One Pot Bacon Cheeseburger pasta satisfies your cravings for a bacon cheeseburger in a comforting pasta dish.
Now, this is a dish we can get behind for an easy, cozy weeknight dinner. Somehow it manages to satisfy both pasta and burger cravings at the same time. Pretty genius! It's a dinner that the whole family will love.
You can adapt it as needed and most of the ingredients are affordable. Many you might already have on hand. In fact, using ground beef is one of our favorite ways to get a lot of protein into a meal without spending a ton of money. Ground meat is economical; a pound can easily feed a family of four. (Or you, 3 to 4 nights in a row, depending on your macro needs!)
One Pot Bacon Cheeseburger Meal Prep Ingredients:
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 onion, chopped
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ cup ketchup
- 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
- 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
- ¼ cup bacon crumbles
- 4 cups beef broth
- 2 cups uncooked pasta
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- Pickles, for serving, optional
How to Make One Pot Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta
You can break this down into steps. Make the bacon ahead of time and stick it in the fridge. The same goes for the "burger" component. When you're ready to eat, or you want to finish the meal prep process if you are planning to store this in the fridge, make the pasta, and assemble and serve! Don't forget the cheese!
How to Serve and Store One Pot Bacon Cheeseburger Pasta
You can freeze this whole thing, as is. Pasta will reheat ok in the microwave or on the stovetop with a little water to help break it up and rehydrate the dish. Otherwise, we'd keep this dish in the fridge for 4 to 5 days safely. Reheat using your favorite method (stove or microwave, naturally), adding a little water, again, if it feels or looks dry or stuck together. You might consider adding a little more cheese to freshen it up.
If prepping as indicated below, have your containers ready and divide things up evenly among four containers. Refrigerate until you're ready to dig in.
Since this feels like a cross between a chili and a burger and a pasta dish (ok, that's three things!), we like this with crusty bread or cornbread, along with a green salad.
Substitutions and Alterations
Feel free to use any other kind of ground meat: turkey, chicken, pork, or a combination of all of those. And while you're at it, feel free to double the meat and then freeze half for a rainy day. Or a busy night!
Use gluten-free or plant-based pasta as needed to make this gluten-free.
Use soy crumbles and plant-based cheese to turn this vegan/vegetarian.
Turn this into a sloppy Joe type meal and serve on buns.
Use barbecue sauce instead of ketchup to change the flavor and make it a bacon barbecue pasta dish! Or use pureed tomato sauce (the canned kind, not the prepared pasta sauce kind) instead if you like. Salsa would even work in a pinch, for a more Mexican flavor profile. (In that case, serve with sliced avocado!)
READ MORE BURGER, BEEF, AND CHEESY RECIPES!
