Instant Pot Hamburger Helper

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You won’t believe how easy it is to make homemade Hamburger Helper in your Instant Pot! The Instant Pot comes with a Saute function mode so the ground beef and onions can cook in the pot. Once the ground beef and onions are done cooking, the noodles only take 4 minutes. Easy meals like this are one of the reasons why I love my multi-cooker.

Homemade hamburger helper topped with green onions in a white dish.

I’m sure all of you are familiar with the pre-packaged Hamburger Helper that comes in a box with the noodles and seasoning packets. It’s loaded with sodium and there’s a bunch of ingredients on the back of the box that is hard to pronounce.

One time, I had an ex cook Hamburger Helper and he added almond milk instead of regular milk to it and it was really disgusting. I’m sure unsweetened almond milk would have been just fine but this was sweetened. It was just bleh!

If you like instant pot recipes please try Instant Pot Mongolian Chicken, Instant Pot French Dip Sandwiches, or Instant Pot French Onion Soup.

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Ingredients Needed
How to make Instant Pot Hamburger Helper
Recipe FAQs
Other Instant Pot Recipes
Instant Pot Hamburger Helper

Ingredients Needed

Lean Ground beef - Is considered better than higher fat options for several reasons. First, it has less saturated fat, which can contribute to heart disease and other health issues. Additionally, it tends to have fewer calories per serving, making it a good option for those watching their weight. The 96% lean ground beef from Aldi is my favorite.
Yellow onion, diced can also use a white onion
Minced garlic - Chopped fresh garlic can take some time to chop so I often always use the freshly minced garlic that comes already made in a jar.
Worcestershire Sauce - Adds a savory, umami flavor to dressings. It is commonly used in Caesar salad dressing, as well as in dressings for steak salads and other meat-based salads.
Tomato paste - is a thick paste made by cooking tomatoes for several hours to reduce the water content and intensify their flavor.
kosher salt and black pepper to taste
Beef broth - low sodium is always best so that you can control the salt.
Shredded cheddar cheese - has a lower calorie count and less saturated fat than regular cheese, but it may also have a different taste and texture. It also helps with keeping the calorie count pretty low for this recipe.
Elbow macaroni or any type of noodle that is in your pantry
Scallions, chopped (optional)
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.

How to make Instant Pot Hamburger Helper

Set your Instant Pot to Sauté Mode, and add ground beef and onion. Break up the ground beef with a wooden spoon, until crumbled and cooked through. Drain any excess fat. You can add a little bit of olive oil if you like here or spray the pot with some cooking spray before adding the beef and onion.
Add garlic, Worcestershire sauce, tomato paste, salt and pepper to the pot. Stir to combine and cook for an additional 2 minutes.
Pour in 2 cups of beef broth and continue stirring.
Add in the elbow macaroni and make sure all the elbow macaroni is submerged into the liquid.
Lock the lid and set the valve to sealing mode. Set the timer to 5 minutes.
When the instant pot is done cooking, quick release the steam valve.
Sprinkle cheese on the top and close the lid for a while until all the cheese is melted on top.

Recipe FAQs

What type of protein can you use?

I prefer ground beef for hamburger helper but you can sub ground turkey if you like. I get 96& lean ground beef at Aldi or Wal-Mart. It is still ok to eat ground beef on WW, just find a lean version or drain any remaining fat that is in the pot.

What can I use instead of tomato paste?

If you don’t like opening the smaller cans of tomato paste, I just love the tomato paste that comes in a tube. There was just enough leftover in mine for this recipe. They are a little bit more expensive but I think they’re worth it. You don’t end up wasting tomato paste that way.

What Instant Pot is the best?

I have the Instant Pot Duo 6 QT Electric Pressure Cooker. You can find it on Amazon. I'm not sponsored by them, it just a kitchen appliance I really like to use. Gotta love those muti-cookers! The Instant Pot Duo multi-cooker combines 7 appliances in one: pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, steamer, sauté pan, yogurt maker and warmer – and cooks up to 70% faster!

Are Instant Pots Safe?

Don’t be intimidated by your pressure because you’re afraid the lid will pop off or explode! Pressure cookers have built-in features that are for safety reasons. Some of the most common errors made are when the user forgets to turn the venting knob to sealing mode, overfills the pot, or uses the timer button to set the cooking time.

Other Instant Pot Recipes

If you tried this Instant Pot Hamburger Helper any other recipe on my website, please please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you! Follow along on Tiktok @jennarecipediaries