Hamburger Soup is loaded with tender ground beef, diced tomatoes, and an assortment of veggies. It’s so hearty and satisfying,
Warming soups like Zuppa Toscana, Cabbage Soup, and this Hamburger Soup recipe are well-loved in the colder months. P.S. They are perfect for easy meal planning because they reheat well.
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What is Hamburger Soup?
Hamburger soup is a classic, all-American staple made with lean ground beef, tangy tomato broth, and plenty of veggies. It has all the satisfaction of biting into a juicy hamburger, paired with the comfort of a Tomato Soup.
It’s also quick and simple to make and takes about 45 minutes from start to finish.
Ingredients for Ground Beef Soup
- Aromatic Vegetables – Onions, carrots, and garlic celery are the go-to base for an amazing soup. By cooking them in the pot first, you release amazing aromatics that add such a key depth of flavor to your hamburger soup. If you want an extra serving of veggies, add in some spinach, kale, or green beans.
- Lean Ground Beef – Opt for 85% lean ground beef (or even leaner) to prevent your soup from coming out too oily. You can even swap the ground beef out for ground turkey.
- Tomato Paste – enriches the tomato-y flavor of the soup and also helps to thicken it up.
- Canned Diced Tomatoes – any brand will work, but note that some brands have more added sugar or salt than others so season to taste.
- Beef Broth – Use homemade beef stock if you have it, or use storebought broth.
- Potatoes – Yukon gold potatoes work best and add a nice, natural buttery flavor.
- Italian Seasoning – Use your favorite dried Italian seasoning blend or make your own by combing a couple of shakes of dried basil, oregano, rosemary, thyme, and marjoram.
- Salt and Pepper– add to taste, especially at the end of cooking.
- Fresh Parsley – adding some fresh chopped parsley as a garnish really takes this soup to the next level.
How to Make Hamburger Soup
Once you have all the ingredients prepped, this soup comes together in a pinch.
- Cook the Veggies: Preheat a large pot with oil and add in the chopped vegetables. Sauté over medium-high heat until softened.
- Brown the Ground Beef: Add the ground beef to the soup pot and cook it until it turns golden brown.
- Finish Building the Soup: Stir in the diced tomatoes, minced garlic, tomato paste, potatoes, and beef broth. Season with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Bring to a Boil: Bring the soup to a boil. Turn the heat down to a simmer for 30 minutes. Season to taste, garnish with chopped parsley and enjoy.
Pro Tip: A dutch oven is one of our favorite kitchen tools for making soup. This 5 1/2 Qt Dutch Oven is our go-to. It conducts heat well and can go from the stovetop to the oven. A good pot can last a lifetime.
Make Ahead
Hamburger soup is a great option for making ahead of time and meal prep. Why? The soup continues to develop its flavor as it marinates in the fridge. To keep it fresh for up to 5 days, store it in an airtight container in the fridge. This will also prevent it from absorbing any lingering smells that might be hanging out in your fridge.
Note: Avoid storing leftover hamburger soup in the freezer. The cooked veggies do not reheat well.
Serve With
This hamburger soup is a filling meal in and of itself, but if you’re looking for more well-rounded meal pair the soup with your favorite green salad, a Grilled Cheese Sandwich, or any of these homemade bread recipes:
Common Questions
Using a slow cooker is a great option. Simply sauté the veggies, brown the ground beef, and throw all the ingredients in for 2-4 hours on high.
Adding macaroni to this soup is definitely a welcome addition. Add the pasta in during the last 12-15 minutes of cooking time or boil them in a separate pot and then add them in. P.S. If you love pasta in soup, make sure to try our Tortellini Soup.
To add a bit of smokiness, add a teaspoon of smoked paprika or Worcestershire sauce to the soup. For spicy soup, add some cayenne pepper.
You can thicken up the soup with more tomato paste or Alternatively, create a slurry of 3 water and 1 Tbsp cornstarch and stir it into the pot, making sure to return to a boil.
More Comforting Soup Recipes
I hope this soup recipe ends up on your regular soup rotation. A bowl of Hamburger Soup will warm your belly in the cold winter months. It’s so soothing and satisfying.
Hamburger Soup Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 large carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
- 4 sticks celery, thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 lb lean ground beef, 85% or leaner
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 28 oz canned diced tomatoes
- 8 cups beef broth
- 2 large yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1 1/2 tsp salt, or to taste
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper, or to taste
- 3 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat a 5 1/2 qt dutch oven or soup pot with olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion, carrots, and celery into the pot. Sauté the veggies until softened.
- Add the ground beef, breaking it apart as you go. Cook it until it turns golden brown.
- Stir in the diced tomatoes, minced garlic, tomato paste, potatoes, and beef broth. Season with Italian seasoning, salt, and pepper.
- Bring the soup to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Season to taste and serve garnished with chopped parsley.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hi! I’m Natasha Kravchuk, a New York Times bestselling cookbook author, recipe developer, food photographer, and writer. Here you’ll find delicious, reliable recipes made with simple ingredients, plus easy step-by-step photos and videos to help you cook confidently at home. 
Thanks for the basic’s , this is a regular dish that can be altered to taste and kept for a base to just add to ,for additional meals , at least for hungry Fire Fighters . Nothing better, after a tough shift in the early hours and fighting a working fire. Once the Apparatus is put back into service-able condition, eat and be ready for the next emergency call out. P.S. sliced smoked sausage adds oomph ! Cheers …. Neal
I thought it was great. Added some green beans and cut back on the celery. My husband thought it needed more spice. He added red pepper flakes and was happy. Thanks!
Sounds great, Sara! Thanks for the feedback.
Hey Natasha, I only have 3..5 l Dutch oven how should calculate the amount of ingredients going into this soup?🙂 thank you!
Hi Boris! I haven’t tested this in different size dutch ovens to provide the exact instructions. At the top of the recipe card, you will see the number of servings that this recipe makes (8 servings). My suggestion would be to try decreasing to 5-6 servings and it will convert the ingredient list for you. I hope that helps.
I have to do all the cooking because my wife has
Alzheimer’s . This is my go to soup that I have success with. I like all your recipes that I have tried.
Hi Emil! I’m so glad you love this soup. Thank you for the wonderful feedback. I’m happy to hear you are loving the recipes.
My kids complained when they heard that Hamburger soup was for dinner… but it was their favorite! Seconds for all. A new family fav
That’s great, Julie! Happy to know that your family enjoyed our soup recipe.
Decided to make our soup creamy (dairy free) and wow- it was so satisfying. Non dairy soup cream recipe: pour boiling hot water into bowl with 1 cup raw cashews, cover and let sit for 1 hour. Rinse cashews in colander. Blend cashews with approx 3/4 cup cool water until sour-cream like consistency (in a blender, not food processor). Mix cream nto soup and enjoy!
Thank you so much for sharing that with us. It’s very helpful.
This looks great! My only problem is I have a histamine intolerance so I can’t do the tomatoes. Could there be a substitute? Thnx .. love all of your recipes.
Hi Julie! I haven’t tried any substitutes but I think it would be fine to just leave them out. You can replace some of the volume with other veggies if you prefer.
This soup is delicious! I make it all the time. So delicious and easy to make …..Sometimes I’ll add a little bit of barley to the soup which I think even makes it better….. I love all of your recipes.
Thank you for sharing, Candice! I’m so glad you love my recipes. That sounds delicious.
This was a staple while growing up. My kids and now grandkids also love it. It’s such a simple recipe to use variations to as well. Its a great soup to use up small amounts of leftover veggies too…corn, green beans, peas, cabbage, zucchini etc all go well in this soup. If I have a few tablespoons of veggies leftover at dinner, I add them to my freezer bag until the next time I make the soup.
Totally agree, simple and easy to make but so fulfilling. Glad you liked it!
What an awesome idea of freezing bits of leftover veggies for soup! I’d never thought of doing so, thanks!
I also have a bag of vege trimmings that aren’t suitable to eat in soup. Stems from chard kale and other vegetables trimmings. Cruciferous nor good. When I have enough, I make vege stock.
Hi Natasha. Delicious soup! What would you suggest to add if I wanted to make it creamier? Heavy cream? Cream cheese? Any ideas?
Hi Yelena! I think both of those could work. Let us know how it turns out if you experiment.
I made this soup yesterday and it was delicious. Hearty!! I will definitely make it again but fry the meat separately, to avoid that extra fat. Otherwise, great flavor 😋
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Angela!
also use cans of white beans instead of potatos for less carbs love this soup
Reminds me of the one my mom made when we were younger! Love it! I added a few more spices but it was really good! Thanks
You’re welcome, Nicole. I’m sure your mom’s version is good too!
Can the white of turnips be used also ? I would still use the potatoes just wondering how it would taste in this soup
Hi Lisa. Turnips seem to do well in soup but I haven’t tested them to advise on taste or texture in this recipe. Let us know if you experiment.
I use turnips, purple tops finely diced in lieu of the carbohydrate count in potatoes. It works perfectly and is delicious. This is a wonderful hearty soup recipe. My daughter loves this soup, as I’ve made it a few times now, she doesn’t even know she’s eating turnips.TY Natasha for this fabulous recipe.
I’ve made several of your recipes and they’re all scrumptious! XO
Hi Lyn! Thank you for sharing. I appreciate the feedback.
I was cleaning out my vegetable bin and so instead of using celery I used fennel and added a beet root. I’m sure it will be delicious!
I hope it becomes your new favorite!
This is another of Natasha’s recipes that is easily converted to Keto or low carb by substituting peeled radishes for the potatoes, and they are a delicious sub that very much resemble in taste and texture small potatoes but without the carbs. We also add a pack of fresh green and shredded cabbage beans to the soup.
Hello John, that’s a great suggestion. Thanks a lot for sharing that with us, I”m sure a lot of readers will love this!
This was a very good basic soup! I added carrots, green beans, corn, a dash a Worcestershire, and instead of regular diced tomatoes I used the ones with green chilis added. For seasonings I did my own Italian mix and added a little red pepper flakes too.
Thanks for sharing that with us, Zoey!
I liked the soup, but gave it one less star than 5 because to me it seemed like it filled a space somewhere between chili and vegetable soup. What I did to bring it home was drop the salt and add V8 tomato juice to salt and flavor it just before serving. That and a few pepper flakes gave it a gourmet presence so it wasn’t so lost between chili and vegetable soup. Everybody loved it.
Thank you for sharing that with us, Jeff. Feel free to change up the ingredients a bit according to your personal preference.
My friend and family have made this hamburger soup for years. My kids grew up eating it and our favorite to add is potatoes!! Thanks for your recipes.
You’re welcome! I’m so happy you enjoyed it, Ada!
we love this I also add 2 small cans of v8 to it… adds lots of vitamins and flavor. cheryl coleman
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Cheryl! I’m happy you enjoyed it!
This is a great soup! I also added fresh green beans and a dash of Worstershire. Finished it off with Freshly grated parm and that added the perfect zip!
Forgot the 5 star! Excellent after letting it sit for a few hours, and almost better the next day.
Isn’t that true! Often the “Soup of Yesterday” is even better tasting. I often make my soups the day before I plan to serve them.
Thanks, Natasha, great recipe!
That’s just awesome! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review, Susan!