The Cozy Cookbook is here! 
This Hamburger Soup recipe is easy to make with ground beef and your favorite vegetables. A creamy ingredient addition rounds out the savory combination of beef and chicken broth. Bonus: This makes a great freezer meal and it’s Crock Pot friendly!
Hamburger Soup
I have definitely made this soup more than any other soup recipe on the blog. I jokingly call this “Poor man’s soup” because my dad always talked about his mom making this with some scraps, a little beef, and some water.
These days, I like to use a combination of chicken broth and beef broth along with a can of creamy soup, some milk, potatoes, and frozen vegetables. It couldn’t be easier to make and it freezes really well.
BONUS: It’s stove top and crock pot friendly!
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Cook and crumble the ground beef over medium-high heat. Add the onions and celery halfway through and cook for 5 minutes, until softened. Drain excess grease and return to heat. Add the garlic, seasonings, and Worcestershire sauce. Toss to combine and cook for 1 minute. Add the potatoes, beef broth, chicken broth, cream of chicken soup, and milk.
Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover partially and cook for 30 minutes. Add the frozen vegetables and cook for 10-15 more minutes, or until the potatoes are fork tender. Taste and add any additional seasonings if preferred. Serve!
Pro Tips
- Feel free to make this with my homemade cream of chicken soup. The soup can also be omitted if preferred but it adds a nice creamy offset to round out the flavors in the broth.
- Cream of Mushroom, Golden Mushroom, Cream of Broccoli, and Cream of Celery make fine substitution options for cream of chicken.
- Be sure not to overcook the potatoes, especially if you plan on freezing leftovers.
- Fresh carrots can be added with the onions and celery if preferred.
- To control the sodium in this recipe, use low-sodium broth and/or condensed soup. You can also refrain from seasoning the ground beef with salt.
What to Add to Hamburger Soup
- 1 Tablespoon Tomato Paste if you prefer a little tomato flavor
- Drained Diced Tomatoes, Zucchini, Cabbage.
- Macaroni Noodles or Rice.
- Ground Turkey or chicken instead of ground beef
**If adding pasta or rice: I recommend cooking it separately, adding it directly to serving bowls, and storing it separately from the soup as it tends to absorb a lot of broth during storage.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)- Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- 4.5 quart Dutch oven– This is a great size for this recipe.
- Spice Rack– This is the one I have, it’s a snap to measure out your seasonings quickly and easily. (Big time saver.)
- Measuring Spoons– To measure out the seasonings.
- Pinch Bowls– I measure out my seasonings ahead of time and add them to these small bowls so they’re ready to go when it’s time to add them.
- 16 oz. storage containers – I use these to store/freeze my soups. They have 8 oz. sizes as well. They’re stackable, leak proof, and dishwasher/microwave safe.
Try These Next
-
- Chili Mac
-
- Stuffed Shells
-
- Chicken Vegetable Soup
-
- Chicken and Dumplings
-
- Ground Beef and Noodles
-
- Cheeseburger Soup
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Hamburger Soup
Ingredients
Seasonings:
- 1 teaspoon EACH: dried basil + dried parsley
- ¾ teaspoon EACH: dried thyme + mustard powder
- ¼ teaspoon ground sage
Soup:
- 1 ½ lbs. ground beef
- Salt/Pepper
- 1 yellow onion, diced
- 2 ribs celery, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
- 2 large red potatoes, or 4 small
- 3 cups beef broth
- 3 cups chicken broth
- 1 10.5 oz. can cream of chicken soup
- ½ cup milk
- 2 cups frozen vegetables, I used a mix of carrots, peas, corn, and green beans
Instructions
Stove Top Method
- Combine the seasonings and set aside.
- Lightly season the ground beef with salt and pepper. Add it to a 4.5 quart soup pot over medium-high heat. Cook and crumble for 5 minutes, or until most of the pink is gone. Add the onions and celery and toss to coat. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are softened. Drain excess grease.
- Add the garlic, Worcestershire sauce, and seasonings. Toss to coat and cook for 1 minute.
- Add the potatoes, beef broth, chicken broth, cream of chicken soup, and milk. Stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cover partially and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Add the frozen vegetables and cook for 10 more minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender. Taste and add any seasonings as needed. Serve!
Crock Pot Method
- Add the ground beef to a skillet over medium-high heat and season with salt and pepper. Cook and crumble for 5 minutes, or until most of the pink is gone.
- Add the onions and celery and toss to coat. Cook for 5 minutes, or until the vegetables are softened.
- Drain excess grease and transfer it to the slow cooker along with all remaining ingredients *except* the frozen vegetables.
- Cook on high for 4-5 hours or low for 7-8 hours, or until the potatoes are fork tender.
- Add frozen vegetables and cook for an additional 15 minutes.
Notes
- Feel free to make this with my homemade cream of chicken soup. The soup can also be omitted if preferred but it adds a nice creamy offset to round out the flavors in the broth.
- Cream of Mushroom, Golden Mushroom, Cream of Broccoli, and Cream of Celery make fine substitution options for cream of chicken.
- Be sure not to overcook the potatoes, especially if you plan on freezing leftovers.
- Fresh carrots can be added with the onions and celery if preferred.
- To control the sodium in this recipe, use low-sodium broth and/or condensed soup. You can also refrain from seasoning the ground beef with salt.
Storage
- Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Made this for the 1st time and doubled it. It was amazing! Only had no sodium for the beef broth and no celery, so I added 1 tsp celery salt. I used a tiny strainer at the end to remove the rosemary floating on top. Just didn’t care for the texture of them, but they added nice flavor. I think I’ll purchase a mesh tea ball to use them next time. Suppose I could put the bay leaves in there too. Definitely will make this again! Thank you for sharing! 🙂 YUM!!!
I made this the other day and it was hearty and so warming! It makes the perfect winter meal!
Hey Arpita! I’m so happy that you enjoyed the soup! I seriously quadruple this recipe every time and just stock up on it in the freezer, it’s definitely my favorite soup ever, (aside from Panera’s broccoli cheddar. lol)- Have a great day!
Can I use cream of chicken soup instead of cream of celery soup
Absolutely Mary, I experiment with different soups all the time, I like cream of mushroom too. Enjoy! 🙂
Love this recipe! Of course, I tweak it, depending on ingredients, but the herb combo is so good together. Look forward to trying more of your recipes.
Hi David! I kid you not when I say that I am making this recipe as we speak, what are the odds of that! I am making a huge batch to freeze, I tripled the recipe! I am so happy that you like it! Thank you for taking the time to rate and comment!
Similar to something my dad used to make… except instead of cream soup it was Swiss cheese at the end…and sunflower seeds as a garnish. I’m going to try this tonight.
Hi Jolene! There must be something with this soup and dads! Mine used to make it all the time for me- the sunflower seed garnish has my interest, I’d like to try that sometime! I’m excited for you to make it, I always have some in my freezer… it’s almost time to make another batch! 🙂 Enjoy!! I’d love to know what you think of it! -Stephanie
Should I get the broth and water to a boil before adding in the hamburger?
I usually do, yes! I should add that to the instructions, thank you for asking! I actually just made a big batch of the soup yesterday, it’s so good! I hope you love it.
I came across this recipe searching for something like my mother used to make. This wasn’t it. It’s better! Of course, like any adventurous cook, I’ve taken some liberties with the recipe. But what recipe isn’t but a jumping off point to new taste sensations?
I don’t cook the potatoes for nearly as long as you suggest, as I prefer them firm when served. And I substituted cabbage for beans or broccoli because that was the green thing I had on hand. But it’s the spices and the cream soup that give this it’s flavor and texture. Everyone I’ve served it to has loved it, from six years old to sixty-six. Great job, and thank you for a new staple that’s easy to prepare and O, so tasty!
Hi Dave! I’m so happy that you love this soup too, it’s really funny actually because I made a ol ‘ol batch of it yesterday too, we were making it at the same time! It’s one of my top favorites. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and Happy New Year!
I have a crazy question do you brown the ground beef first or do you just use the raw ground beef and pinch off bite size pieces to go into the broth?
Hi Robyn! Not a crazy question at all! Actually my dad taught me this recipe and I’d have to call him up and ask him the same thing every time I’d make it! I’ll make it clearer in the instructions but not need to Brown the meat first, drop the raw balls of meat right in! ENJOY!!!! I’m jealous, I always eat these leftovers up so quickly!
Sound’s like good comfy food. Must try….;-)
I love Hamburg soup! It’s so easy to make and extremely flavorful and soothing. It’s also a very economical meal.