Hobo Dinner Foil Packets are so simple to make and everyone raves about them! Comforting veggies including potatoes, carrots, and onions are topped with a seasoned hamburger patty and grilled or baked to tender perfection.
This recipe reminds me of recipes my mother would bring to the field during fall harvest time. A complete and hearty meal made especially for hungry, hard working harvesting folks was always a welcome sight! This Hobo Dinner recipe delivers exactly that! Not only is this a complete meal in one simple packet, but it is so easy to prepare and even easier to clean up making it the perfect meal to serve to your hungry family!
The type of ground beef you choose can be so important to whatever recipe you are making. In this Hobo Dinner Foil Packets recipe I choose lean ground beef (instead of extra lean). My reasoning is two-fold;
- The little bit of extra fat helps to keep everything moist and tender. The last thing you want is for everything to become dried out!
- It adds great flavor to all the veggies and the gravy in the packet!
The patty in this recipe is topped with a dollop of creamy mushroom soup creating a delicious gravy to partner with the veggies.
I love to make these as individual foil packets but this recipe can easily be adapted to suit your appetite or your crowd!
- Larger Packets – if you have guests who have larger appetites, include 2 hamburger patties (side by side, not stacked) on top of the veggies.
- Use fresh veggies that are available in your garden or the local market at this time of year! While carrots, potatoes, and onions are favorites, I do love fresh green beans, bell peppers, and Brussels sprouts!
- You can substitute ground turkey in place of ground beef! In this case, you may need to add a tablespoon of olive oil to the meat patty mixture to help keep it moist.
- The packets can be cooked in the oven or on the grill. If using the grill you can use the second layer of foil to seal your packs and prevent any leaks.
- Parchment paper can be used in place of foil if baking in the oven.
One final note and my favorite thing about this recipe is that it can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator until time to bake! Whether you are preparing a harvest dinner for hungry workers in your family, or you simply have a busy week ahead of you, these Hobo Dinner Foil Packets are super convenient, easy and delicious!
Hobo Dinner Foil Packets (Hamburger & Potato)
Ingredients
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 ounce dry onion soup mix 1 packet
- 4 small potatoes peeled and sliced
- 2 cups diced carrots
- 1 large onion or 2 small onions, sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 10.5 ounces condensed cream of mushroom soup 1 can
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375°F.
- Combine ground beef and dry soup mix in a bowl. Form into four patties and set aside.
- In a large bowl combine all remaining ingredients except mushroom soup. Toss until well mixed.
- Spray a 12″ x 18″ piece of foil with non-stick spray.
- Place ¼ of the vegetable mixture in the center of the foil. Top with 1 beef patty. Add 2 tablespoons of condensed mushroom soup on top of each patty.
- Seal foil packets well. Place beef side up on a large baking sheet and bake 35-45 minutes or until potatoes and carrots are tender.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dinner
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This is a wonderful recipe except when the recipe is changed from one 4serving recipe to 12 serving recipe the instructions with measurements DO NOT change from the singular. How do you figure the mesurement for the Grond beef other than make four patties> What is the measurement for the vegetables other than 1/4 of the mixture? These are VERY important changes that need to be incorporated in the instructions. How many cups does the vegetable mix make? This would really help in order calculate the measurement for the enlarged recipe. Just saying.
Hi Linda, it is approximately ¼ lb of the beef mixture per patty. So if you triple the recipe you will turn 3 lbs of ground beef (mixed with the soup mix) into 12 patties. As for the vegetables, we just evenly divide the mixture over the number of foil packs we are making. Which is about 1 – 1 ½ cups of vegetables per foil pack. I hope that helps!
Came here after watching Steve Wallis made this on one of his camping videos.
Unfortunately I can’t get Dried Onion Soup Mix here in the UK….is there any alternative to add to the Beef Mince?
Thanks
You can use homemade onion soup mix or season the patties with salt and your favorite spices.
Thanks for the advice Holly. I did wonder about making up a mix of Garlic powder and Onion powder or similar?….maybe even a little Garam Masala? lol.
Absolutely, garlic powder and onion powder are great. The soup mix adds a bit of a salty, beefy flavor so a crumbled beef bouillon cube or salt and Worcestershire sauce would be great too.
Love this recipe!!! There’s only two of us. How would you reheat? Thank you
You can transfer the foil packets to a microwave safe dish and heat in the microwave.
With only two of us at home now, this recipe works so well. I am able to put together 4 bundles and cook as many at a time as I need. I know I will do this again with adjustments for our favorites.
When I was in Girl Scouts, we called these “Hobo Stew” and we would double wrap them in foil and place them on hot coals in the fire. We used large tongs to turn them over. Our family has also made on camping trips with chicken fillets instead of ground meat. A hint I learned a few years ago was to place a cabbage leaf in the middle of the foil sheet and then put all of the ingredients in the middle of the leaf and then wrap it in the foil. It helps the meat stay moist and the other veggies don’t burn. You can choose whether or not you want to eat the cabbage when the packet is ready to serve.
Thanks for the tip, Pam! I will have to try that out.
SO GOOD, thank you!
If this is already cooked, I would like to know how long and what temperature in the oven to reheat them.
This is a great recipe, thank you.
You can reheat it in at oven at 350°F for 10-15 minutes or until heated through. Enjoy!