Hotdish with ground beef, potatoes and cheese is a MidWest dinner you’ll love. An easy ground beef casserole recipe made with cream of mushroom soup as a creamy one pot dinner.
What is a HotDish?
This is a traditional Midwestern casserole that typically combines a starchy base with a protein and sometimes vegetables with a creamy binder like canned soup or cheese baked in a single dish. It’s especially popular in states like Minnesota and North Dakota, where it’s considered comfort food and often brought to potlucks, family gatherings, and church suppers.
with Rice
You can swap out the carbs in this dish, I have made it two other ways and will share those here as well. If you would prefer white rice instead of taters you can certainly do that. With similar other ingredients you can make our Hamburger and Rice Casserole as well and see which is your favorite. 😉
in Slow Cooker
My kids love our Crockpot Hamburger Casserole which yes is made in a slow cooker, and uses elbow macaroni as the “filler”. Sorta’ comes out like cheeeseburger helper in a way if you choose to add the cheese which of course we do! I will share another tater style but with tots and a 4th with hashbrowns too y’all!
Ingredient Notes
You can use 2-2.5 pounds of fresh potatoes. Yukon gold work best, sliced thin so they bake to tender in one pan.
For the protein I use ground beef, spicy ground sausage like HOT Jimmy Dean or ground turkey is lower in fat but with less flavor.
Add 1 small onion diced, optional of course, but a great way to add texture and more flavor to the dish. I use yellow or white varieties.
A can of cream of mushroom or chicken makes it creamy. You could use any variety though such as the chicken or celery type.
For added flavor I like to add some minced garlic, Onion powder and garlic powder.
I add a bit of liquid but to keep it creamy half and half is better, and thicker than milk. For a dairy free alternative you could use plain cashew milk instead.
Taco seasoned cheddar cheese is great, shredded, but any variety is great and lots of it. I typically use 1.5 c Jack or mozzarella cheese, feel free to add even more at the end for the ultimate comfort food in a 9×13″ baking dish.
Hamburger HotDish Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2-2.5 lbs. potatoes, Yukon gold work best, sliced thin
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 1 lb. spicy ground sausage, Jimmy Dean is best
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 can cream of mushroom
- 1 tbsp minced garlic
- 1/2 tbsp onion powder
- 1/2 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 cup half and half
- 1 tsp salt and pepper
- 1.5 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1.5 cup Jack cheese, or use 3 cups of your choice of shredded cheeses
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Use a mandolin or slicer to achieve same size potato slices so they cook evenly, about 1/8" in size.
- Add potato slices into a cool bowl of water. Add a bit of oil into a skillet over medium high heat. Add diced onions and cook a bit to soften, then add ground sausage and ground beef. Break up, add minced garlic and cook until meat is no longer pink. Drain grease and set aside.
- In a bowl whisk together the cream, cream of mushroom soup and seasonings.
- Spray 9×13" dish lightly with non stick spray. Drain potatoes and pour on to a few paper towels. Press down to absorb excess water on outsides.
- Lay 1/3 of potatoes in dish, pour 1/3 of ground beef mixture on top with 1/2 cup of your shredded cheese on top of that, and finally 1/3 of soup mix on top. Continue with this for 3 layers total with your remaining 1.5 cups of cheese on the very top.
- Cover casserole dish with foil and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes. Then uncover and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes or until potatoes are tender and cheese is lightly browned and melted.
- Sit and rest when done on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before serving with a dollop of sour cream and chives on the top of each serving.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
with Hashbrowns
Now let me share how you could make something similar but with fresh or defrosted bagged hash. Served more for breakfast or as a brunch item, our Ground Beef Hash Brown Casserole is always a hit. A hearty dish you can load with cheesiness or make dairy free too if need be.
with Tater Tots
Last but certainly not least you can try our Tater Tot Casserole with ground beef some time too!! I mean who doesn’t just love tots!! They go on the top so you won’t need to worry about them getting soggy this time. I add mixed veggies into the mix and the kids don’t even seem to care. 😉
If one of these terms are new to you, it is because of where you live. In the MidWest states you’ll hear all about hamburger hotdish, like we share with you here. On the West coast they’d call the same thing a casserole. Basically it’s a dish baked in the oven with protein, a starch, condensed soup and sometimes veggies in a 9×13″ dish.
Tips
Sit and rest when done on a cooling rack for 15 minutes before serving with a dollop of sour cream and chives on the top of each serving. Just one of our favorite easy ground beef recipes we have made lately. Jump to recipe card to get started and let us know what you think.
Hotdishes like our Hamburger Mac and Cheese are staples at potlucks, family gatherings, and church suppers throughout the Midwest typically, especially in states like Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. You can easily change up the 3 main ingredients to make all sorts of combinations like using;
Variations
The Protein is almost always added such as ground beef, a common choice, but can also feature chicken, turkey, or tuna.
Your Starch could be pasta (such as macaroni or egg noodles), rice, or tater tots (crispy potato bites) as the starch component.
Vegetables include canned, Frozen Peas and Carrots, green beans, diced tomatoes, or mixed vegetables.
Binder typically will be some sort of condensed cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soup is used. This offers a creamy, flavorful binder to keep everything together.
Seasonings are typically salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, or Worcestershire sauce can be added for flavor.
