Hamburger stew is a recipe that thrifty families have been making for years. The stew serves as an ingenious solution when looking for an inexpensive, delicious and nourishing meal—and with 16 servings, there will be enough left over to use as a make-ahead freezer meal down the road.
There’s another reason this hamburger stew recipe is a favorite: It’s incredibly easy to customize. Use different vegetables, add spices, make it with pasta instead of rice, or throw in a packet of onion soup mix for extra flavor. Everyone has a way they like to make this recipe their own, and they tend to pass their versions on to family and friends. That’s why some readers have renamed this “suggestion stew!”
Hamburger Stew Ingredients
- Ground beef: Browning the meat is the first step to making hamburger stew. If possible, choose lean ground beef.
- Onion: Fresh yellow onions work nicely in hamburger stew. Frozen, chopped onions also work to save a little time.
- Stewed tomatoes: You can use store-bought, canned stewed tomatoes, or your own preserved garden tomatoes if you have them. Store-bought stewed tomatoes have added spices, vegetable extracts and sugar—so if you don’t want these extra ingredients, use canned whole tomatoes and break them up with a wooden spoon.
- Vegetables: We chose carrots, celery and potatoes, but you can add a medley of vegetables to the pot. Slice or dice everything to the same size, so that the veggie bits will cook through at the same rate.
- Long grain rice: Jasmine and basmati are some of the long-grain types of rice you can use to make hamburger stew. Brown rice can also be used; just increase the covered simmering time to 45 minutes. Skip minute or instant rice, since these will get too mushy as the stew cooks.
Directions
Step 1: Brown the beef
In a Dutch oven, cook the ground beef and onions over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink, crumbling it as it cooks. Drain off any excess grease.
Editor’s Tip: Choose a 6-quart or larger Dutch oven to fit everything in the pot. If you’re in the market for a new Dutch oven, we like these Dutch oven brands best.
Step 2: Add the other ingredients
Add the stewed tomatoes (and their liquid), sliced carrots and celery, cubed potatoes, water, rice, salt and pepper to the pot with the beef and onions. Increase the heat and bring everything to a boil.
Step 3: Simmer
Turn the heat down to low and cover the pot. Simmer the stew for 30 minutes, or until the rice and vegetables are tender.
Step 4: Finish cooking
Remove the lid and simmer the stew for another 20 to 30 minutes, until it has thickened into your desired consistency.
Hamburger Stew Variations
- Try different meats: You could swap out the ground beef for lean ground turkey, adding a little oil in the pan to keep it from sticking. You could also use ground or sliced sausage, ground venison or cubed chicken. For a fun twist, shape the ground meat into little meatballs. Brown them in the Dutch oven and then let them finish cooking in the stew.
- Use your favorite veggies: Try other vegetables you and your family love, like chopped broccoli, corn, diced bell peppers, cut okra, chopped cabbage or green beans. You can also use frozen veggies instead of fresh ones.
- Give other rice, pasta or grains a try: An easy way to add flavor is to replace the plain rice with seasoned boxed varieties like Spanish rice or wild rice. Whole grains like farro, bulgur and barley work very well in this stew because they soften right in the broth. Pasta needs less time to cook; choose smaller shapes like orzo or shells, and make sure to check their cook times so you know when to add them to the stew.
- Add some beans: Stir in a cup of canned beans for a little more heft in each bite. We suggest red kidney, pinto, great Northern, white or cannellini beans.
- Replace the water with stock: Instead of the 2 cups of water, try the same amount of beef, chicken or vegetable stock. Stock will add a ton of flavor, but it will also add salt (unless you use a salt-free version). After adding the stock, taste the stew so you can adjust the seasoning accordingly.
- Make your stew in a slow cooker: Follow the steps to cook the ground beef and onions, then transfer these and the other ingredients into the bowl of a large slow cooker. Cover and simmer for four to six hours. Uncover the stew for the last 30 minutes to help it thicken up.
- Spice it up: Add other seasonings just before simmering to punch up the flavor, like an Italian spice blend, Montreal steak seasoning, taco seasoning or a little cayenne pepper. A dash or two of Worcestershire sauce is delicious with the tomatoes and beef in this stew. One of our favorite suggestions from readers is to stir in an envelope of onion soup mix!
How to Store Hamburger Stew
Let the leftover hamburger stew cool completely (this will go faster if you portion it into smaller containers). Cover the containers tightly and store them in the fridge for up to four days. The leftovers can be gently reheated in a saucepan on the stove or in short bursts in the microwave.
How to Freeze Hamburger Stew
This is a big-batch stew recipe, which is perfect because it freezes beautifully. Let the stew cool completely, then portion it into freezer containers. Store it in the freezer for up to three months. When you’re ready to have some, partially thaw the stew in the fridge overnight. Heat it through in a saucepan over low heat or in intervals in the microwave, stirring occasionally. Like other freezable stew recipes, you can add a little water if necessary as it reheats.
Hamburger Stew Tips
What can you serve with hamburger stew?
This stew is so hearty and complete—with its meat, veggies and rice—that all you really need on the side is some bread for dipping. Try slices of crusty homemade bread, Parmesan pan rolls or tender potato rolls.
How can you make hamburger stew more flavorful?
Don’t skip the salt called for in the recipe—3 teaspoons may seem like a lot, until you remember that the recipe makes 4 quarts of stew! Taste the stew after it’s done simmering to see if you’d like to add more salt or black pepper. If you haven’t already, check out the hamburger stew variations listed above.
