This loaded creamy ground beef pasta is Comfort food at its peak! Easy to make, gets ready in less than 30 mins and perfect for mid week dinners when all you want to do is get dinner on the table in time to prep for the next day.
Table of Contents
Ground beef Pasta recipe
My Slumgullion aka Beefaroni pasta is one of the popular recipes on the blog and not surprising at all as beef and pasta is a favorite for many.
This creamy ground beef pasta is slightly different from my Beefaroni recipe because we used heavy cream here. If you’ve tried Mac and cheese or my mom’s creamy spaghetti recipe then cream and pasta isn’t a new thing to you.
However I reckon that the cream, beef and pasta combo may be, so I encourage you to give this American comfort food a try. It’s like a one pot spaghetti bolognese. It’s so good and will easily win you over. Trust me it’s made with simple ingredients you probably already have in your pantry.
Ingredients
- Pasta of choice. Though I used Penne today, I have also used macaroni and rotini for this recipe. You can use your favorite pasta including spaghetti. However I like to use tubular pasta like macaroni, Ziti ground beef pasta recipes because the meats gets in the holes and give me a richer bite yum!
- Ground beef
- Onions and garlic
- Heavy cream substitute with coconut milk for a dairy free option.
- Spices
How to make creamy ground beef and Pasta
Sauté the onions in oil, add ground beef, break it up..
Add spice blend, tomato paste and water. While it’s simmering, start cooking the pasta
Bring water to boil, add some salt and the pasta and cook. I have a helpful guide on how to cook the perfect pasta be sure to check it out.
While pasta is cooking. Finish off sauce. Drain pasta and mix it in with the sauce. Serve and enjoy.
Make it in the instant pot
You can easily make this recipe in the instant pot if you want to. Follow instructions below to do so. However you will need more liquid since you won’t be cooking the pasta before like with the stove top method.
- Turn on the sauté function of the instant pot. Sauté onions in oil then add ground beef. Season with spices. Cook till browned.
- Scoop out the ground beef, add 1 cup of chicken broth to deglaze the inner pot.
- Pour in the uncooked pasta Add 1 cup of heavy cream, 24 oz of Marinara sauce or dilute 6 oz tomato paste to get 24 oz liquid.
- Pour ground beef over the sauce, do not stir. Cover instant pot and cook on high pressure for 7 mins. Do a quick release.
- Serve and enjoy.
How to store. Can you freeze cooked pasta?
Ground beef pasta freezes well and also stores well in the fridge. Store left overs in an air tight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Making a large batch for meal planning? Store in individual containers and freeze for up to a month.
Reheating
Reheat in the microwave or on the stove top. You can let it thaw overnight in the refrigerator then reheat in the microwave at 60 seconds intervals and stirring in between till heated through.
To reheat on the stove top transfer to a pot add a little water (this will depend on the quantity of food being reheated). Cook on low heat stirring in between till heated through.
Recipe Variations
There are various ways to enjoy ground beef pasta. There are also a number of add ins to try.
- Throw some cheese into the mix: Add some mozzarella cheese or cheddar cheese to the beef sauce before stirring in the pasta. If you choose to add these cheeses, add 1-2 cups depending on your preference. I chose to serve with Parmesan cheese instead of mixing it in.
- Throw in some veggies: Adding in some mixed veggie like carrots and peas is awesome. Throwing in some broccoli will make you some ground beef broccoli pasta.
- Make it saucy: Add more liquid (pasta water) to this recipe to make it more saucy.
- Spice it up: You can use your favorite spice blend to make this recipe your own! Use Garam masala for an Indian twist or Creole seasoning for a southern twist. Recipes are guides, you can be creative with it. Want it hotter? Increase the pepper flakes.
Quick Recipe notes and tips
- A note on freezing cooked pasta. If you are making a large batch with the intention of freezing for later, be sure to cook pasta till it’s al dente (firm to the bite) this way it doesn’t become too soft when you are reheating to enjoy it later. Be sure to check out my post on how to cook the perfect pasta.
- Alternatively, you can cook a large batch of the beef sauce and store in portioned containers. Whenever you are ready to enjoy some ground beef pasta, bring out a portion of the sauce and reheat. Cook the parts and mix it in.
- Reserve some pasta water when you drain the cooked pasta if you want this recipe more soupy.
Other Ground beef and Pasta Recipes
- Slumgullion
- Homemade Hamburger helper
- Spaghetti bolognese
- Ground beef sauce
More Pasta Recipes
- Spaghetti stir fry
- Bacon Mac and Cheese
- Fried spaghetti
- Macaroni stir fry
- Canned Tuna pasta Recipe
- Easy tomato coconut pasta
Did you enjoy this recipe or found it helpful, please leave me a comment and share the link to this recipe with family and friends and in your favorite facebook group.
Love,
Hungry For More? Sign up for my Newsletter and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook for the latest updates!
Creamy ground beef pasta
Ingredients
- 2 Tablespoons oil
- 1 large onions chopped
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon
- 1 teaspoon dry oregano
- 1 teaspoon dry basil
- 1 teaspoon parsley flakes
- ¼ teaspoon ground rosemary
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon dry thyme optional
- ¼ teaspoon curry powder optional
- 1 cup heavy cream
- 6 oz Tomato paste
- ½ cup water or chicken/beef broth
- 1 lb penne pasta
- 1 Tablespoon Salt for cooking pasta
- ½ Cup grated Parmesan cheese for serving
Instructions
- Sauté onions in oil, add the ground beef and break it up.
- Add seasoning, keep stirring till beef if fully browned but not burnt. Add the tomato paste and water. Let sauce simmer on low heat while you cook pasta.
- Cook pasta according to instructions on the box. See my blog post on how to cook the perfect pasta.
- While pasta is cooking finish off sauce by adding the cream. Stir, taste and adjust accordingly. Drain pasta, mix it in with sauce. If you like it more soupy add reserved pasta water.
- Serve and enjoy.
Notes
- Drain pasta with a bowl under the colander to catch the pasta water.
- Reserve some for when mixing the pasta with sauce. Use it if you need to lighten the dish. Discard the rest of the pasta water.
- If you find that a lot of grease is released when browning the beef, feel free to drain some out before adding the tomato paste.
Julie Menghini
Wow, this is comfort food at its finest. Its a great meal for a crowd or for meal prep too.
Chichi Uguru
Thanks Julie! That’s so true ❤️
Irina
What an amazing pasta meal it is! I made it for our lunch today, and it turned out delicious!!!
Chichi Uguru
Yay! Thank you for letting me know Irina.
Beth Sachs
Delicious and so filling! My kids loved it and I will be making this a regular on our meal plan.
Chris Collins
So simple yet so delicious! Can't wait to make this for tomorrow's dinner 🙂
Chichi Uguru
That’s awesome Chris, thank you 😊
Angela
The perfect weeknight dinner! Love the creaminess of this dish and it's so easy to make. YUM!
Chichi Uguru
Yes Angela, super easy and delicious. Thank you 😊