Crock Pot Cheeseburger Macaroni (+Video)
This Crock Pot Cheeseburger Macaroni is so flavorful, perfectly creamy, cheesy, and oh so beefy! A dinner the whole family will love!
DINNER MADE EASY- THANKS TO THE SLOW COOKER!
Crock Pot Cheeseburger Macaroni is a delicious and easy-to-make meal that will excite the whole family! With just a few simple ingredients and your trusty slow cooker, you can have an amazing dinner in no time. The combination of cheese, macaroni, and ground beef makes this dish creamy and flavorful. And with minimal effort required to prepare it, you’ll be enjoying Slow Cooker Cheeseburger Macaroni before you know it!
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ’S):
Nope! That’s the beauty of this recipe, it’s customizable. Just use a different can of cream of something soup – or use your own homemade version.
Yes, if you’re out of macaroni or want to use a different pasta shape, you sure can. Just keep in mind that different pasta types may require different cooking times. But, some other ideas are small shells, mini farfalle, or ditalini.
Wanna swap out the ground beef? That’s no problem! Simply use ground chicken, ground turkey, ground sausage or ground pork. You can even use a combination of any of them together.
Instead of beef stock you can use beef broth. It won’t be quite as rich but it will still work. If you choose to use a different ground meat instead of beef, you can swap out the stock choice to chicken stork or something else if it would compliment it better as well.
If you’re serving this to a crowd, be cautious os using the warm setting for too long on the Crock Pot because this can dry out the dish.
Yes, you can use different flavored cheese if desired. You can even use a white blanco Velveta cheese block if desired. Additionally, you can get a block of your favorite hard cheese and shred it with a grater.
Want to round out your dinner meal? Maybe try adding a side salad, some of your favorite green beans, broccoli, carrots, corn or other favorite vegetable side dish that your family loves!
I know some people are hesitant about using Velveeta but nothing gives the creamy quality like Velveeta. Or you can even try making your own Homemade Velveeta!
Leftovers should be transferred to an airtight container once it has cooled completely. Then you can refrigerate the leftovers for up to 3 days or you can freeze them for up to 3 months.
Yes, if you only want to use one pound of meat instead of two you can. You could also cut the recipe in half but I would suggest using a smaller slow cooker (3-4 quart) as it could easily burn in a larger one.
Leftovers can be reheated using the microwave until they’re warmed through again. When reheating pasta, I always suggest adding just a sprinkling of water and then cover with a slightly damp paper towel. This will keep it from drying out. Give it all a good stir before serving.
INGREDIENTS NEEDED: (SEE RECIPE CARD BELOW FOR THE FULL RECIPE)
- ground beef – other ground meat can be substituted – see above FAQ section.
- onion – if you don’t like onion, just leave it out. Or try substituting with a shallot for more of a slight garlic flavor.
- beef stock – beef broth can be used to if you don’t want a beefy flavor, water can be used.
- can of cream of potato soup – cream of onion, cream of mushroom or cream of chicken could also be used. You can find it where all the other cream soups are located in your grocery store.
- black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, paprika – you can substitute these for your favorite seasoning blend.
- elbow macaroni – any similar size pasta will work. For example, shells would be great as a substitute.
- Velveeta cheese – if you don’t like Velveeta, just leave it out. It just adds additional creaminess. You don’t need to substitute it, it just won’t be quite as creamy or you can add more cheese.
- shredded cheddar cheese – Colby jack cheese also works great here. if you want a kick of heat, try using pepper jack cheese.
HOW TO MAKE CROCK POT CHEESEBURGER MACARONI
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and break it up into crumbles. Cook until there is no pink left, about 10 minutes. Drain excess grease and add the ground beef to the bottom of a 6 or 8 quart slow cooker. Add the onion, beef stock, cream of potato soup, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika to the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
Place the cooker on low heat for 4-6 hours or high for 2-4 hours. Stir every hour or so if you can.
Add the macaroni noodles and stir to combine. Continue to cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes until the noodles are fully cooked. Add the cubed Velveeta, stir it in. Place the top back on the pot and wait 5 minutes. Stir until all of the Velveeta is melted.
Sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top and replace the lid again until the cheese is melted, 5-10 minutes.
Serve immediately.
CRAVING MORE RECIPES?
Crock Pot Cheeseburger Macaroni (+Video)
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 4 cups beef stock
- 10.5 ounce can cream of potato soup
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 16 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni (a box should be 16 ounces)
- 8 ounce block Velveeta cheese, cubed
- 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add 2 pounds ground beef and break it up into crumbles. Cook until there is no pink left, about 10 minutes. Drain excess grease and add the ground beef to the bottom of an 6-8 quart slow cooker.
- Add 1 small onion, finely diced, 4 cups beef stock, 10.5 ounce can cream of potato soup, 1 teaspoon black pepper, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, and 1 teaspoon paprika to the slow cooker. Stir to combine.
- Cover and turn the slow cooker on low heat for 4-6 hours or high for 2-4 hours. Stir every hour or so if you can.
- Add 16 ounces uncooked elbow macaroni and stir to combine. Continue to cook for 20-30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes until the noodles are fully cooked.
- Add the 8 ounce block Velveeta cheese, cubed and stir it in. Place the top back on the pot and wait 5 minutes. Stir until all of the Velveeta is melted.
- Sprinkle the 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese on top and replace the lid again until the cheese is melted, 5-10 minutes.
- Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Please refer to my FAQ’s (Frequently Asked Questions) and ingredient list above for other substitutions or for the answers to the most common questions.
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
“The Country Cook” is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories and other nutritional values can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
We loved this. It was delicious..this is a definite keeper..will share this with all my friends…Thanks much. Maria Elena.
Absolutely delicious!! I used 16 oz of velveeta though.
Thank you so very much Alicia!
This was delicious!! Used 5 slices of Velveeta and added a can of original Rotel at the end!! Sooo good!
That sounds perfect Krista!! Thanks so very much for coming back to comment – so happy you loved it!