Nostalgia is the name of the game with this creamy, ultra savory vegan hamburger helper. I opt for lentils here instead of plant-based meat substitutes. It makes this hearty plant-based dinner a bit more pantry-friendly without skipping any of the comfort. It all goes down in one pot with about 30 minutes total cook time.
I truly just wanted to call this recipe Lentil Helper, but figured I’d throw “hamburger” in there to bump up the familiarity. It helps to connect the overall idea with that well-loved boxed dinner kit. Of course there’s no hamburger involved here because this is a vegan blog forever!
While this lentil hamburger helper is a meal on its own, a green vegetable on the side is nice! I would recommend this lemony sautéed broccolini & green beans dish.
I will say that this take is extremely plant-based. It still retains that spiced, tomato-y, kinda cheesy quality, and it is easy to put together with lots of pantry ingredients. Will it taste exactly like the boxed stuff? Definitely not! This one-pot pasta meal exists in the loving spirit of that dish ;)
A lot of homemade versions of vegan hamburger helper call for the addition of vegan shredded cheese at the end of cooking. I still find the options for vegan cheese lacking in terms of taste and texture. They also vary so much between brands. Instead, I have you make a deeply savory cashew cream to stir in at the end. It incorporates nutritional yeast, miso, and vegan Worcestershire. This strategy absolutely gets you there in terms of cheesy flavor and luscious texture.
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Vegan Hamburger Helper with Lentils
Ingredients
- ⅓ cup raw cashews, soaked for at least 2 hours and drained
- ⅔ cup water
- 1 teaspoon light miso
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 2 teaspoons vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, small dice
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 2 cups cooked lentils (see note)
- 3 cups vegetable stock, plus extra
- ½ lb (227 grams) elbow-shaped macaroni pasta (I use whole wheat)
- chopped fresh parsley for garnish, optional
- salt and pepper, to taste
Equipment
Notes
- If you don’t want to bother making the cashew cream, you could substitute 1 cup of any unsweetened non-dairy creamer/rich milk that you enjoy. You will still blend it with the miso, nutritional yeast and Worcestershire as outlined in the first step.
- You’ll need a scant ¾ cup dried lentils to make 2 cups cooked. You can use the following varieties here: black beluga, green, French de puy, or brown. I do not recommend using red split lentils.
- I typically recommend seasoning with salt and pepper as you go, but not with this recipe. Boxed stock and bouillon pastes can be quite salty, and we also have miso and Worcestershire in the mix. Taste your finished product and add salt and pepper at the end to your liking!
Instructions
Make the savory cashew cream
- In an upright blender, combine the drained cashews, water, miso, nutritional yeast, and Worcestershire. Blend on high until completely smooth, about 1 minute. Set aside.
Make the vegan Hamburger Helper
- Set a large, heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat. Once hot, pour in the olive oil and swirl it around. Add the onions and sauté until very soft, about 8 minutes. Lower the heat if they’re browning too quickly.
- Add the garlic, onion powder, garlic powder, paprika, and chili powder. Stir until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the tomato paste and stir, cooking out the raw tin-y flavor for a full minute.
- Add the lentils and stir. Then, add the vegetable stock and stir once more. Cover the pot and bring to a boil. Once boiling, add the pasta and stir. Lower the heat to a simmer and continue to cook, lid slightly askew on top, until pasta is tender. The cook time will vary among brands, but typically hovers around 10-12 minutes. Keep popping in to stir it here and there. If the mixture is drying up too fast and the pasta is not adequately cooked, add more vegetable stock.
- Once the pasta is tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed, pour in the savory cashew cream and stir. The mixture should be quite thick and saucy. Taste the pasta and lentils at this point. For some, it will be salty enough at this stage (due to the miso, Worcestershire and stock). If not, season with salt and pepper until it’s to your liking.
- Finish with chopped fresh parsley (if using) and serve immediately. Enjoy!
Wow! As a plant based vegan I thought I’d never get to enjoy hamburger helper again. I grew up in the Midwest in the 90s and it was always a comfort food for me. Thank you for another delicious and EASY recipe!
This was so good! I used the full 3 cups of broth and it turned out very saucy but thickened as it cooled (I used white pasta). I also added a cup of frozen peas at the end, which I used to do with the OG Hamburger Helper.
It was a big hit in my house and is on the make again list!
so cozy, so wholesome
Wow!!! Hamburger helper reimagined and upleveled with lentils. So easy to prep & cashew nutritional yeast sauce gives a depth of flavorful richness you’d never find in a hamburger helper spice packet. Thanks once again Laura for another keeper in our winter meal rotation❣️
So glad you liked it Claudia! :)
-L
i made this tonight! it was so quick & easy even though i messed up on the amount of liquid i added. probably going to be in the rotation now :)
I’ve never had hamburger helper but it has always sounded to good to me. This was DELICIOUS, it was so savory but nourishing at the same time. I used white pasta and just kept an eye on it, splashing a little more broth in as needed. I cook it almost underdone because I always find one-pot pastas can easily overcook but once it sits for a minute off the heat it’s perfect! Thank you for this recipe!
Having made several recipes from your website I was certainly prepared to try this one. Well, turned out to be a family favourite, great mixture of ingredients that come together for what tastes like a traditional meat dish. I try not to cook so that I imitate meat flavours but this one was a winner all around. Thanks!
This is delicious. I made a double batch for us and visiting family members to take home. Everyone loved it. The cashew sauce thickens the “helper”. Another winning recipe from Laura!
Well, well well! Another knockout from Laura! thank you so much for this recipe. It was delicious and comforting. somehow this was seemingly decadent and guilt free at the same time and it tased even that much better the next day! I only had chipotle chili in the pantry, but I’m excited to try this again with something like ancho or Padilla. Thanks again, Loved it!
Ancho is ideal here, but I kind of love the idea of chipotle smokiness in this! Thanks for this, Nayanna :)
-L
So delicious! Added a squeeze of lemon at the end (since you’re the one that taught me about using acid!) Otherwise, followed it exactly as written. Thanks for another great recipe!
Thank you for another great recipe! (I also loved the recent bran muffins and have made four batches…) I find I can speed up the cashew-cream process by soaking the nuts for a much shorter time in heated water. And I cook lentils like pasta (boiling them in a pot of water, then draining) so that I don’t have to worry about getting precisely the right quantity or scraping as much residue from the bottom of the pot.
I’m tempted to make it extra-substantial next time by using both lentils and some kind of fake ground beef…
Whenever it seems feasible for a dish, I fold in a bunch of baby spinach or other greens since I usually have some I need to use up. I didn’t try it with this one, but I probably will next time!
This was delicious. I initially used 2c broth because I was worried the dish would be soupy, but trust Laura! She is a professional! I ended up adding at least another cup of broth. Next time I will follow her directions :)
Husband and I both loved this. My mom never made Hamburger Helper (or Shake and Bake) for my sisters and I growing up despite our pleas, so I was pumped to make this meal. I’m sure it’s better than the original!
I love all of your recipes and your cookbook. I loved Hamburger Helper as a 90s kid so I was excited to make this. I found it absolutely delicious and the flavors were spot on. My husband doesn’t like nutritional yeast so I didn’t quite use the full amount, but it was still excellent and he didn’t know there was nooch in it. My five-year-old liked it as well. I found it really lovely served alongside some peas. I saw a comment about it being liquidy at the end maybe because of using regular pasta instead of whole wheat. I did use regular pasta, rotini to be precise, and I started with two cups broth just to make sure I didn’t over liquify. I definitely needed to add several splashes more so I might have like 2.5 cups total. It was perfect, and even if it seems a tiny bit soupy, it will thicken upon standing.
Once again, exceptional flavors, even with my substitutions due to lack of ingredients.
Instead of cashew cream and tomato paste, I made a sauce with a block of medium tofu, a few oil packed sundried tomatoes, and a can of diced tomatoes, in the vitamix.
It was probably a bit saucier than it should be, but yummy nonetheless.
Thanks for your amazing recipes!
This is such a clever substitution! Thanks for sharing, Joanell!
-L
Whoa, this looks incredible and totally takes me back :) It’s funny how I can suddenly taste something I hadn’t even thought about in 30 years. I can’t wait to try it!
This looked so good that we had to make it ASAP so we did. :)
Followed the recipe to a “t”.
Flavors are outstanding. Comforting and complex.
However, it ended up being a lot more like soup than helper and nothing close to the firmness in the photos.
It was still awesome, just had to use a spoon.
Perhaps next time we will either use uncooked lentils or reduce the broth to 3 cups.
Thoughts?
Thanks for sharing!
I wonder if this is because I use whole grain pasta, which generally requires more cooking time? I think pot size/depth could be a factor here also. I’m going to make a note and adjustment regardless. Thank you for this!
-L
Thanks!
I neglected to note that we used whole wheat pasta but shells rather than elbows.
That wouldn’t be a significant enough change I don’t think, but I do appreciate you letting me know! I’ve updated the recipe in light of this, thank you!
-L
This looks like perfect comfort food especially for this time of year!
I have jarred cashew cream (from artisan mill) and I’m wondering how much I should use. If I need around 1 cup total how much cashew cream and how much water to dilute it do you think?
Thanks!
Hi Lauren,
Do you mind leaving a link to this product so that I can get an idea of the consistency? I’ll be better able to offer a recommendation from there!
-L
Sorry I didn’t realize the name was actually Artisana Organics.
https://artisanamarket.com/collections/pure-raw-nut-butters/products/organic-cashew-butter
It’s no problem. I’m actually quite familiar with this product! I would start with 2 tablespoons of the cashew butter with 3/4 cup water (plus the nutritional yeast, miso and Worcestershire). You want the consistency to be like cream. If it doesn’t seem thick enough after blending, add another tablespoon of the cashew butter. I truly think 2 tablespoons will cut it though because their cashew butter is super rich.
-L
Thank you! I’m looking forward to trying this :)
Stay warm!