This vegan hamburger helper recipe is so easy to make in 25 mins. The whole family will love this meatless hamburger helper that's dairy-free and protein-packed!
This recipe makes a beyond meat hamburger helper but you can use any meat alternatives you prefer. It's also a one-pot vegan hamburger helper (or one-pan) so it's an easy clean-up recipe too!
Why I Made Hamburger Helper Vegan
Growing up I would have hamburger helper every once in a while, and it was especially popular at some of my friend's houses. But it was always super salty for me so I never had a huge affinity for it. Since going vegan over 5 years ago I hadn't thought much about this childhood staple.
Recently I was reading an article that was talking about General Mills wanting to sell Hamburger Helper for $3 billion! I researched it more and realized that hamburger helper is still one of the most popular brands in North America. It intrigued me to see if I could recreate the recipe that clearly so many love with less salt, more flavor, and vegan! That's where this vegan hamburger helper recipe inspiration comes from, so I hope it's everything you remember and more!
How To Make Vegan Hamburger Helper
This Hamburger Helper is incredibly easy to make, only requires one pan and generally, any skill level of cooking can make it. This vegan hamburger helper recipe is no different. You only need one cast-iron skillet/deep frying pan, a wooden spoon, and some love!
Ingredients for Hamburger Helper (Vegan)
- Vegan Ground Beef
- Onion
- Pasta macaroni or shells
- Beefless Beef Both
- Shredded Vegan Cheese
- Vegan Sour Cream
- Nutritional Yeast
- Garlic
- BBQ Sauce
- Lemon Juice
- Dijon Mustard
- Soy Sauce
- Onion Powder
- Paprika
- Chili Powder
- Cayenne
Kitchen Equipment I used for recipe:
- Cast Iron Skillet Set (10 & 12 in) - So I got this set for my birthday from my mom and it seriously is sooo good! I used the larger (12 in) skillet for this recipe and it worked so well! Great quality skillets for an affordable price!
- World's Best 15 Piece Knife Set - This is completely just my opinion but this knife set is extremely affordable and it is easily one of the best knife sets I've used in my entire life. I used to buy new cutlery from the grocery store everytime I moved (which was a lot) but now I'll never go with another knife set again!
Instructions for Hamburger Helper (Meatless)
1. Heat a large cast-iron skillet or frying pan with deep edges on medium-high heat with 2 tablespoon vegan butter. While the pan heats up dice your onion. When the pan has heat add the diced onions, 3 tablespoon of minced garlic, and the pack of thawed Beyond Meat ground beef cook until browned stirring frequently to ensure the onions don't burn. Approximately 6 min.
2. When the Beyond Meat is browned stir in your spices. Add, 4 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 0.5 tablespoon paprika, 1 teaspoon of chili powder, 1 pinch of cayenne and 1 pinch of coarse salt. Next mix in your 4 cups of beefless beef broth, 2 tablespoon of BBQ sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 2 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard. Once the liquids are mixed together turn up the heat to high and bring to a boil. Once it's boiling add 3.5 cups of pasta of choice (we used medium shells) to the pan cover and reduce heat to medium, stirring occasionally. Cook until the pasta is tender (about 15 minutes) lots of the liquid will be absorbed by the pasta.
3. Once the pasta is ready remove from the heat and stir in 1 cup of vegan cheese and half a cup of vegan sour cream. If you want it to be more liquid sub the sour cream for coconut cream or plant milk. Top with fresh chopped parsley and serve.
Full Measurements & Instructions Below!
Commonly Asked Questions
Can vegans eat Hamburger Helper?
No vegans cannot eat Hamburger Helper. Although the actual meat part needs to be added to it so you could easily sub that part out for a vegan alternative, the actual flavor packet contains whey which comes from dairy which vegans cannot ingest.
Can you use Beyond Meat for Hamburger Helper?
Yes, you can easily sub in and use Beyond Meat for Hamburger Helper. Since with Hamburger Helper you still need to add the meat yourself it's quite easy to sub in Beyond Meat instead. Although this won't make it fully vegan as Hamburger Helper contains whey in the flavor packets.
How To Make Dairy-Free Hamburger helper?
You can make a dairy-free hamburger helper from scratch by using dairy-free shredded cheese, dairy-free sour cream, and nutritional yeast for that creamy, cheesy taste in this recipe!
Vegan Hamburger Helper
Ingredients
- 1 pack Beyond meat Ground Beef or vegan meat alternative
- 1 large Onion
- 3.5 cups Pasta macaroni or shells
- 4 cups Beefless Beef Both
- 1 cup Shredded Vegan Cheese
- ½ cup Vegan Sour Cream
- 4 tablespoon Nutritional Yeast
- 3 tablespoon Garlic minced
- 2 tablespoon BBQ Sauce
- 2 tablespoon Lemon Juice
- 1 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
- 1 tablespoon Soy Sauce
- 1 tablespoon Onion Powder
- ½ tablespoon Paprika
- 1 teaspoon Chili Powder
- 1 pinch Cayenne
- 1 pinch Salt
Instructions
- Heat a large cast-iron skillet or frying pan with deep edges on medium-high heat with 2 tablespoon vegan butter. While the pan heats up dice your onion. When the pan has heat add the diced onions, 3 tablespoon of minced garlic, and the pack of thawed Beyond Meat ground beef cook until browned stirring frequently to ensure the onions don't burn. Approximately 6 min.
- When the Beyond Meat is browned stir in your spices. Add, 4 tablespoon of nutritional yeast, 1 tablespoon onion powder, 0.5 tablespoon paprika, 1 teaspoon of chili powder, 1 pinch of cayenne and 1 pinch of coarse salt. Next mix in your 4 cups of beefless beef broth, 2 tablespoon of BBQ sauce, 1 tablespoon of soy sauce, 2 tablespoon of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of dijon mustard. Once the liquids are mixed together turn up the heat to high and bring to a boil. Once it's boiling add 3.5 cups of pasta of choice (we used medium shells) to the pan cover and reduce heat to medium, stirring occasionally. Cook until the pasta is tender (about 15 minutes) lots of the liquid will be absorbed by the pasta.
- Once the pasta is ready remove from the heat and stir in 1 cup of vegan cheese and half a cup of vegan sour cream. If you want it to be more liquid sub the sour cream for coconut cream or plant milk. Top with fresh chopped parsley and serve.
If you try this recipe, please leave a 5-star review in the comments section below! I’d love to hear from you! You can rate it, comment about it, send us pictures about it on Instagram @RescueDogKitchen.
Nutrition Facts for Vegan Hamburger Helper
The nutrition information presented here is for all of the ingredients. I take all of the nutritional information from Cronometer a nutritional tracker website that provides you with a lot of great information, especially regarding micronutrients!
Nutrition Facts
4 servings per container
Serving Size1 g
- Amount Per ServingCalories689
- % Daily Value *
- Total Fat
32g
50%
- Saturated Fat 19g 95%
- Trans Fat 2g
- Sodium 1922mg 81%
- Potassium 579mg 17%
- Total Carbohydrate
72g
24%
- Dietary Fiber 6g 24%
- Sugars 7g
- Protein 35g 70%
- Vitamin A 11%
- Vitamin C 9%
- Calcium 14%
- Iron 102%
- Vitamin E 15%
- Vitamin K 15%
- Thiamin 326%
- Riboflavin 208%
- Niacin 83%
- Vitamin B6 140%
- Vitamin B12 625%
- Folate 186%
- Pantothenic Acid 3%
- Phosphorus 30%
- Magnesium 13%
- Zinc 9%
- Selenium 6%
- Copper 37%
- Manganese 32%
* The % Daily Value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
Comparing the nutritional value of our homemade vegan hamburger helper recipe to the boxed version is quite stark. Although a straight comparison is misleading as our contains beyond beef and comparing it straight to the boxed version which doesn't contain any meat.
Our vegan hamburger helper contains quite a bit of nutrition and could actually be made more nutritious with the addition of a vegetable. Adding in mushrooms, spinach, or even zucchini would increase the fiber content and pack even more nutrition into this recipe.
One serving of this recipe contains 35g of protein, 102% of your daily iron intake, along with a full array of b vitamins. A hearty meal that is sure to keep you full and satisfied. This recipe, similar to the boxed version, is quite high in sodium, due to the added beyond meat. Some vegan meat alternatives have lower sodium content, Gardein, but don't pack the same flavor. If sodium is something that concerns you I suggest switching it out for the Gardein version or even extra-firm tofu.
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JC
It was pretty good. Couple things (I may have missed them, if they were mentioned). Don’t precook the pasta. Your cooking the pasta in the broth. Also, after adding the cheese at the end, I had to re-season b/c it made it a little bland. You could also increase the original spices before adding the cheese so that it doesn’t lose flavor. Overall, it was pretty good.
Staci
Dipping our toes into meatless diet and had to give this a try. It’s different than the original but not in a bad way :). Very creamy and super tasty. Will make again (probably adding some veggies as suggested).
Lisa
Loved it!!! I usually tweak recipes a little, but this one is perfect. Thank you.
Rebecca
Frig! This was so good! Hamburger helper was a part of my childhood and love that this tastes just like it! Thanks John!
Mike P
Made this for the family tonight. Big help t with everyone.
John
Awesome, Mike! Glad the whole family enjoyed it 🙂
Shib
This is so hecking good keep coming out with recipes literally the only reason I try new foods
Kelly Moore
This is so creamy and full of flavour - I highly recommend trying this recipe, even if you haven’t been a fan of HH in the past - it’s much better than the original!!
John
Yay! we're so glad you loved it! 🙂