Easy Hamburger Vegetable Soup with Potatoes
A pound of ground beef goes a long way when the pot also holds potatoes, carrots, green beans and a tomato broth. Brown the beef before adding liquid, and cut the potatoes small enough to cook evenly. The soup is ready when the vegetables yield to a fork but still keep their shape, with plenty of broth between each spoonful.
For a simple family supper, I’d serve this ground beef and vegetable soup, with tomatoes and everyday pantry ingredients. This version uses potatoes rather than pasta or rice, so there are no noodles swelling in the pot while dinner waits. It is a practical family supper that also packs well for lunch the next day.
A brothy dinner, not a cheeseburger in a bowl
There is no cheese sauce, cream or burger bun in this recipe. The name refers to the ground beef. The flavour comes from browning that beef, softening the onion and simmering the vegetables in a light tomato broth. It is less concentrated than chili with beef and beans and does not rely on a large quantity of spices.
I keep the seasoning simple because the vegetables should still taste like themselves. Thyme, garlic and a bay leaf are enough. A small amount of Worcestershire sauce rounds out the broth, but it is optional. Taste it before adding more salt, particularly if the broth is not low-sodium.
For a casserole built around the same economical ingredient, ground beef and potato casserole gives a very different, oven-baked meal. The ground beef dinner collection has other ways to use a package without turning every dinner into pasta sauce.
Get the vegetables close to the same size
Yellow potatoes hold their shape well in soup. Peel them if you prefer, then cut into half-inch cubes. Russet potatoes can be used, but they break down more readily and will make a cloudier, thicker broth. Neither is wrong; they simply give different textures.
Slice the carrots thinner than the potatoes because carrots take longer to soften. Cut celery into small pieces, and use bite-sized green beans. Frozen beans and corn are useful here and do not need thawing. They go in later than the potatoes so they do not simmer unnecessarily.
Use canned diced tomatoes with their juice. Crushed tomatoes would make a more uniform red broth, while whole tomatoes would need breaking up. There is no flour to thicken this soup. If you want a smooth vegetable bowl, blended leek and potato soup is a better fit than blending this one.
One pot, with the ingredients added in order
Brown the beef and onion
Heat a large heavy pot over medium-high heat. Add the oil and ground beef. Cook for six to eight minutes, breaking the meat into small crumbles. Let it sit briefly between stirs so it can develop some brown colour rather than only turning grey.
Spoon off excess fat, leaving about one tablespoon in the pot. Add the onion and cook for four minutes. Stir in the garlic and tomato paste for one minute, scraping the bottom. The paste should smell cooked and darken slightly. Do not let it stick until black.
Simmer the firm vegetables
Add the diced tomatoes with their juice, broth, potatoes, carrots, celery, thyme, bay leaf and pepper. Stir thoroughly, bring to a simmer, then lower the heat. Partially cover and cook for fifteen to twenty minutes, stirring once or twice, until the potatoes and carrots are almost tender.
The exact time depends on the size of the pieces. Test a potato cube from the centre of the pot rather than relying on how quickly the surface bubbles. A vigorous boil can break the potatoes apart before the carrots have softened. This same attention to different vegetable cooking times helps with fridge-cleanout vegetable soup.
Finish with beans and corn
Add the frozen green beans and corn. Simmer another five to eight minutes, until all the vegetables are tender and the ground beef is fully cooked to at least 160°F. Remove the bay leaf. Add the optional Worcestershire sauce, then taste for salt and adjust the broth with a little water if it has reduced too much.
Stir in the parsley just before serving. Ladle into bowls, distributing the beef and vegetables evenly rather than giving the first bowl mostly broth and the last one all the potatoes. The finished soup should pour easily from the ladle.
Keep the broth clean-tasting
Draining excess fat matters. A thin sheen is normal, but a thick oily layer makes the soup feel heavy. Lean ground beef helps, though even lean meat can release enough fat to need a quick spooning off. Do this before adding broth, when it is easiest to separate.
Do not keep adding tomato paste to deepen the colour. Too much can make a small pot taste sharply concentrated. The diced tomatoes already bring acidity. If the broth tastes harsh, give the vegetables their full simmer and check the salt before reaching for sugar.
For another tomato-based meal with ground meat, fresh pasta with beef sauce is deliberately thicker. Here, the liquid is part of the meal, not a sauce to cling to noodles.
Substitutions
For a lighter flavour, I’d use ground turkey instead of beef and cook it to 165°F. A frozen mixed vegetable blend can replace the beans and corn; add it late and simmer until hot and tender. Avoid adding a second large quantity of potatoes through the mix.
For a bean addition, stir in a drained can of kidney beans near the end and add broth as needed. This moves the soup closer to a minestrone-style meal, though the seasoning remains mild. Do not add raw rice without adjusting the liquid and cooking time; ground beef and rice is designed around that combination.
Before you put the leftovers away
Does this soup freeze well?
Yes, although potatoes may soften or become slightly grainy after thawing. Cool promptly in shallow containers and freeze up to three months. Thaw in the refrigerator, then reheat gently to 165°F. Stir carefully so the potatoes do not break up more than necessary.
Can I make it a day ahead?
Yes. Refrigerate within two hours and use within three to four days. Add a splash of broth when reheating if needed. Potatoes absorb less liquid than pasta, but the soup can still thicken as it sits.
What if the soup is too salty?
Dilute with unsalted broth or water and, if needed, add more separately cooked vegetables. A raw potato will not selectively remove the salt. Starting with low-sodium broth gives you more room to season at the end.
A simple supper around the soup
Beef supplies protein and the vegetables add variety and fibre. This is a substantial bowl without a cream base. Serve with homemade white bread and, if wanted, a crisp romaine and endive salad. There is already potato in the soup, so a second starch is optional rather than necessary.
Easy Hamburger Vegetable Soup with Potatoes
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon neutral oil
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 medium onion diced
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 can 14 ounces diced tomatoes, with juice
- 5 cups low-sodium beef broth
- 1 pound yellow potatoes cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 2 medium carrots thinly sliced
- 2 celery ribs diced
- 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1 bay leaf
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 1 cup frozen cut green beans
- 1 cup frozen corn
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce optional
- Fine salt as needed
- 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Instructions
- Heat oil in a large pot. Brown beef over medium-high heat 6–8 minutes, breaking into crumbles. Spoon off excess fat, leaving about 1 tablespoon.
- Add onion; cook 4 minutes. Stir in garlic and tomato paste for 1 minute.
- Add tomatoes, broth, potatoes, carrots, celery, thyme, bay and pepper. Simmer partially covered 15–20 minutes until potatoes and carrots are almost tender.
- Add green beans and corn. Simmer 5–8 minutes until vegetables are tender and beef is fully cooked to at least 160°F.
- Remove bay leaf. Add optional Worcestershire, adjust salt and liquid, stir in parsley and serve.
