Hamburger Soup (Stovetop)

This simple recipe for Stovetop Hamburger Soup is perfect for both busy weeknights and hearty weekend meals. It is easy to throw together, tastes delicious, and works great for meal prep, too!

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When the colder months hit, there’s nothing more comforting than a bit of warm, hearty soup. This recipe checks all the boxes while keeping things simple, too. It comes together quickly, uses ingredients you probably have in your fridge and pantry right now, and is always a hit.

We also make an incredible Instant Pot version of this recipe. It has been moved to a separate post here: Instant Pot hamburger soup. I made this version on the stovetop in an enameled cast-iron Dutch oven.

This is a hearty, filling soup with great flavor. Even my very picky two-year-old daughter ate every bite! I am calling that a BIG win! It happens to be gluten-free too.

The most time-consuming part of making this soup is chopping all the vegetables. So crank up some of your favorite music and settle in for a few minutes. Then go to town on chopping all of those beautiful veggies!

All the chopping is so worth it! This recipe makes a big batch, with about eight servings. So you will likely have some leftovers, and they’re delicious, too!

How to make hamburger soup

First, gather your ingredients.

Ingredients

For the best taste, always use the highest quality ingredients you have access to. 

To make this hamburger soup recipe, you will need the following ingredients:

• Yellow onion
• Carrots
• Celery
• Garlic
• Ground beef
• Diced tomatoes
• Chili powder
• Tomato sauce
• Chicken stock
• Russet potatoes
• Sweet potato

If you don’t have a yellow onion available, a sweet onion or a white onion will also work. In a pinch, onion powder can be used in place of fresh onion. Likewise, if you don’t have fresh garlic, granulated garlic works, too.

Want to lighten it up a bit? Sub in ground turkey or chicken for the ground beef. Add a bit of butter or oil to the pan while browning for the best results.

Cooking hamburger soup

Hamburger Soup is a simple recipe that can be made in just a few steps. Here is how to make it.

First, add the onion, celery, and carrots to a large Dutch oven that’s been lightly coated with cooking spray. Sauté for a few minutes before adding the garlic.

Next, add the ground beef and brown, breaking it apart as it cooks.

Once the beef is cooked, add the tomatoes and chili powder. Mix to combine, and then add the stock, tomatoes, and potatoes.

Bring up to a simmer, partially cover, and cook until the potatoes are tender, stirring occasionally. It will take about 20 minutes.

Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve hot.

Leftovers

Store leftovers in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

Always use common sense and good judgment when it comes to leftovers, though! If something looks or smells funky, don’t eat it.

Hamburger Soup Tips

• I would recommend using lean ground beef. I do not drain mine for this recipe, and a leaner cut helps with that. I used 90/10 in this batch. 85/15 or leaner would work just fine.
• Whether or not you peel the potatoes is up to you. I peeled my sweet potatoes, mostly because they were not organic. I left the peeling on my russets since they were organic.
• You can use any mixture of potatoes for this soup. We have used russet, red, and gold potatoes. I always include some sweet potatoes somewhere in the mix, though. I just love the variety of flavors! Just make sure your total potato weight is around 28-30 ounces. A food scale helps with this, but it measures to be about 5.5 cups of diced potatoes for me.
• I love the tomato sauce from Costco, the Kirkland brand. It is already well-seasoned. If you use another brand, try to get one that is seasoned. Some varieties are plain and/or unsalted. You can still use those, but be aware that you may need a little extra salt.
• Any type of chicken stock will work with this. I love using my homemade chicken bone broth the best when I have some on hand. This batch in these photos was made with store-bought boxed stock, and it worked out great. I have also used water plus Better Than Bullion (BTB) chicken base.
  
  Side note: The BTB has a very high salt content, though. Heck, all stocks, tomatoes, and tomato sauces can vary in saltiness, so just be aware. It may affect how much salt you add to finish your soup.
• I have not frozen this soup because I am afraid the potatoes would not hold up well. If you wanted to make it ahead and freeze it, I would follow the steps up to the point of adding the broth/stock, tomatoes, and tomato sauce. I would freeze that mixture, minus the potatoes, and then wait and add the diced potatoes when you plan to cook it.

I hope y’all enjoy this hamburger soup recipe! Let me know if you try it.

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5 from 6 votes

Print

Hamburger Soup (Stovetop)

Hamburger soup is a warm and comforting bowl of hearty goodness, and it is made with basic ingredients you probably already have on hand.

Course Main Course, Soup

Cuisine American

Keyword hamburger soup, hamburger soup recipe

Prep Time 18 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 38 minutes

Servings 8

Calories 362 kcal

Author Marjorie @APinchOfHealthy

Ingredients

• cooking spray (I used avocado oil spray)
• 1 yellow onion diced
• 2 cups diced carrots
• 2 stalks celery diced
• 2 cloves fresh garlic minced
• 1.25  pounds  ground beef  85/15 or leaner
• 1 can diced tomatoes undrained, 14.5 ounces
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 can tomato sauce  (14.5 ounces – I used the Kirkland one fro Costco)
• 5 cups chicken stock  Or 5 cups water + 1.5 Tablespoons Better Than Bullion base
• 3 Russet potatoes diced into 1 inch bites (17 ounces, about 3.5 cups)
• 1 large sweet potato or 2 small, diced into 1 inch bites (11 ounces, about 2 cups)

Instructions

1. Preheat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat.

2. Add the onions, carrots and celery. Cook for about 3 minutes.

3. Add garlic, and cook 1 minute more.

4. Add ground beef, and cook until crumbly, about 7 or 8 minute. Use your spoon to break up the chunks.
5. Add tomatoes and chili powder, and cook 4 more minutes to reduce liquids.
6. Add broth/ stock, potatoes, tomato sauce.

7. Bring to a boil; reduce to simmer and cover partially.

8. Cook until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes, stirring occassionally.

9. Add salt and pepper to taste. Note: this will vary based on the saltiness of your broth and canned tomatoes.

Recipe Notes

• Nutrition information is approximate and was calculated using a recipe nutrition label generator.
• I would recommend using a leaner variety of ground beef. I do not drain mine for this recipe, and a leaner cut helps with that. I used 90/10 in this batch. I think 85/15 or leaner would work just fine.
• Whether or not you peel the potatoes is up to you. I peeled my sweet potatoes, mostly because they were not organic. I left the peeling on my russets since they were organic.
• You can use any mixture of potatoes for this soup. We have used russet, red and gold potatoes. I always include some sweet potatoes somewhere in the mix, though. I just love the variety of flavors! Just make sure your total potato weight is around twenty-eight to thirty-ish ounces. A food scale helps with this, but it measured to to be about 5.5 cups of diced potatoes for me.
• I love the tomato sauce from Costco, the Kirkland brand. It is already well-seasoned. If you use another brand, try to get one that is seasoned. Some varieties are plain and/or without salt added. You could still use those, just be aware that you may need some extra salt.
• Any type of chicken stock will work with this. I love using my homemade chicken bone broth the best, is I have some on hand. This batch in these photos was made with store bought boxed stock, and it worked out great. I have also used water plus Better that Bullion (BTB) chicken base.
• Side note: The BTB has a very high salt content though. Heck, all stocks, tomatoes and tomato sauces can vary in saltiness, so just be aware of that. It may affect the amount of salt you add to finish off your soup.
• I have not frozen this soup because I am afraid the potatoes would not hold up well. If you did want to make it ahead and put it in the freezer, I would follow the steps up to the point of adding the broth/stock, tomatoes and tomato sauce. I would freeze that mixture, minus the potatoes. And then I would wait and add the diced potatoes at the time you plan to cook it to eat it. 

Nutrition Facts

Hamburger Soup (Stovetop)

Amount Per Serving

Calories 362 Calories from Fat 144

% Daily Value*

Fat 16g25%

Saturated Fat 6g38%

Cholesterol 54mg18%

Sodium 764mg33%

Potassium 1272mg36%

Carbohydrates 34g11%

Fiber 4g17%

Sugar 10g11%

Protein 20g40%

Vitamin A 8275IU166%

Vitamin C 19.4mg24%

Calcium 80mg8%

Iron 4.1mg23%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.