Our classic hamburger soup recipe makes a quintessential comfort food that is both healthy and satisfying. It’s loaded with lean beef, tender carrots, and potatoes in the complex tomato-based broth with a hint of smoky goodness.
This glorious hamburger soup may look and taste like it has been slow-cooking for hours, but actually, you only need about 45 minutes to get all the fabulous flavors to infuse. A spoonful of this wonderful soup can help brighten up your mood on even the darkest days.
Is Our Hamburger Soup Recipe Healthy?
The short answer is yes, our hamburger soup recipe is healthy.
To be precise, each serving of our hamburger soup recipe provides approximately 470 calories, leaving you ample space to combine it with a side dish and fresh juice for a satisfying and nourishing meal.
Hamburger soup is also packed with protein; 28 g per serving — up to 56% of your recommended daily intake. This protein-rich soup is the kind of dish that will satisfy both your hunger and your taste buds.
As well as being comfort food, our hamburger soup is a creative way to consume more of your favorite veggies. A diet rich in fruits and vegetables will benefit your digestion, immune system, and overall health.
Ingredients for Hamburger Soup
Hamburger soup recipes share a few common characteristics with hamburgers, but they don’t taste like a hamburger. The soup is the simplified version of beef stew. And just like any American stew, this classic homestyle soup is loaded with various nutritious ingredients.
- Meat: We used 85% lean ground beef since it has plenty of flavor but less fat, making the soup less greasy. If you want to go with beef that has a higher fat content, we recommend draining off any excess fat before moving on to the simmering step.
- Vegetables: We used a mixture of different vegetables: tomatoes to make a simple, rich base in which other elements can shine. Potatoes and carrots being great examples; they are stars in the bowl, absorbing all the flavor and spices, and elevating the broth.
- The addition of onion and celery gives a nice touch of sweetness while peas and corn add further color, nutrients, and texture. This soup is a great way to use up any veggies in your fridge— the rich, flavorful broth will work with pretty much anything.
- Seasoning: We seasoned the soup with salt, pepper, gravy mix and a dash of paprika for a spicy kick and a little smokiness.
- Broth: You can absolutely go with water or vegetable stock, but we prefer chicken broth since it adds lots more great flavors.
- Macaroni: Similar in size to chopped vegetables, macaroni is our favorite type of pasta to use in hamburger soup. It helps to babysit the pasta to ensure it only cooks until al dente.
How to Make Hamburger Soup
We start by browning the vegetables and meat before simmering them until tender in the flavor-packed broth. This hamburger soup has all the marks of a lovingly prepared soup that has taken hours to create, but really it’s pretty straightforward.
Sauté the garlic and onion.
Add the tomatoes, celery, and carrots.
Stir in the ground beef and season the mixture.
Add the potatoes, peas, corn, and pasta.
Pour in the broth and simmer the soup.
Garnish and serve.
Can I Use Frozen Ground Beef for This Soup?
Yes, but you may have to brown the meat a bit longer, about an extra 3 – 5 minutes to ensure it’s cooked through and there are no pink pieces left in the pot.
Tips
1. Cut Vegetables:
The smaller you cut the potatoes and carrots, the less time it takes to cook the soup to tender perfection. We cut these veggies to about ½-inch cubes and it typically took about 20 – 25 minutes for them to soften. Another key technique is to cut your vegetables in similar-sized chunks so that they all get cooked at the same rate.
2. Substitute:
- For the Meat: Hamburger soup doesn’t have to be about ground beef only, in fact, you can try any other protein of choice: pork, ground turkey, Italian sausage, or even shredded chicken.
- For Vegetables: We prefer fresh vegetables to maximize the natural flavor and nutritional value, but you can go with frozen variants. Frozen vegetables usually cook quicker, so only add them in at the end of the cooking process so that they don’t end up mushy and less appealing.
3. Thicken the Soup:
If you want to thicken the soup to a more stew-like consistency, add a cornstarch slurry. To make a cornstarch slurry, simply mix 1 or 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons of cold water and whisk until all the cornstarch is dissolved.
Then slowly whisk it into the simmering soup and cook for another few minutes until you get the consistency desired.
How to Store and Reheat Leftover Hamburger Soup
- To Store: Hamburger soup is a great candidate for storing in the fridge or freezer since the flavors get even better when they are allowed more time to meld together. To store it, let the soup cool completely at room temperature before transferring to an airtight container. The soup stays fresh in the fridge for about 3 days and in the freezer for up to 4 – 6 months.
- To Reheat: Please thaw the soup overnight in the fridge before you want to eat it. Then reheat it on the stovetop over low heat until it’s warmed through.
What to Serve With Hamburger Soup
This hamburger soup is hearty and filling enough to stand alone as a main dish, so we recommend preparing a simple side and fresh juice to make the whole combination a complete meal. We love complementing this soup with creamy mashed potatoes and pineapple cucumber juice.
If you’re a big fan of macaroni, this Instant Pot goulash recipe brings another comforting, heart-warming, and appetizing meal to your table.
Easy, Healthy Beef Recipes You May Like
There are so many ways to whip up delicious meals wit beef that it’d be a shame not to learn a few more. We have lots of ideas you may love:
Hamburger Soup Recipe
Our hamburger soup recipe turns simple everyday ingredients into a hearty, delicious (yet healthy) meal in just 45 minutes.
- cook TIME 35 mins
- prep TIME 10 mins
- total TIME 45 mins
- COURSE Dinner, Lunch, Main Course
- CUISINE American
- SERVINGS servings
- CALORIES 468 kcal
INGREDIENTS
- 16 oz 85% lean ground beef
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp garlic (chopped)
- 4 oz onion (chopped)
- 2 oz celery (chopped)
- 2 oz tomatoes (chopped)
- 4 oz carrots (cubed)
- 1/2 tsp oregano
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
- 1 1/2 tsp brown gravy mix
- 1 tsp paprika
- 6 oz potatoes (cubed)
- 2 oz frozen green peas (thawed)
- 4 oz corn
- 2 oz macaroni
- 3 cups unsalted chicken broth
- 2 tbsp parsley (chopped)
INSTRUCTIONS
In a large skillet over medium heat, add 2 tbsp olive oil, 1/2 tbsp garlic, and 4 oz onion. Stir fry for 1 minute or until softened.
Add 2 oz celery, 2 oz tomatoes, and 4 oz carrots. Cook for another 2 minutes.
Add 16 oz ground beef to the skillet and season the mixture with 1/2 tsp oregano, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp black pepper, 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce, 1 1/2 tsp gravy mix, and 1 tsp paprika. Cook and break up the meat with a wooden spoon until browned and almost cooked through, about 5 minutes.
Stir in 6 oz potatoes, 2 oz green peas, 4 oz corn, and 2 oz macaroni to the skillet.
Pour in 3 cups chicken broth and bring the mixture to a light boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer the soup for 25 minutes.
Garnish with 2 tbsp chopped parsley. Serve hot.
NUTRITION
Tuyet Pham
Chef, Culinary Consultant
Luna Regina
Writer, Author
Natalie Butler, RD, LD
Nutrition Reviewer