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What Goes Well with Hamburger Helper? 19 Amazing Side Dishes

Homemade Hamburger Helper: Basically macaroni and cheese enhanced with hamburger and vegetables.

What Goes Well with Hamburger Helper? 19 Amazing Side Dishes

Hamburger Helper is a great lunch or dinner option and if you're wondering what goes well with Hamburger Helper, you're in the right place. Hamburger Helper is a perfect blend of creamy noodles and the perfect mix of spices. It comes in quite a few flavors, including beef, chicken, cheese, tuna, tomato, and some spicier options as well. While this dinner takes under an hour to make, you'll want some tasty sides to elevate your chosen flavors. This leads us back to the question at hand: What goes well with Hamburger Helper?

These side dishes range from the perfect mixed-green salad to a hearty helping of potatoes. We'll cover your options from roasted sides to fresh veggies, and all kinds of other delicious mini-meals that will go the best with Hamburger Helper. Read on as we learn more about these amazing side dishes that will make your mealtime planning that much easier. Prepare your Hamburger Helper meal in under an hour and then try out one of these fun combinations.

Side Salads

We'll start with some salads that are sure to add a bit of freshness and crunch alongside those creamy, seasoned noodles.

1. Cherry Tomato Salad Recipe

This Cherry Tomato Salad recipe recipe involves cherry tomatoes, bacon, fresh basil, romaine lettuce, and chives. You'll need mayonnaise, tarragon vinegar, olive oil, and salt. You'll want to cook your bacon until it is crispy and press out the extra grease with a paper towel. Make a dressing from the other ingredients, chop up your cherry tomatoes, and dress your salad. Crumble the crisped bacon, add a sprinkle of chives and enjoy.

Fresh summer vegetable salad with mozzarella cheese, green arugula leaves and cherry tomatoes on wooden table background.
Feel free to customize this salad with other ingredients with cheese or variations of leafy greens.

2. Caesar Salad Recipe

This Caesar Salad recipe calls for romaine lettuce, French bread for croutons, a garlic clove, an egg, and Romano cheese. For the dressing, you'll need salt, lemon juice, olive oil, Worcestershire sauce, and freshly ground pepper. Wash the lettuce, cube the French bread, and bake at 275º Fahrenheit until crispy. Boil the egg for about a minute, and then crack it into the bowl. Next, take your garlic clove and mash it up in the bowl, add your spices and remaining liquid ingredients, and mix this until blended for the dressing. Add French bread croutons and enjoy your homemade Caesar salad, that goes well with Hamburger Helper.

Classic Fresh Caesar Salad Cool crunchy cos lettuce, bacon, garlic croutons, chilled free range hard boiled egg, house-made Caesar dressing, parmesan cheese
A variation on this salad recipe calls for lightly soft-boiling the egg and enjoying over the lettuce.

3. Tortellini Pasta Salad

This Tortellini Pasta Salad salad involves cheese tortellini, artichoke hearts, thinly sliced carrots, broccoli florets, red bell pepper, and 2 green onions. For the dressing, you'll need minced garlic, salt and pepper, mustard, balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and basil. Mix together all the ingredients for the dressing, cook your tortellini, drain and cut your artichoke hearts, and toss them all together. Add parmesan cheese for taste.

Bowl of tricolor tortellini pasta salad with tomatoes and onions on dark wood table background
Variations of this recipe may call for more spices and tomatoes.

4. Cucumber Salad Recipe

For a fresh and crispy Cucumber Salad recipe gather sliced cucumbers, onions, salt, sugar, vinegar, water, and fresh pepper. Mix it all together and refrigerate until cooled. This is a cool combination of the flavor and texture of your Hamburger Helper dinner.

Chinese smashed cucumber salad with chili peppers and sesame seeds, top view.
Cucumber salads can sometimes include chili peppers or other tangy spices.

5. Greek Salad Recipe

For this balanced Greek Salad recipe, you'll need tomatoes, red onion, cucumber, green pepper, feta cheese, and kalamata olives. Make the dressing with olive oil, lemon juice, minced garlic, sea salt, dried oregano, and black pepper. Combine your leafy greens and vegetables and mix together with your dressing. Crumble in the feta and chill before enjoying this side dish that goes well with Hamburger Helper.

Greek Salad
Even alone, this side salad can be spruced up with protein and other tasty ingredients.

Cooked Vegetable Side Dishes

These cooked veggie dishes will add warmth, crispness, and flavor to your Hamburger Helper meal.

6. Roasted Baby Red Potatoes

Try these Roasted Baby Red Potatoes as a side to your Hamburger Helper. You'll need washed and quartered baby red potatoes, cut bell pepper, red onion, garlic cloves, olive oil, dried basil, and salt, and pepper to season. Preheat the oven to 450º Fahrenheit and put your vegetables to roast for about 15 minutes. Season and allow to cook for another 5-10 minutes before serving.

Roasted-Baby-Red-Potatoes
These crispy cooked potatoes are a great side dish that goes well with Hamburger Helper.

7. Roasted Green Beans

This recipe for Roasted Green Beans calls for fresh green beans, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Preheat your oven to 400º Fahrenheit, and place washed beans in a baking pan with olive oil for cooking. Season and coat evenly with salt before roasting for 20-15 minutes, turning at 15 minutes until thoroughly done.

Almondine. Green beans with almonds. Side dish
Adding almonds as a garnish can elevate this dish even further.

8. Glazed Carrots Recipe

Try this Glazed Carrots recipe! You'll need sliced carrots, butter, maple syrup, ginger, grated orange peel, and chopped parsley. Boil the carrots in an inch of water for 10-20 minutes. Melt butter and the remaining ingredients into a glaze. Allow it to cool for at least 1 minute before pouring over the boiled carrots. Garnish with the chopped parsley, and add salt, and pepper to taste.

Honey coasted and glazed roasted carrots. Tasty and delicious vegetable side dish.
These are easy to make and so tasty to enjoy alongside your Hamburger Helper.

9. Corn Fritters

These Corn Fritters call for 3 eggs, canned corn, salt, pepper, all-purpose flour, and vegetable oil. Separate the whites from the egg yolks, and beat them until they've thickened. Add in the canned corn, salt, pepper, and all-purpose flour and egg yolks. Fold in the beaten egg whites and mix. Take spoonfuls of the mixture and drop into the hot vegetable oil. Cook on both sides until they have fully browned and are done cooking. Enjoy your corn fritters with a heaping helping of Hamburger Helper.

Buttermilk Corn Fritters, fritter, corn, pancake, maize, cilantro, kitchen, vegetables
These crispy, sweet corn fritters make a great side for this particular meal.

10. Scalloped Potato Recipe

Potatoes are always a good choice. This Scalloped Potato recipe calls for butter, flour, milk, salt, cayenne pepper, cheddar cheese, and paprika. Melt butter and add flour in a saucepan, along with milk, salt, and cayenne pepper. Whisk until blended over low heat, lower the heat even further, and add in the cheese. Place half of the chopped, oiled potatoes in a casserole dish, and pour the cheese sauce until coasted. Layer another round of potatoes in the same casserole dish, and pour more cheese sauce. Add cheese to the top, along with paprika, and bake for 1 hour at 350º Fahrenheit.

Scalloped Potatoes
Some scalloped potatoes are a perfect, cheesy side dish for the robust flavors in Hamburger Helper.

11. Roasted Brussels Sprouts

This Roasted Brussels Sprouts recipe calls for fresh Brussels sprouts, olive oil, salt, and pepper. It's that easy! Preheat an oven to 400º Fahrenheit, and cut the Brussels sprouts from the stalk. Season with olive oil, and salt/pepper combo. Roast on a baking sheet for 35-40 minutes. They should be crisp on the outside and tender on the inside, and shaking the pan while they're cooking will help them to evenly brown.

Vegetarian cuisine. Homemade Brussels Sprouts roasted with olive oil on black slate background. Copyspace, top view, flatlay.
You can further customize your recipe with additional spices and maybe even some cheese.

12. Glazed Pearl Onions Recipe

This Glazed Pearl Onions recipe is sweet and savory. You'll need unsalted butter, frozen small onions, light brown sugar, dijon mustard, and minced parsley. Melt butter in a skillet pan, and add the onions til they're fully browned (10-12 minutes). Add brown sugar and mustard to coat the onions and cook for another 2 minutes. Add parsley as a garnish and serve.

Savory Glazed Pearl Onions in White Bowl
These pearl onions are a sweet side dish to go with your Hamburger Helper dinner.

13. Herb Seasoned Broccoli & Tomatoes Recipe

Try out this Herb Seasoned Broccoli and Tomatoes recipe. You'll need olive oil, dried basil, dried oregano, 1 garlic clove, salt, and plum (or cherry) tomatoes. Boil the broccoli in a pot until crispy and tender, add tomatoes to a different skillet over medium heat, and add in the other ingredients. Sautée these for 1-2 minutes before stirring in the broccoli and tossing the ingredients til they're nicely blended. Enjoy.

Stewed vegetables beans broccoli tomatoes stewed with spices in a frying pan. horizontal photo
This easy and nicely seasoned dish makes a great side for lunches or dinners.

Baked/Fried Side Dishes

You can't go wrong with these baked and fried items. From buttered garlic bread to sweet potato fries, these sides will make your meal that much more delicious.

14. Mac and Cheese With Bacon

Who doesn't love some baked macaroni and cheese? Try out this Mac and Cheese With Bacon recipe! You'll need applewood smoked bacon, which you'll cook on medium heat until crisp. Add all-purpose flour to the bacon-greased pan, and add in milk, and salt until it thickens over the heat. Remove from the stovetop, add in jack cheese, and stir until blended. Take your cooked macaroni noodles, as well as some diced tomatoes, and add the sauce to a baking dish. Combine the ingredients and bake at 450º Fahrenheit for 20 minutes. Add bacon, and cheese, then mix. Allow another 5-7 minutes for the cheese to fully melt.

Homemade Cheeseburger Macaroni Skillet
You can further customize this dish with added jalepeños, meats, or other kinds of cheeses.

15. Tater Tot Casserole

This Tater Tot Casserole is the stuff of cheesy dreams. For this you'll need ground beef, 1 can of cream of mushroom soup, 1 can of condensed cream of chicken soup, whole milk, garlic powder, salt, pepper, French green beans, and tater tots. Preheat your oven to 375º Fahrenheit, drain the fat from your ground beef, and add to a skillet. Add in the cans of soup, milk, garlic powder, other seasonings, and green beans. Pour this mixture into a casserole dish and layer tater tots on top. Bake for 30 minutes. Enjoy!

Easy Dinner Meal Plan Favorites
This side dish is the definition of cheesy goodness, add your own seasoning and types of cheese.

16. Garlic Bread

For this Garlic Bread recipe, you'll need unsalted butter, garlic cloves, Italian/French loaf bread, grated parmesan cheese, chopped parsley, and salt for seasoning. Preheat the oven to 450º Fahrenheit and melt butter, along with garlic in a skillet on medium heat. Slice your bread, spread the buttery garlic mixture, and brush the loaf with more garlic butter. Transfer to a baking sheet, sprinkle salt and parmesan. Bake til golden brown for between 10-15 minutes. This can not only be eaten all on its own but also used to soak up all the good flavors left in your Hamburger Helper meal.

17. Sweet Potato Fries

Another fan favorite, who doesn't love sweet potato fries? You'll need 2 sweet potatoes, olive oil, and seasonings of your choice (salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika?) Peel the potatoes and cut them into wedges, toss in oil, and season them. Bake a tray at 425º Fahrenheit for around 30 minutes.

18. Coleslaw

This particular Coleslaw recipe calls for mayonnaise, yellow mustard, olive oil, Louisana hot sauce, ketchup, and wine vinegar. For seasonings, you'll need salt and garlic salt. For the actual slaw, you'll need a lemon, 1 large cabbage, bell peppers, and 2 chopped onions. Combine the condiments, and beat in the seasonings. Add lemon juice, and wine vinegar into the mixture and further season with salt and pepper if needed. Add your shredded cabbage, peppers, and onions and thoroughly combine. Allow the mixture to soak for at least an hour before serving the slaw as a side.

Coleslaw made of freshly shredded white cabbage and grated carrot with homemade mayonnaise-based salad dressing in wooden bowl, photographed overhead (Selective Focus, Focus on the salad)
There are all kinds of ways to make coleslaw, this one calls for lots of condiments.

19. Chicken Garlic Cheese Biscuits

And lastly, but not least, check out these Chicken Garlic Cheese Biscuits. 2 cans of chicken or tuna, 1 can of condensed cream of chicken, or cream of mushroom soup. You'll need thawed and drained frozen vegetables, milk, Bisquick, shredded cheddar, butter, and garlic powder. Preheat your oven to 425º Fahrenheit and add the canned tuna/chicken, soup cans, and vegetables with 2/3 cup of milk into a casserole pan. Bake for 20 minutes. In a separate bowl combine Bisquick, cheese, and milk to form a dough. Add your casserole pan mixture to the dough and use it to form biscuits. Cook these uncovered for 10-12 minutes until the stuffed biscuits are golden brown.

Homemade Cheddar Cheese Biscuits with Parsley
Top your biscuits with garlic butter, and parsley. Enjoy with your Hamburger Helper dinner.
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