Easy Hamburger Soup Recipe

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Hamburger Soup is simple to make, budget-friendly, and ready in about 30 minutes. It’s loaded with ground beef, pasta, and vegetables in a rich and flavorful broth.

Serve it with a simple Garden Salad and Beer Bread for a satisfying meal that everyone loves.

Bowls of hamburger soup with macaroni and vegetables.

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5 Keys to the Best Hamburger Soup

Brown the ground beef well. Don’t just cook it until it’s gray – let it get a little color for extra flavor.
Drain the grease. Browning the ground beef adds a ton of flavor but it can also add grease. Make sure to soak up the excess grease with paper towels or drain it from the pot to avoid a greasy bowl of soup.
Use 85/15 or 90/10 ground beef. Using anything else will produce more fat and grease in your soup.
Choose the right pasta. Short pasta shapes, such as elbow macaroni, ditalini, or small shells, work best. They’re easy to eat with a spoon and don’t overwhelm the soup.
Cook the pasta separately. While you can cook the pasta in the soup, that will cause the pasta to absorb too much liquid and become mushy. Cook it in a pot of salted boiling water, then add it to each bowl of soup when you serve.

recipe walk-through

How to Make Hamburger Soup

Cook the Hamburger.

Cook the ground beef with diced onion and garlic in a large soup pot over medium-high heat until browned. Drain as much grease as possible and add a little salt and pepper for enhanced flavor.

Don’t skip this step – browning creates better flavor than adding raw beef straight to the crockpot.
I usually use 85/15 ground beef for the right balance of flavor and fat. Ground turkey or chicken also work.

Stir in the Remaining Ingredients

Stir in beef broth, condensed tomato soup, and water (just fill the tomato soup can with water). Bring the soup to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Add veggies and simmer until heated through.

Simmering soup with red broth and vegetables.

Customize your soup. I often add what I have on hand like carrots, zucchini, green beans, or diced tomatoes. Frozen corn or frozen peas are easy additions.
Sauté raw vegetables, like carrots and celery, with the onions to soften. If using frozen vegetables, add them during the last 5-10 minutes of cooking.
In place of the condensed soup, try adding a can of diced tomatoes or tomato sauce.
Or, try my Smoky Vegetable Beef Soup for a veggie-packed spin on hamburger soup.

Cook the Pasta

While the soup is simmering, start boiling water for the pasta and cook it to al dente. Drain and set aside.

If you prefer cooking everything in one pot, just undercook the pasta slightly since it will continue to soften in the hot broth.
Potatoes are a great substitute for pasta. Dice potatoes into chunks and par-boil before adding to the soup. If you want to cook them with the soup, that’s fine, but keep in mind that it will thicken your soup.

Taste and Adjust

Before serving, stir and taste your Hamburger Soup. Add salt and pepper if needed.

Finish and serve.

Divide scoops of pasta into bowls, then ladle in the soup. Garnish with parsley and Parmesan cheese if desired, and serve hot.

Bowl of hamburger Soup with Macaroni and a spoon.

Other Beefy Soup Recipes to Try

What to Serve with Hamburger Soup

This hearty soup can be a complete meal because it’s packed with beef, vegetables, and pasta. But if you’d like some ideas for sides to serve with it, I’ve got you covered!

Soup and salad are a classic combination and my Spinach Salad or my classic Side Salad are great options. Add some crusty bread or Homemade Garlic Breadsticks and you’re good to go.

Storage Tips

Storing, Freezing and Leftovers

Make sure to store the pasta separately from the soup, or it will continue to absorb the liquid and become mushy.

Refrigerator (4-5 days): Pour the cooled soup into an airtight container and store in the fridge for up to 4-5 days.

Freezer (6 months): Pour the cooled soup into a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 6 months. Do not store the pasta with the soup. The texture of thawed pasta can be unpleasant.

Thaw and Reheat: If frozen, thaw completely before reheating. Heat in a saucepan on the stove top over medium heat. You can also reheat in the microwave.

FAQs

Can I use ground turkey instead of ground beef?

Absolutely! Feel free to lighten it up with ground turkey or ground chicken instead of the hamburger. You’ll want to use chicken broth in place of beef broth in this case.

What spices should I put in hamburger soup?

Add some smokiness with paprika or chili powder, or make it spicy with a pinch of cayenne pepper or a dash of hot sauce. For added flavor, add a couple of teaspoons of Worcestershire sauce, or some herbs like oregano, basil, Italian seasoning and bay leaf.

A ladle holding a serving of hamburger soup.

More Tasty Soup Recipes

Recipe

Hamburger Soup

4.91 from 55 votes

Kristin Maxwell

Hamburger Soup is simple, budget friendly and ready in 30 minutes. It's made with ground beef, pasta and vegetables in a rich and flavorful broth.

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 25

Total Time 35

Servings

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Ingredients

1 tablespoon Olive oil
1 cup Diced onion
1 tablespoon Minced garlic
1 pound Lean ground beef
10 ounces Condensed tomato soup plus 1 can-ful of water
14 ounces Beef broth or about 2 cups
1 cup Frozen corn or other canned/frozen vegetables
1 cup Small pasta cooked to package directions (or uncooked*)
Fresh minced parsley optional, for garnish
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese optional, for garnish

Instructions

Heat olive oil in a 5 quart pot or dutch oven. Add onion and saute for a few minutes, until they begin to soften. Crumble ground beef and stir garlic into the pot with the onions and cook until beef is no longer pink. Drain as much of the grease as possible. (I use paper towels to soak up the fat).
Season beef with salt and pepper.
Stir in beef broth, tomato soup and water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then turn heat down to a simmer (medium-low to low). Add the vegetables and continue to simmer until vegetables are heated through; about 6-8 minutes.
Meanwhile, boil pasta according to package directions. You can also boil in the soup but the noodles will absorb the liquid and may become mushy.
Divide pasta into bowls, then soup, and garnish with fresh minced parsley and Parmesan cheese if desired.
*If cooking the pasta IN the soup, add with the vegetables and simmer until pasta is tender.

Notes

If you are short on time or just would prefer to make the soup all in one pot, you can cook the pasta in the broth as it simmers. It will take 10-15 minutes, depending on your heat setting and the type of pasta. Keep in mind, the pasta will get mushy the longer it sits, which makes leftovers difficult.
Potatoes are a great substitution for the pasta. Dice potatoes into chunks and par boil before adding to the soup. If you want to cook them with the soup, that’s fine, but keep in mind that it will thicken your hamburger soup.

Keyword hamburger soup

Nutrition

Calories: 247kcalCarbohydrates: 25gProtein: 21gFat: 7gSaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 47mgSodium: 490mgPotassium: 678mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1726IUVitamin C: 10mgCalcium: 33mgIron: 3mg

Nutritional Disclaimer Kristin Maxwell of “Yellow Bliss Road” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. For accurate calorie counts and other nutritional values, we recommend running the ingredients through your preferred online nutritional calculator. Calories and other nutritional values can vary depending on which brands were used.