as smooth, but still delicious.
Ingredients for Cheeseburger Macaroni
- Ground Beef – Choose lean ground beef and drain off any fat after cooking. Substitute with ground turkey or ground chicken.
- Sauce – The pasta is simmered with seasonings in chicken broth and milk until tender. Beef broth can be substituted, but we find chicken broth to give the best flavor.
- Cheese – Once the pasta is tender, stir in the cheese. A bold cheese like sharp cheddar cheese adds the most flavor. Try any cheese, but be sure at least one has a sharp, bold flavor.
Variations
- Swap the milk for light cream for extra creaminess or stir in a little sour cream or Greek yogurt before serving for a little tang.
- Change up the seasonings with a tablespoon of tomato paste or 1 teaspoon of dijon mustard.
- Add fresh vegetables like onion, celery, or tomatoes.
Serving Suggestions and Storage
There are a variety of flavors of Hamburger Helper; this version is a copycat cheeseburger macaroni recipe. I like to serve it with a simple and colorful side dish to complement the cheesy, meaty richness. Try steamed broccoli or peas and carrots.
- Cheeseburger macaroni will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Add a little bit of milk when reheating if needed.
- Store for up to 4 months in the freezer. Thaw in the refrigerator and reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop until heated through.
Easy One Pot Ground Beef Dinners
Did your family enjoy this Homemade Cheeseburger Macaroni? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- ½ cup finely diced onion or 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 2 cups milk
- 1 ¼ cup chicken broth
- 1 ½ cups elbow macaroni
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ¾ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- In a small bowl, combine cornstarch, garlic powder, sugar, salt, paprika, and pepper. Set aside.
- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the ground beef and onion, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until no pink remains. Drain any excess fat.
- Add milk, broth, and uncooked elbow macaroni to the beef. Stir the cornstarch and spice mixture. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Once boiling, reduce the heat to a gentle boil, cover and cook for 9-12 minutes or until the pasta is cooked through, stirring occasionally. If needed, add more broth or water.
- Remove from heat and stir in cheese until melted. Serve hot.
Video
Notes
- Depending on the brand of pasta and the size of the pan, you may need a little bit more or less liquid. Add extra broth or water as needed.
- Mild cheddar doesn’t have enough flavor for this dish.
- Remove the skillet from the heat before adding the cheese.
- For a little extra kick, add a dash of hot sauce, or some red pepper flakes.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Beef, Casserole, Dinner, Entree, Lunch, Main Course, Pasta
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
This is excellent!! Thank you!! :-D
Sooo much tastier than the box mix . . .
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! :)
Thank you Holly for all the nice recipes. Have a fun weekend.
You too Liz! Thank you for stopping by!
Delicious! 12 minutes was too long to cook. All the liquid evaporated, but it was still full of flavor and the cheese melted and blended well! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for the feedback Holly! If could be that your stove was warmer than mine. I’m glad you enjoyed this!
Would this recipe work if I used left over shredded chicken?
I have only tried it as written so I can’t say for sure. I think it would work but it would definitely change the flavor.
I don’t have cornstarch…..could I use flour instead?
I haven’t tried it but I’m sure it would work. You will need about 3T of flour to replace 1T of cornstarch.
I did it with the flour and 3tbl was perfect! This tasted great. I also added 1 tbl of onion powder and used garlic pepper instead of regular pepper….holy crow. Super good and easy to make! Thanks for the recipe!
That’s perfect, thank you for sharing Jenn!!
Hi Holly,
I’m sure this recipe is much better than the boxed stuff and I’m going to try it.
I love that the macaroni cooks right in with the other ingredients for a quick and easy one pot meal. I can see myself making this often :)
Thank you Forrest! This is one of my favorites!
I added a drained can of rotel and extra cheese it turned out great !
What a yummy addition! Thank you for sharing!
I made this tonight, and it turned out great! I grew up eating the box kind, but when I started cooking I became grossed out by processed and fake foods. Until recently, I used the Annie’s box mix because it was free of artificial ingredients, but they stopped making it! I am so happy to have a go to recipe that I can make from scratch!
Just made this – I added extra macaroni because this dish is feeding my family. That made it sticky (yum) and thick. I added a little more warmed milk to help the cheese melt. I used 1 cup Velveeta and 1 cup sharp cheddar. I season my food in layers, onions get s&p, ground beef gets s&p. I agree with another comment about using chili powder instead of paprika. Overall, great, quick meal – it did need some salt. Thank you for this recipe, my family is inhaling it!
Kinda of bland. Any ideas to make it more flavorful?
What type of cheese did you use? You could maybe use a sharper cheddar or add in another type of cheese, extra onion or garlic powder or other seasonings that you enjoy. If you used low-sodium chicken broth you might like to try regular.
I added taco seasoning to make it taco flavor …kids loved it!
Great idea, that would be delicious! I’m glad your family loved it!
That’s an awesome suggestion, Suzanne! Thank you :)
We thought it was a little bland also, so the second time I made it, I added a couple of swirls of mustard and ketchup to the finished dish and I happened to have some crumbled bacon which I added. It turned out really much more flavorful than the first time I made it and we liked it!
I used ground turkey because it’s what I had out at the time. I also used a can of Rotel tomatoes and green chiles. The ground turkey made it bland, unfortunately, but kids and hubby were still greatly enthused by it. When I plan ahead for this recipe next time, I will use ground beef. And extra cheese!
If you add the Rotel Tomatoes with green chiles is that substituted for the liquid?
What should the finished consistency be? I made this tonight for dinner and it came out soupy. It still was super yummy and loved by the fam. Just curious how it comes out normally.
Mine is always about the same consistency of the boxed mix.
Whenever you add cornstarch to a liquid, make sure you bring it to a full boil afterwards. Otherwise, it will not thicken.
I used chili powder instead of paprika to give it a little kick.
Four thumbs up! Two from me and two from hubby! Made this tonight and was so happy at the final result.Very easy to follow directions and well written recipe. Will definitely make this again!
So glad you enjoyed it!
Great recipe. It was Most Viewed on last week’s Wonderful Wednesday Blog Hop and will be featured this week! Yipee!
Pinning it :)
Thank you for the feature Sinea! :)
Oooh, I like this! This will save me from having to buy the package in the store. I swear people in my City give you dirty looks for buying boxed foods. Haha.
Love it. I usually make my own cheeseburger Macaroni but I always make a cheese sauce separate and add to mixture once every thing is done. Your way is so much easier I can not wait to try.
Has anyone tried beef broth instead of chicken?
How many servings does this make?
This makes 4 servings.
why wouldn’t you use beef broth instead of chicken broth, since the meat in the recipe is beef?
I am going to try that next time!
All I had was chicken broth and my bf loved it he usually hates ground beef and he went back for seconds :) so beef broth or chicken broth this recipe is bomb
So glad you enjoyed it Jess! Thank you for the tip about the chicken broth!