Old fashioned hamburger casserole is the ultimate comfort food! It has the perfect combination of ground beef and pasta along with a delicious sauce then topped with cheese.
2cupsshredded cheesefiesta or 4 cheese Mexican, divided
1cupmilkor half and half
1cupsour cream
1½cupschopped mushroomswe use baby Bella
1yellow onionmedium sized, chopped
3garlic cloveschopped
2Tablespoonsflour
salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 ° Fahrenheit.
In a 3 quart pan (or larger) brown the ground beef. Set aside.Drain all but about 3 tablespoons of the fat. Leave enough to fully coat the bottom of pan.
1 pound ground beef
While you are making the sauce, cook the pasta in the beef broth in a separate pot. You will need to stir them often in the beginning to get them all in the broth but as they cook, they will sink into the broth better. Cook until al dente. Do NOT drain, set aside.
12 ounces egg noodles, 4 cups beef broth
Add the mushroom and onion to the beef fat and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes, until the onions start to become translucent. See notes if using canned cream of mushroom soup.Add in the garlic and sauté for another minute.
Add in the flour and stir constantly for about a minute. Slowly pour the milk in while stirring. I pour about half in and stir until smooth then pour the remaining in. Cook for about 3-5 minutes, until it has thickened and is creamy. You want to simmer gently but do not boil.
2 Tablespoons flour, 1 cup milk
Add in the tomato sauce and sour cream. Stir well and cook for about 2 minutes, until heated through.
1 cup sour cream, 16 ounces tomato sauce
Pour the ground beef and 1 cup of the cheese into the sauce. Stir well.Add the noodles and any remaining broth, stir well.Taste to see if you need salt or pepper.
salt and pepper to taste
Pour the mixture into the baking dish. Top with the remaining cup of cheese.Bake at 375° for about 25 minutes, until the cheese is nicely melted.
Notes
Nutritional values are estimated and will vary depending on the amount of salt you use and the other ingredients you use - broth, soup and tomato sauce.For the beef - We use 90% lean ground beef here for this casserole and do recommend it, but you can use a different percentage of fat. If you use a very lean beef and do not have enough fat to sauté mushrooms and onions, you can add a little butter to the pan. For pasta - You can use regular pasta if you prefer. I recommend a smaller pasta like small shells or elbows. You would use 3 cups of uncooked pasta for the 4 cups broth. Regular pasta does take a little longer to cook, cook to al dente.We use unsalted beef broth and add about half a teaspoon of salt. You will need to adjust accordingly. I recommend tasting it right before putting it in the baking dish to see if you need to add salt and pepper.If using a can of cream of mushroom soup -If using canned soup leave out the mushrooms, flour and milk.
Saute the onions for about 3-4 minutes in the remaining beef fat.
Add in the garlic and saute for another minute.
Pour in canned soup, tomato sauce and sour cream.
Cook on medium for about 2 minutes until heated through. Continue as directed above from here.