There is more than one meaning of the word hamburger. There is the hamburger sandwich, popular at MacDonalds, et al. Then there is hamburger, another word for ground beef. Hamburger Helper means a dish made with ground beef, browned in a skillet.
Good question. In the case of the box, it’s for turning ground beef into something different from a real “hamburger sandwich” (a term rarely used). Context is about all you can use to distinguish the pre-cooked version from the cooked one on a bun. Burger as its own term is mostly for the sandwich, but could include the cheeseburger. Some places like to jazz it up by calling it a beefburger, just to be snooty or something. It’s cooked ground beef.
ETA: ninja’ed
And is good in its own right. The main difference between the two is HH uses egg noodles and American Choy Suey uses elbows.
I never had it as a kid. I tried it as an adult when a roommate had made a batch, but it was far too salty for my taste.
YMMV, of course.
My experience was also Helper-free growing up. Wow, it was salty. I need the uber-low-sodium version.
Like Sub vs. Hero vs. Hoagie vs. Grinder or Soda vs. Pop vs. Coke, I think it’s a regional thing - some Americans might generally refer to ground beef as “hamburger”, while others (like me) don’t.
That is correct. “Hamburger,” in some/many parts of the US, can refer just to ground beef. I personally do not use the term that way, but I understand it in context. My mother-in-law from Wisconsin, for instance, uses “hamburger” to mean raw ground beef as well as the cooked patty.
The Stroganof made with ground elk is one of my favorites! The wife’s bro is big into killing things, which is good for us who like to eat dead things. Ground elk and ground bambi are often helped and delicious.
Here’s tips for making it better:
-If you find it too salty, use less of the seasoning packet. No one is forcing you to use it all.
-When the box calls for milk, use sour cream instead
-Easily stretch your budget by throwing in a bit more pasta as well
-Parmasean cheese has so far made most flavors of helper better in my experience
-And of course, find a good hot sauce you like and spice that shit up!
What was your favorite?
As for contextual clues, the raw stuff is treated as an uncountable noun, and the cooked is not. So, if you hear, “when you’re out at the store, can you get me some hamburger?” that means ground beef. If it’s “Can you get me a hamburger?” that means the cooked patty between two slices of bread. If you hear “can you get me some hamburgers” that’s multiple meat sandwiches.
No.
- The oven mitt character with the face creeps me out.
- It doesn’t taste good.
That… Thing… certainly IS creepy.
I always liked Tuna Helper more than Hamburger Helper, regardless of the flavor. Over the years, I have also seen Chicken Helper, Pork Helper (this one didn’t last very long), Asian Hamburger Helper, and now of course there are gluten-free varieties of the available flavors.
See, I thought about including that option, but then my logic is: If a topic asks “Do you like x” and you’ve never ever had x, why open the topic at all?
Not being sarcastic or meaning to sound mean/harsh. I’m genuinely puzzled. Obviously if someone has never had x, there is no way to say whether or not they like or dislike x, so I just don’t understand the point (unless you just like reading the replies, haha).
I’m looking to see if more people like or dislike the stuff. A person not ever having tried it’s answer doesn’t help me with that, so I didn’t include it.
No offense taken - if you’re interested in asking “If you’ve ever had HH, do you like it?” that’s fine - I’d just have thought that if you’re that interested in the subject, you might also like to know things along the line of what % of people have actually tried it as well.
In New England, many people refer to ground beef as “hamburg”.
Its simple, fast, flavorful pasta, what’s not to like?
Beef Fried Rice. I tried using the Chicken Fried Rice with beef instead and it wasn’t the same.
ETA: Now a search tells me they brought it back. Or maybe just the local stores couldn’t get it any more. I don’t know, but I know it was gone for awhile.
Some flavors are pretty good. We don’t have it too often anymore, but when our son was a teenager, he (a) liked it, and (b) could make it, so we had it now and again.
I think I may have bought it once or twice back in my college days, but quickly realized I could make my own. Cook up some taco meat, cook up a box of mac and cheese, dump the taco meat in the mac and cheese.