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Homemade Crockpot Hamburger Helper. Forget the boxed stuff—this is everyone’s childhood favorite dinner, made completely from scratch…and honestly, even easier too. Plus, so much tastier! Think of it as the creamier, cozier, better version of what some of you may remember as a kid. Made with ground beef, pasta, a handful of seasonings, and even some shredded zucchini for a little extra veggie boost. It’s the kind of effortless pasta that’s guaranteed to become a weeknight family staple.
Did you grow up on Hamburger Helper? It wasn’t something my dad ever made for us, but I do remember always seeing that red box sitting in the pantry. Funny enough, my oldest brother swears it was one of his favorite dinners. Maybe he made it for himself? I really should ask him! Either way, it’s not a dish I grew up with, but it somehow feels nostalgic all the same.
For years, my brother begged me to make a homemade version, and many years back, I finally caved. I came up with a stove-top recipe that quickly turned into a family favorite—and honestly, I loved making it. But today? I’ve got something even better. This crockpot version is simpler, creamier, and completely hands-off. Truly effortless comfort food that tastes like pure childhood nostalgia…just upgraded.
These are the details
Ingredients
- ground beef – I use Force Of Nature, 80/20 blend
- onions
- chili powder
- garlic powder
- paprika
- salted butter
- ketchup
- broth
- pasta zucchini
- milk
- cheddar cheese
- fresh parsley or tiny basil leaves
Special Tools
This recipe calls for a crockpot. If you don’t have a crockpot, make this recipe here! Other than that, nothing fancy here!
Steps
Step 1: Set it and go
Set your crockpot to high. Add the beef, onions, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, butter, and ketchup. Season generously with salt and black pepper.
Give the meat a quick stir—it will naturally break into pieces as it cooks. Pour in the broth, cover, and cook on low for 4–6 hours or on high for 1–2 hours.
My crockpot can actually cook the raw beef in about an hour on high. It works like magic, I swear!
Step 2: Stir and add the remaining ingredients
Once the beef is done—or when you’re ready to finish—stir in the pasta, zucchini, and whole milk about 20 minutes before serving. I like to add another pinch of salt here too.
Cook until the pasta is just tender. Stir in the cheese until melted and creamy. Taste and season with more salt and pepper as needed.
Step 3: Serve
Spoon the pasta into bowls and top with fresh parsley or basil (straight from the garden if you have it!). Best served right after the pasta is cooked. Leftovers can be stored in the fridge for a very yummy lunch the next day.
One last tip
If you’d like to make this a freezer meal, cook and freeze just the beef base (without pasta). When ready to serve, thaw in a pot on the stove, add 2 cups of water, bring to a boil, then add the pasta, zucchini, and whole milk. Cook until the pasta is tender, stir in the cheese, and serve. Super easy!
A few commonly asked Questions:
What is a good substitute the beef?
You can use ground turkey or ground chicken if you prefer.
Can you make this gluten-free?
Yes, you can use gluten-free pasta.
Looking for other easy family dinners? Here are a few ideas:
Broccoli Cheddar Chicken and Rice Casserole
One Pan Autumn Chicken and Wild Rice Casserole
Easy Southern Style Baked Mac and Cheese
Pumpkin Cheese Stuffed Pasta Bolognese Bake
One Skillet Cheesy Broccoli Cheddar Orzo Bake
Lastly, if you make this Crockpot Hamburger Helper, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Crockpot Hamburger Helper
Servings: 6
Calories Per Serving: 675 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 pounds ground beef
- 1 yellow onion, chopped
- 2 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 tablespoon salted butter
- 1 tablespoon ketchup
- sea salt and black pepper
- 2 cups broth
- 1 pound short cut pasta
- 1 zucchini, grated (about 1 cup grated)
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 1/2-2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
- fresh parsley for serving
Instructions
- 1. Set your crockpot to high. Drop in the raw meat, onion, chili powder, garlic powder, paprika, butter, and ketchup. Season with salt and pepper. Stir, breaking up the meat. Pour over the broth. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or on high for 1-2 hours. 2. During the last 15 minutes of cooking, crank the heat to high. Stir in the pasta, zucchini, and milk. Let cook on high until the noodles are soft, about 15-20 minutes. Add the cheddar, stir until melted.3. Divide the pasta among bowls and top with fresh parsley. Enjoy!
This post was originally published on August 18, 2025
Woof this one was bad, bad. Inedible. Usually your recipes are so great, but I suggest you do a rework on this one.
Hey Kelly,
Sorry to hear this recipe did not turn out for you, thanks for giving it a try!
I help cook for 75 at our Wednesday night children’s program at church…. do you think this could be cooked in quantity in a large roaster?
Hi Linda,
I am so sorry, I have never tried this, so I really am not sure the best way to go about that. Sorry I couldn’t be of more help!
Wouldn’t 80/20 meat make for a lot of grease that should be drained?
Hi Christine,
I did not have an issue with this, but you could certainly drain the grease if you feel that is needed. Please let me know if you give this recipe a try!
This was not good. I love HBH recipes and this was my first flop. It was a complete mushy mess. The noodles disintegrated and made it inedible. I also doubled the spices and it still lacked flavor.
Hi there,
Thanks for trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, I’m so sorry to hear it did not turn out for you!
This is a really good recipe and I’m glad I checked the comments first. I ended up using a dutch oven on the stove instead of crockpot. Used tomato paste & sugar instead of ketchup. Also added more seasonings than called for based on the comments saying it’s bland and almost had to double the amount of broth by the time the pasta was cooked. Used way less cheese than called for as it just didn’t need that much, I used maybe 1/2 cup total of cheddar & italian 6 blend. It came out amazing!
Hey Nick,
Wonderful! I am so glad to hear this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a lot for making it!🎃👻
Made this on the stove and loved it! Can I freeze leftovers?
Hey Laurie,
Happy Wednesday! Thanks for trying this recipe and letting me know it went well! Yes, you can definitely freeze the leftovers!
I followed this recipe 1:1 and I made brown sludge. I dont know what the issue is – the beef should be browned, the timing of the noodles, a thicker cream sauce rather than just dumping cheese in, but this recipe is nasty. Truly all love, but this is a flop.
Hi Tara,
So sorry to hear this! Thanks for trying this recipe, I’m sorry it didn’t turn out for you.
We made this and absolutely LOVED it!! The noodles took a little longer to cook and we added some extra liquid, but it’s delicious. We chose to put red pepper flakes into ours to make it a little spicier 😋 this will be going into our regular rotation!!
Hey Candace,
Thanks for the thoughtful feedback after trying this recipe, I’m happy to hear it was a win! Have the best weekend:)
Okay, normally I totally love the recipes but this one just didn’t hit. I didn’t read the reviews before trying until after I tried to eat mine to see if I did something wrong but I agree with some of the reviews that it just tasted so bland and gummy. I even added lemon zest, fresh garlic, Worcestershire, and fresh herbs to bring it back to life and nothing! It’s all good though – I know other recipes are amazing and just got to order pizza instead! Ha
Ahhh so sorry about that, Chelsey! I appreciate you giving the dish a try and your comment. Such a bummer it didn’t turn out. Thanks again for your feedback.
This turned out amazing! My family already loved the original HBH stove top version so I was excited to try it in the crock pot. I added a few splashes of Worcestershire as well and it really complimented the flavors. After reading a few of the comments, I decided to give the pasta more time. After adding the pasta, zucchini, and milk, I let it cook for another hour and it turned out great. I stirred it a couple of times during that hour and made sure the pasta was fully submerged in the liquid. I will definitely make this again!
Love to hear it, Erin! Thanks a lot for making this recipe and your comment! Have the best day!
I’m not sure what went wrong for some others but this recipe was great. I don’t have any issues with fat from the meat and it cooked just fine in the 4 hours on low in the crockpot. The pasta did need more like 45 minutes to be done in my crockpot but I probably should’ve stirred more frequently; then it may have been closer to 30 minutes. I seasoned a little heavier than the recipe given the feedback (to our taste) and added the Worcestershire someone mentioned and the pepperoncinis someone else mentioned. I also added a little lemon zest mid way through as I thought it needed a little “brightening” of acid. It was delicious. I will definitely make again. Thank you.
Thanks so much, Tiffany! So glad this recipe was enjoyed, I appreciate you making it! Happy September:)
I normally love your recipes but this one was a bit of a disappointment. After reading the comments, I browned the meat and par cooked the pasta before putting them in the crockpot and the pasta was still too el dente after cooking more in the crockpot. I did need to add more fluid also and I felt the taste was a bit too bland. I would do this recipe again but on the stovetop and increase the cheese and maybe add another type of cheese with the cheddar.
Hey Barbra,
I appreciate you trying this recipe and sharing your feedback, so sorry to hear it did not turn out to your liking. Next time, I would follow this recipe:
https://fett-weg.today/one-pot-hamburger-helper/%3C/a%3E%3Cbr /> I hope this helps! xx
Hi. How do you drain the fat from the meat?
Hi Laura! Since you’re cooking the meat all together with everything else, the fat will likely rise to the top and you can skim the fat off the top of the sauce/dish. You also could use a meat with a lower fat content to avoid having to drain it! 🙂 xT
I think either the liquids, or timing, or both are off. After 1.5 hours on high I couldn’t tell if the ground beef was cooked fully because of the coloring of the broth and seasonings. Overall mine cooked nearly 3 hours on high and even then, it was questionable. Even the onions still weren’t tender enough at that point. The pasta needed nearly an hour to cook to an edible tenderness. The milk and cheese turned it all into a gravy-like consistency, it looked nothing like the pictures.
Hi Gretchen,
Thanks for giving this dish a try and sharing your feedback, sorry to hear it didn’t turn out for you.
I also made it on the stove top and reduced the liquids by half. I used two cups of cheese.
It turned out perfectly and I hoping my two grandsons will love it!
Thank you, Tieghan!
Hey Dawn! Thank you so much, so happy to hear you loved this recipe! Have a great weekend! xT
So delicious!! I was short on time so I did this on the stove top instead. I cooked the pasta separately and served the meat sauce over the pasta once plated. I followed the recipe ingredients except I used 1.5 cups of beef broth and 1 cup of milk instead. Turned out perfectly, thanks so much Tiegan!
Hi Kelsy! So happy to hear you enjoyed this recipe! Thank you so much for your kind review! Have a great day! xT