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Easy and cheesy, this hamburger casserole with noodles, veggies, tomato sauce, and bacon is a cozy, family-friendly meal.
Table of Contents
Yum! This was delicious! The seasoning’s spot on!
– Laura
This cheesy beef noodle casserole is an old-fashioned recipe that reminds me of my childhood. Best of all, you can adjust the ingredients to suit your family’s tastes. Preparing the simple homemade tomato sauce from scratch means that this ground beef casserole with noodles doesn’t require any canned, condensed soup!
How to Make Hamburger Casserole with Noodles | 1-Minute Video
A Few Notes Before You Get Started
- I like elbow macaroni or medium shells in this recipe, but just about any pasta shape will work. Egg noodles are a classic choice, too!
- Boil the pasta in well-salted water. This is your opportunity to really season the noodles.
- Cook the pasta for 1 minute less than al dente. The noodles will continue to cook in the oven, so you want to slightly under-boil them so that they don’t become mushy after baking.
- Adjust the seasoning to suit your taste preferences. For instance, you might like to add an extra teaspoon of brown sugar for a slightly sweeter tomato sauce, increase the cayenne to make it spicy, or use a bit more chili powder for a zestier flavor.
Directions
You’ll find step-by-step instructions for this hamburger casserole with noodles in the recipe card at the bottom of the post, but here’s the overview:
- Cook the pasta just until it’s barely al dente. It will continue baking in the oven, so you don’t want it to be overdone or mushy at the end.
- Meanwhile, crisp the bacon in a large skillet or Dutch oven. Remove the bacon to a plate, reserving some of the drippings in the pot. These drippings will add so much flavor to the casserole.
- Brown the ground beef and add the vegetables.
- Stir in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, and seasoning.
- Add the cooked noodles and bacon to the sauce; toss to combine.
- Pour the ground beef mixture into a casserole dish. Top with shredded cheese.
- Bake uncovered until the casserole is hot and bubbly and the cheese melts, about 15-20 minutes.
- Garnish the casserole with fresh herbs (such as parsley, thyme, basil, or oregano) for a bright, fresh touch. Sliced green onions are also good!
Serving Suggestions
This old-fashioned hamburger noodle casserole is classic, kid-friendly comfort food! For an easy dinner, pair it with a house salad with candied pecans, sauteed zucchini, Southern-style green beans, bakery-style corn muffins, old-fashioned applesauce, or roasted broccoli.
Preparation and Storage Tips
- Make Ahead: This is a great make-ahead dinner. You can assemble the entire casserole up to 24 hours in advance and keep it covered in the refrigerator until ready to bake. Before baking, allow the dish to sit on the counter and come to room temperature for at least 30 minutes.
- How to Freeze: You can freeze the casserole before baking. Wrapped tightly, the assembled casserole will keep in the freezer for up to 2 months.
- How to Store: Leftovers will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-4 days.
- How to Reheat: If reheating an entire casserole, cover the dish loosely with foil and bake in a 350°F oven until warmed through, about 20 minutes. Individual portions can be reheated in the microwave for about 1 minute.
What a great recipe. Easy and very tasty!
– Lynne
Did you make this recipe?
If you enjoyed this recipe, please leave a comment with a 5-star review at the bottom of the post. Thank you!
Watch How to Make It
Hamburger Casserole with Noodles
Prep: 20 minutes
Cook: 20 minutes
Total: 40 minutes
Easy, cheesy, and flavorful, this ground beef noodle casserole is a family-friendly dinner for busy nights!
Ingredients
- 12 ounces dry elbow macaroni, medium shells pasta, or egg noodles
- 4 slices bacon, chopped
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 cup diced celery (about 3 stalks)
- 1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
- 1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
- 1 (14.5 ounce) can petite-diced tomatoes, not drained
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 2 teaspoons brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- Pinch cayenne
- Kosher salt and ground black pepper, to taste
- 2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 x 13-inch baking dish; set aside. Cook pasta in a large pot of salted boiling water for about 1 minute less than al dente, according to package instructions. Drain.
- While the pasta cooks, heat a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook until crisp, about 5-7 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the bacon to a paper towel-lined plate; reserve 1 tablespoon of the drippings in the pan. Add the ground beef and cook for 3 minutes (the meat doesn’t need to be completely cooked through at this point). Add the onion, celery, bell pepper and garlic; cook until the vegetables are soft, about 5-7 more minutes. Stir in the tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, tomato paste, brown sugar, chili powder, oregano, cumin, cayenne, 1 teaspoon of kosher salt, and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.
- Add the cooked, drained noodles and the cooked bacon to the beef mixture; toss to combine.
- Transfer to the prepared baking dish; top with shredded cheese.
- Bake, uncovered, until the casserole is hot and bubbly, about 15-20 minutes. Garnish with fresh parsley or green onion.
Notes
- Boil the pasta in well-salted water. This is your opportunity to really season the noodles.
- Cook the pasta for 1 minute less than al dente. The noodles will continue to cook in the oven, so you want to slightly under-boil them so that they don’t become mushy after baking.
- Adjust the seasoning to suit your taste preferences. For instance, you might like to add an extra teaspoon of brown sugar for a slightly sweeter tomato sauce, increase the cayenne to make it spicy, or use a bit more chili powder for a zestier flavor.
Nutrition
Serving: 1/6 of the casseroleCalories: 651kcalCarbohydrates: 58gProtein: 35gFat: 31gSaturated Fat: 14gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 11gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 99mgSodium: 865mgPotassium: 966mgFiber: 5gSugar: 10gVitamin A: 1128IUVitamin C: 30mgCalcium: 344mgIron: 4mg
Hamburger Casserole Recipe Variations
- Instead of the elbow noodles, try other pasta shapes such as medium shells or egg noodles.
- Any ground meat will work in this recipe. Instead of the ground beef, try ground turkey, ground pork, ground chicken, or ground sausage.
- Add More Veggies: feel free to include crisp-tender steamed, roasted, or sauteed broccoli, green beans, carrots, corn, or even frozen peas in the casserole.
- Swap out the cheddar cheese and use Monterey Jack, mozzarella cheese, Colby, or Pepper Jack.
- Cooking for a smaller family? Cut all of the ingredients in half and bake the casserole in an 8-inch square dish. The baking instructions remain the same. You can even prepare the full recipe, but divide the ingredients between two 8-inch pans and freeze one casserole for later.
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This recipe was originally published in August, 2021. It was updated in September, 2024.
Made this ground beef mac dinner last night and it was soooo delicious ! We went back for seconds! I didn’t use brown sugar, I just put in 1/4 tsp of regular granulated sugar to take the acid away from the tomatoes (Thanks Blair!) and added more red peppers and yellow peppers to it. Again, it was a delicious dish all in one bowl with bread on the side and we had corn on the cob an hour later ! I recommend it highly !
Sounds perfect, Anita! Thanks for taking the time to come back and leave me a note. So glad that you enjoyed it!
Hi Blair,
I made this for dinner tonight. Very tasty! Thank you!
Yay! Thanks, Kris!
Yum! This was delicious! The seasonings spot on!
Thank you, Laura!
my husband doesnt lake bacon. can i leave it out
Hi Rochelle,
This dish won’t have quite the same rich, salty flavor if you leave out the bacon, but it should still be delicious!
What a great recipe. Easy and very tasty!
Thank you, Lynne!
I made this tonight after searching for a hamburger helper box that I didn’t have! Wow, SOooo much better! Only changed for things I didn’t have (brown sugar and oregano-skipped)
.. .and added some frozen corn. Thank you for the fantastic recipe! We loved it! Will be making it again, for sure!!!
Thank you! I’m so glad that it was a hit! ๐