Easy Instant Pot Hamburger Helper Recipe
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Skip the box, not the comfort! My Instant Pot Hamburger Helper recipe is a quick, budget-friendly dinner that tastes like a weeknight win! Creamy, cheesy, and perfectly seasoned, it’s the kind of one-pot magic that satisfies everyone at the table, from kids to grown-ups. Plus, cleanup? Practically none!
Can you cook Hamburger Helper in an Instant Pot?
Yes, you can absolutely cook Hamburger Helper in the Instant Pot! In fact, it’s one of the easiest ways to make this classic comfort meal in minutes.
While you can use the boxed mix, making homemade Hamburger Helper from scratch in the Instant Pot tastes so much better, with real ingredients, richer flavor, and none of the preservatives. It’s the best of both worlds. Quick, easy, and deliciously homemade.
How long does it take to cook Hamburger Helper in the Instant Pot?
It takes about 13 minutes total to cook Hamburger Helper in the Instant Pot. Simply sauté the ground beef for 5–10 minutes until browned, then pressure cook all the ingredients for 3 minutes. The result? Perfectly cooked pasta, creamy sauce, and flavorful beef all in one pot, prepared in under 15 minutes!
Ingredients
My homemade Instant Pot Hamburger Helper is made with simple, flavorful ingredients you probably already have on hand. It starts with ground beef, sautéed with onion and garlic for a rich flavor. A blend of seasonings, a touch of flour helps thicken the creamy sauce made from beef stock, tomato sauce, and heavy cream, while sour cream and cheddar cheese add that signature creamy, cheesy finish that makes every bite irresistible.
How to make homemade Hamburger Helper
- Sauté and season: Brown ground beef with onion and garlic in the Instant Pot using the sauté setting, then drain.
- Mix and layer: Add seasonings, flour, beef stock, pasta, tomato sauce, and sour cream — no need to stir!
- Pressure cook: Pressure-cook for 3 minutes, then naturally release for 5 minutes.
- Stir and serve: Add heavy cream and cheddar cheese, stir until creamy and melted, and enjoy this one-pot comfort meal!
More Instant Pot one-pot meals
Craving more quick, easy, and flavor-packed dinners? Try these Instant Pot one-pot meals that make cleanup a breeze and taste like home-cooked comfort in minutes!
- Soul food chicken spaghetti
- Instant Pot mac and cheese
- Instant Pot shrimp and grits
- Instant Pot shrimp pasta salad
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Equipment
- Instant Pot electric pressure cooker
- Colander
Ingredients
- 12 oz. pasta uncooked small pasta shells
- ½ cup water
- 1 pound ground beef
- ½ cup yellow onion diced
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- 1 teaspoon parsley dried
- ½ teaspoon oregano dried
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 cup beef stock or beef broth
- 15 oz. tomato sauce
- ½ cup heavy cream
- ¼ cup sour cream
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon seasoning your favorite all-purpose seasoning salt for the ground beef
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 2 cups cheddar cheese shredded
Instructions
- Open the Instant Pot lid, add the water to the stainless steel inner pot, and turn on the sauté setting for 15 minutes. (You will likely not need this entire time, but I like to allow extra time for the sauté to heat up.)
- Season the ground beef with all-purpose seasoning and cook the meat with the onion and garlic until browned, breaking it with a large spoon.
- Then use a colander to drain the excess fat and set aside the cooked ground beef.
- Clean the inner pot, return it to the Instant Pot, and add the cooked ground beef, along with the Italian seasoning, smoked paprika, all-purpose flour, parsley, oregano, sugar, salt, and pepper into the stainless-steel inner pot.
- Pour the beef stock over the ingredients in the pot.
- Scatter the pasta evenly across the top.
- Use a small rubber spatula to press and submerge the pasta into the liquid broth as much as possible.
- Next, pour the tomato sauce and sour cream evenly over the pasta, covering it as thoroughly as you can.
- Close the Instant Pot lid, ensuring the valve is in the ‘sealing’ position, and pressure cook on high for 3 minutes.
- When the cooking time is finished, allow a natural pressure release for 5 minutes.
- To open the Instant Pot lid, move the valve to ‘venting’ and manually release any remaining pressure, if necessary. Initially, the pasta may look soupy, but it will thicken nicely as it cools.
- Gently separate the pasta using a pasta fork.
- Stir in the heavy whipping cream and cheese until they are completely melted and blended with the noodles. Then, serve, and enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
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Never heard of this recipe before. Almost similar to my version of Spaghetti recipe.
I hope you’ll give this soul food Southern homemade Hamburger Helper recipe a try!