There is no shortage of great things you can do with ground beef—it’s why we are always looking for recipes with ground beef! It’s awesome to have on hand for quick meals like this one. Eating this delicious ground beef pasta for lunch felt like getting transported to a homey Italian restaurant in the middle of the workday.
This easy pasta dish only takes about twenty minutes, is freezer-friendly, and is customizable to use up what you have on hand. It doesn’t get much better than that!
This recipe is also featured in my cookbook, The Workweek Lunch Cookbook: Easy, Delicious Meals to Meal Prep, Pack, and Take On The Go. It includes 60 approachable recipes designed to be meal-prepped and stored.
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How to customize this ground beef pasta dish
- Substitute for another meat:Â Swap out the ground beef for ground turkey, chicken, bison, or pork. Or veal. Or some combination of all of those. It’s totally up to you. Just be aware that ground meats such as chicken or turkey will typically have less fat than beef, so the finished dish may taste a little different.
- Plant-based eater? You have many plant-based protein options! Keep it classic with ground “meat” crumbles (usually found next to the tofu), use finely chopped mushrooms or throw in chickpeas (rinsed and drained). Note that chickpeas will provide a totally different texture, but it will still be very tasty. We might even consider white beans, which are perhaps one of the most adaptable beans there are.
- Swap out Swiss chard! Greens are very easy to stick in this dish because they wilt right into the sauce without changing the texture of the meal. Kale or spinach would also work well, either regular-sized or baby leaf. If you want to make it more interesting you can use finely chopped or riced cauliflower, broccoli florets, bell pepper or zucchini (maybe try shredded zuke). Know that adding some of these may change the texture! It may also add some liquid to the dish; looking at you, zucchini!
Related: How Long Do Meals Last: A Quick Cheat Sheet
Need more dietary changes based on your needs?
The type of milk is up to you. I used 1% regular milk for this, but you can use whatever you want based on your preferences. If you want this to be even creamier, but don’t want to use heavy cream (I avoid buying it because I never use it up before it expires). If you use non-dairy milk such as almond milk, I suggest adding a teaspoon or two of onion powder or garlic powder to offset any sweet taste from the milk.
You can use olive oil instead of butter if needed, or use plant-based butter or even coconut oil. It’s up to you.
Need to be gluten-free? Go ahead and use gluten-free pasta instead. We really like chickpea-based pasta with this dish because it seems to work well with the Italian-leaning flavors we’ve got going on here.
The only non-negotiable? That can of crushed tomatoes makes this whole dish possible! You can, however, opt for fire roasted or seasoned ones vs. unseasoned if you like. But tomatoes are key here.
Related: Discover New Meal Prep Ideas: Our Basic Formula For Delicious Recipes
What you’ll need to make this recipe
- A medium pot for cooking the pasta
- A large skillet or Dutch oven for the meat and veggie mixture
- Chef knife and cutting board
- Measuring glass or bowl
- Meal Prep Containers
How to store and reheat this ground beef pasta dish
This meal lasts in the fridge for up to 4 days and is freezer friendly for up to 3 months. It reheats well in the microwave or on the stove; you might just need a little bit of water to rehydrate it.
Happy prepping!
Looking for more delicious recipes to try? Here are a few of our favorites!
- Green Tuna Pasta Salad Recipe
- 30-Minute Steak Fajitas
- Stuffed Shells With Spinach
- 30-Minute Beef Stir Fry With Soba Noodles
- The Best Slow-Cooked Beef Chili Recipe
20-Minute Ground Beef Pasta With Swiss Chard
Ingredients
- 2 cups pasta shells use gluten free if needed
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 16 oz ground beef
- Salt and pepper to taste
- 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
- 2 tsp italian seasoning
- 3/4 cup milk any kind
- 3 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 bunch Swiss chard stems removed, chopped into ribbons
- 1/2 cup Parmesan cheese optional
Instructions
- Cook the pasta according to the package.
- Heat 1 TBSP oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and salt and pepper, and break up the beef with a wooden spoon. Brown the beef by stirring it frequently for about 7 minutes, until it's no longer pink.
- Add the entire can of crushed tomatoes and Italian seasoning, along with a teaspoon or two of any other ground herbs such as sage, thyme, oregano, basil etc. If you're using more veggies, such as zucchini or broccoli, add them now.
- Mix the milk and melted butter in a bowl or measuring glass. This creates a nice heavy cream substitute. On medium heat, pour in the milk to the tomato beef mixture. Stir to combine. Taste the mixture and adjust seasonings as needed. Let the mixture cook for about 10 minutes.
- Add in the cooked pasta and chopped Swiss chard (or other greens). Stir until the greens melt and the pasta is covered in sauce. Stir in the parmesan cheese last.
- Assemble: Divide the mixture among three meal prep containers. Add more Parmesan cheese on top if desired!
Carol Corley says
this is a wonderful quick meal love it. it will be one of my new favorite.
Hilary Wright says
I kind of winged it with this using kale and adding onions and garlic, but this was a great recipe! Super helpful. I always look for something similar to what I have in my fridge to start with and adjust. It turned out great. I sauteed onions and garlic with kale, then put that aside and in the same pan cooked the beef until it was browned, then added a can of crushed tomatoes, dried herbs, and then added back in the kale mixture and then cooked brown rigtatoni. Yum!
Mike says
good basic, backbone recipe. I added red pepper flakes, more Italian season, onion powder, a parmesan rind while simmering, and used spinach instead. the only thing I would change in the directions is to slightly undercooked the pasta, and don’t salt until after you’ve added your cheese.
Carrie Havranek says
I keep rinds of cheese in my freezer for that very purpose. Always a good add of umami! Glad you liked it.