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So it’s your busy weeknight and that box is looking mighty adequate. Here’s your list of totally doable sides when you want to know what to serve with Hamburger Helper.
At some point in time, we have all walked down the aisle in our grocery store that holds Hamburger Helper meal kits, whether it’s the 50-year-old brand name or just generic.
For those super busy nights, when all you have time for is to brown some ground meat, the Hamburger Helper kit helps round out the main part of the meal, typically with seasonings and pasta.
They have also branched out into other categories like tuna and chicken.
Sometimes the meat and boxed ingredients are enough to be the meal.
But other times, that may not be all you want to serve for dinner.
What about a side dish to complement the entree or make it stretch a little further?
There are so many options for what to serve with Hamburger Helper from salads, to fruits to fresh, frozen or canned veggies or some sort of delicious bread!
Some of these may be obvious, while others may be new ideas or simply new ways of preparing familiar sides.
Cheeseburger Macaroni was my jam back in the day. If I need comfort food, I’ll grab a box. Do I add a handful of more shredded cheese? Yes, yes I do. No shame in my game.
Listen, someone has to consume all that heart-stopping sodium and it may as well be ME.
Renee’ just said her favorite was the Stroganoff, but her side was Mrs. Baird’s white bread. Let’s elevate that just a skosh.
So, here are 17 ideas for what to serve with Hamburger Helper! Plus a couple of copycat recipes so you can make your own homemade Hamburger Helper.
Try our Grilled Tomatoes recipe too; just a couple of ingredients needed.My personal favorite is our Quick-Pickled Cucumbers recipe below.
I find that they are easy to prep, you can make them in advance (they stay good for a couple of weeks, even), and the sweet/sour helps cut the richness of the HH.
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When considering what to serve with Hamburger Helper, a side veggie is always a great choice.
How about canned green beans?
They come in sliced or French cut.
They are fully cooked and simply need warming.
They can be jazzed up with just a little bit of pepper or you can go all out and saute them in some butter along with some diced onion for a bit of pizzazz!
Another family favorite is to add some crumbled bacon on top.
Sometimes a good biscuit served as a Hamburger Helper side dish can elevate the whole meal to something special!
The reason I love this recipe is because it is quick and easy just like the Hamburger Helper meal.
Just mix, drop, bake and serve!
They are made from self-rising flour, butter, shredded cheddar cheese, milk, garlic powder, Old Bay seasoning and parsley.
Cool tip to freeze and grate the butter for better mixing!
You can make them whatever size you like and the melted garlic butter sauce added after baking is heavenly!
If you have a few minutes to fire up a grill, an excellent idea for what to serve with Hamburger Helper is grilled tomatoes.
Easy prep includes creating a marinade of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, rosemary, salt and pepper.
Then slice the tomatoes through the middle like wagon wheels, scoop out the pulp and brush on the marinade.
Grill cut side up first for four minutes, then flip for another four minutes.
Delicious!
If you want a little something sweet for what to serve with Hamburger Helper, grilled peaches are a fabulous idea.
The peach can be almost ripe, or ripe, when you wash it.
Cut in half and remove the seed.
Brush grapeseed oil on each half along with a bit of salt and pepper.
Grill cut side down for three minutes, then flip for another three minutes.
They can be served as is or sliced and put on top of a salad.
Got an air fryer you are itching to use?
Roasting zucchini with tomatoes in it would make an excellent side to go with Hamburger Helper.
The only trick is to cook them so they do not get soggy and the air fryer does that perfectly!
Cut the zucchini and tomatoes into similar sizes so they will cook evenly.
Brush with a mixture of olive oil, Italian seasonings, onion powder and garlic powder.
Easy and delicious!
Now, if you are an onion lover, this recipe will delight you!
Do keep in mind that it does take time to cook so allow for that.
These realSweet Vidalia onions outside layer is peeled off and the bottom sliced off to create a flat surface, and the center carved out to fill with butter and a garlic clove.
Wrap each onion with two strips of bacon and then wrap each onion individually in foil to bake for an hour.
They spend another 30 minutes on the grill.
These can be added to a dinner plate or served as an appetizer.
When trying something new for what to serve with Hamburger Helper, this broccoli salad is a creative choice.
It is served cold, has veggies and yet the hints of sweet cranberries mixed with the savory bacon make each bite just wonderful!
The broccoli can be used raw or blanched for one minute.
The ingredients are broccoli, sharp cheddar cheese, dried cranberries, bacon bits, sunflower seeds, diced red onion.
The dressing is made of mayo, sour cream, white wine vinegar, sugar, salt and pepper.
Time is your friend, so let this salad chill for at least one hour or up to one whole day, so all the flavors can be fully incorporated.
When fresh green beans have the crunch you are looking for, this veggie side dish of fresh green beans with cherry tomatoes will be a great option as something to serve alongside a Hamburger Helper meal.
Clean, cut ends off and snap the fresh green beans.
Rince the cherry tomatoes.
Steam the beans on the stove and set aside.
Tomatoes cook next in olive oil and they should break open.
Several seasoning combinations are included or simply season as you like and toss beans and tomatoes together.
Marinated sliced tomatoes are a wonderful and refreshing side to go with Hamburger Helper!
Wash and dry tomatoes of any size, cut into nice thick slices.
Cut red onion into chunks and smash two garlic cloves.
Combine onion, olive oil, red wine vinegar, garlic, salt, pepper, rosemary and basil.
Add tomatoes and coat with the mixture.
Cover to marinate and chill for at least two hours before serving!
These have become my new favorite side for a lot of lunches and dinners.
If I want the light crunch but I’m not in the mood for a salad? Check.
Frozen Asian dumplings? Perfect side for that too.
Pasta salad, fettuccine alfredo, literally anything is made better when I don’t feel like putting an entire salad together.
Try this one if you like cucumbers. Not at all as intense as actual pickles, they are mild.
Cukes, white vinegar or apple cider vinegar, a bit of sugar (or sweetener! It won’t last as long in the fridge, but it works great too), onion powder, garlic powder, salt, pepper, water. Mix.
It will be ready when your Hamburger HelpMe is ready.
Boom. Add a dish of this alongside, and you will feel like you did something good for yourself.
Steamed Green Beans with Lemon
Green beans make an easy and delicious healthy side dish. These steamed green beans only require 5 ingredients.
Texas Roadhouse Green Beans Recipe (Copycat)
If you have ever been to Texas Roadhouse you know how divine their green beans are. This recipe starts with cans of cut green beans with a handful of additional ingredients, like cooked bacon, onion, garlic, and a bit of sugar, so it’s just enough cooking time for the flavors to meld.
Blackened Broccoli
If you’re looking for a quick and delicious veggie side dish, this charred broccoli recipe is perfect for you! If you want to add a bit more flavor, squeeze some lemon juice on the broccoli florets just before serving.
How to saute broccoli (3 ingredients)
From start to finish this broccoli side dish should only take you 15 minutes. The best part is that you truly only need 3 ingredients to make amazing sauteed broccoli.
Glazed Carrots in the Microwave
For a quick weeknight side dish, this recipe works great. This recipe provides the glaze after cooking, so they will not get too “sticky” from a dry heat like they might in the oven or stovetop.
Roasted Carrots With Thyme
This Oven-Roasted Carrots With Thyme Recipe brings out the sweetness with a golden brown char, and the deep flavor of fresh thyme is activated, making this a scrumptious veggie side dish.
Air Fryer Carrots Recipe
With a little bit of olive oil, brown sugar, and garlic powder, we get delicious fork tender carrots in about 10 minutes!
Cucumber Tomato Salad
This cucumber salad with tomatoes and red onion is so simple to make. It’s a fresh and light side salad that’s perfect alongside many dishes.
Easy Arugula Salad Recipe
We can’t get enough of this easy arugula salad recipe. A great feature about this salad is how insanely easy it is to create.
No-mayo Carolina coleslaw recipe (super yummy!)
What I like about this coleslaw recipe is that it’s very different from classic slaw with a homestyle mayonnaise dressing. It’s sweet, tangy, and of course, yummy!
Apple Carrot Slaw
This sweet apple carrot coleslaw recipe is just such a recipe: the right balance of sweet and tangy crunch. A great tip to keep apples from turning brown in your coleslaw is to first mix them with apple cider vinegar or lemon juice.
Red cabbage slaw recipe
This red cabbage slaw recipe is easy to make. It’s a crunchy side dish that’s satisfying to eat and it’s good for you and your family at the same time.
Easy Cheesy Creamed Spinach Recipe
If you are looking for a creamy and delicious spinach side dish, this is the perfect recipe for you. Now we love cheese in this household so we really amped up the cheese in this recipe.
How To Saute Spinach
Learning how to saute spinach is one of the easiest things that a new cook can learn how to do. You can expect spinach to shrink by at least 50% when it is sauteed.
Butter Dip Biscuits
These butter dip biscuits offer the comfort of homemade baking with minimal effort. Made from a few pantry ingredients, they come together quickly, with no kneading required.
The bottom line
Being short on time does not mean your meal needs to be short on taste and we all want to be satisfied…and maybe stretch that box just a bit further.
I hope this list inspired you to find just that perfect side to serve with a Hamburger Helper meal.
