Taco Hamburger Helper By Kelly Miller • December4,2014 • Updated January 4, 2022 • 6 Comments 455 Jump to Recipe This easy skillet meal is a healthy copycat of the box you can find at the grocery store! Taco Hamburger Helper recipe made with ground beef, brown rice, peppers, onions, salsa… the low carb way to enjoy your favorite taco dinner! I’ve joked on here before that when Paul and I were first married those were my “Hamburger Helper” days. I’m not joking – they truly were! I did know how to make a few other things, but it’s just that Hamburger Helper was so darn cheap and we both loved it. Why ruin a good thing, right? I say cheap, because now while the box from the store is fairly cheap, ground beef certainly isn’t anymore! At the time, we were both living in a duplex first floor apartment in Philly. Paul worked in New Jersey and I worked in the city as a teacher. At the time we only had one car, which was fine because we were really close to any bus route. I would either wait and get work done at school until he picked me up at the end of the day, or take a walk to some nearby stores and then hop a bus home. Lots of times I would hit up Dollar Tree, pick up a few boxes of Hamburger Helper, and head home. Our grocery stores fairly regularly would run sales for $.99/lb ground beef (!!) so I would stock our little freezer up. I mean come on, $2 for an entire meal for us?! No question, we ate that a few times each week, haha! My cooking has clearly evolved from those days, but I can say that while the boxed kind is definitely not the healthiest out there – it is better than eating fast food and is certainly cheaper. If you’re stuck, I say there’s nothing wrong with keeping a few boxes on hand for when you don’t have anything planned or a meal didn’t turn out the way it was supposed to. Although I do have to say, after reading this recipe post – you don’t have much of an excuse anymore – haha! If you get annoyed with chopping veggies, just buy the bagged frozen chopped peppers an onions and add them to the skillet – no need to thaw. Change out the ground beef for turkey if it’s cheaper (not sure I ever thought I’d say that). I really encourage you to use instant brown rice and the baked blue chips. It keeps the carb count down and you won’t notice the difference in this meal at all! Add in a can of chopped chiles and use hot salsa and taco seasoning to kick up the heat if you want. What did I tell you, easy right?! I compared the instructions with the boxed version and this one actually takes LESS time – especially if you use frozen peppers and onions. You KNOW Paul smothered his in Sriracha. 🙂 Here are some more of my favorite easy dinners: Baked Italian Dijon Pork Chops Sausage & Tomato Rigatoni Creamy Ham & Noodle Casserole Taco Hamburger Helper This easy skillet meal is a healthy copycat of the box you can find at the grocery store! Taco Hamburger Helper recipe made with ground beef, brown rice, peppers, onions, salsa... the low carb way to enjoy your favorite taco dinner! 5 from 2 votes Print Pin Rate Course: DinnerCuisine: AmericanKeyword: taco helper recipe Prep Time: 5 minutes minutesCook Time: 15 minutes minutesTotal Time: 20 minutes minutes Servings: 4 servings Calories: 828kcal Author: Kelly Miller Ingredients▢ 1 lb ground beef▢ 1 green pepper diced small▢ 1 onion diced small▢ 1 packet taco seasoning▢ 2 cups water▢ 1 1/2 cups instant brown rice▢ 1 cup salsa▢ 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese▢ 1 cup sour cream▢ 1 cup tortilla chips crushed InstructionsSaute ground beef, peppers, and onions in skillet until brown. Drain off fat and return to pan.Add in taco seasoning, water, and brown rice. Bring to a boil, then cover and simmer 5 minutes or until rice is tender.Top with salsa and shredded cheese, cover again and cook 2 minutes or until cheese is melted.Remove from heat and top with sour cream and crumbled chips. NutritionCalories: 828kcal | Carbohydrates: 60g | Protein: 34g | Fat: 50g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Cholesterol: 140mg | Sodium: 1594mg | Potassium: 754mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 1885IU | Vitamin C: 31.7mg | Calcium: 377mg | Iron: 6.2mg Tried this recipe?Follow me @mostlyhomemademom or tag #MostlyHomemadeMom! 455
Lauren Kelly Nutrition says December 4, 2014 at 5:40 pm Love this! This is the perfect weeknight meal! Reply
Erin @ Dinners, Dishes... says December 4, 2014 at 11:27 pm I love making homemade skillet meals like this. They have become my go to, and they are so easy! Reply
passthesushi says December 5, 2014 at 4:05 am No excuses! I kinda need this recipe on my menu right now 😀 Reply
Kelly @ Mostly Homemade Mom says December 5, 2014 at 12:08 pm I agree Erin – weeknights are so busy, easy dinners are a must! Reply