10 Easy Ground Beef Casserole Recipes To Whip Up For Dinner
Ground beef casseroles are very popular in the Midwest for good reason. They're easy to throw together for those of us on a busy schedule, they make a lot of food — which is good for weeknight family dinners or weekend potluck get-togethers — and their flavor-to-effort ratio is off the charts. In the pursuit of spreading the love of this classic genre of American cuisine, we've compiled a list of some of our best ground beef casserole recipes for you.
These 10 recipes make for great leftovers as well, so meal prepping for the week is also an option. While none of these dishes would typically be described as light, there are low-carb options if you're being mindful of your food intake. And despite their richer flavor profile, most of the ingredients used for these recipes are whole ingredients, so you can rest assured that you're eating fairly healthy even though it tastes like comfort food.
Ground beef casseroles are great for cold weather when you want something filling, but aren't so dense that they don't work year-round. Casseroles are a supremely versatile tool to keep in your toolbelt. The prep work is kept to a minimum, and because all you have to do is toss the ingredients together and throw it in the oven, there's very little room for error. It's about as stress free as you can get.
American Chop Suey
Chop Suey is a Chinese-American dish, but this variation created by dietician Kristen Carli of Camelback Nutrition and Wellness leans hard into its American ancestry to create something delicious and simple. This ground beef pasta dish uses elbow macaroni noodles and tomatoes to give texture and body to the meal and adds a dash of oregano and Parmesan cheese to tie it all together. You'd be forgiven for mistaking the dish for an American-style goulash or a chili mac, since there's a lot of crossover both visually and with the ingredients. But you'll just have to try this one to find out what makes it unique.
Recipe: American Chop Suey
Simple Shepherd's Pie
You don't need to have Irish heritage to enjoy this super filling classic dish developed by Jaime Shelbert of Wholly Nourished, nor does it take a lot of cooking savvy to throw it together. A shepherd's pie is essentially a ground beef and veggie medley nestled beneath a lush layer of mashed potatoes. The seasoning doesn't typically create an explosion of flavor, but its mild richness makes it a perfect fit for when you're craving comfort food that isn't drenched in oil. It's easy to confuse shepherd's pie with cottage pie, another dish common to Irish cuisine, but shepherd's pie is certainly the most well-known variation of the dish in the States these days.
Recipe: Simple Shepherd's Pie
Easy Cheesy Taco Bake
We're heading down south with this flavorful dish for a Tex-Mex type of casserole. This recipe developed by Ali Fagan of Everyone Romaine Calm has you combining ground beef with corn, black beans, and tomatoes and placing it all in a baking pan filled with crushed up tortilla chips. Everyone loves the flavor of tacos, and this is a fun way to mix up the format. It's honestly so easy to throw together, and because everything is cooked in the pan, it won't be as messy for kids to handle since they don't have to hold it together with their hands.
Recipe: Easy Cheesy Taco Bake
Beefy Cheesy Mexican Casserole
If the last recipe piqued your interest but you were hoping for something with a little more heft to it, this beefy cheesy Mexican casserole created by Tasting Table's Jennine Rye could be the move. It does take a little longer to cook since it's so much thicker, but that won't matter once you've dished this beauty out on your plate. This recipe uses similar ingredients such as corn, black beans, and tortilla chips, but throws every spice on the rack into the pot for a mouthwatering concoction that will pacify even the pickiest of eaters.
Recipe: Beefy Cheesy Mexican Casserole
Bubbly Cheesy Mostaccioli
If you're eating mostaccioli in the United States, there's a very good chance you're chowing down in Chi-town. Chicago doesn't have a monopoly on this dish, they just know good food when they see it. Mostaccioli is a type of pasta that's similar to penne, which is tossed together with ground beef, Italian sausage, tomato, and fresh mozzarella for the perfect potluck casserole. Like most casseroles, this dish developed by Michelle McGlinn comes together in just a few minutes and easily feeds a crowd, so you don't need to wait for a special occasion to pull this recipe out.
Recipe: Bubbly Cheesy Mostaccioli
Beef And Cauliflower Cottage Pie
We mentioned cottage pie earlier in our discussion of shepherd's pie, since the two are so closely related. While traditional cottage pie is a treat all on its own, this version created by Tess Le Moing swaps out the mashed potato topping for cauliflower mash, which is just as creamy as the potato version if not more so. You'll likely notice the change, but in a way that has you wondering why you've never tried cauliflower mash before. For this recipe, you'll be spreading the cauliflower mash on top of a ground beef and veggie mix. It's a great low-carb option.
Recipe: Beef And Cauliflower Cottage Pie
Cheesy French Onion Soup Pasta Casserole
The name of this dish is a bit of a mouthful, but so is the food itself. This is a great option for when you're looking to indulge in a hearty beef dish, but want more flavors than just beef alone. This recipe developed by Leah Maroney of Mini Pie Kitchen loads the onions on thick, fleshes out the sauce with white wine and heavy cream, and gives it a chef's kiss with some Gruyère cheese. Before you start clutching at your wallet like a string of pearls, Gruyère cheese is surprisingly affordable compared to most premium cheeses.
Hearty Hamburger Casserole
With this recipe created by Cecilia Ryu, we're going back to basics where the cooking is good. It's a criminally easy dish to put together given how filling and flavorful it is. We've got ground beef for protein, corn and bell pepper for some healthy vegetables, green chiles for flavor, and elbow pasta to give it some texture and substance. It's sort of like a souped up Hamburger Helper but better in every way. You can't miss with this simple recipe.
Recipe: Hearty Hamburger Casserole
Shepherd's Pie-Inspired Tater Tot Hotdish
Irish pies rank high on the list of ground beef casseroles, but that kind of popularity comes at a price – the recipes can get stale after a while. This tater tot hotdish recipe created by Michelle McGlinn took the shepherd's pie formula and flipped it on its head by subbing out the mashed potatoes for crunchy tater tots. It's the crispy and bold twist you didn't realize you needed, since shepherd's pie is typically creamy and soft. Why not try something new? You won't believe how quickly this dish comes together.
Loaded Beef Enchilada
Enchiladas deserve a star on Hollywood Boulevard. There are few recipes so well loved as good old enchiladas. This recipe developed by Kate Shungu of Gift of Hospitality plays it straight with ground beef, green chiles, and onions cooked up and thrown into the tortillas alongside a nice sour cream and salsa sauce. Roll up the tortilla and top it with cheese before baking it in the oven and you've got yourself a new family favorite. Enchiladas are also an easy dish to upgrade with just a few additional ingredients if you want to add something special.
Recipe: Loaded Beef Enchilada