Recipe Background
Grammy's Easy Ground Beef & Noodles: nostalgic, hearty, and comforting.
One of my first big leaps into adulthood was signing the lease on a quaint, creaky apartment that had undoubtedly seen better days. The euphoria of the move quickly dwindled when I realized my culinary repertoire consisted mainly of toast and canned soup. Determined to make this place feel like home, I turned to a simple yet hearty recipe: Grammy's Easy Ground Beef & Noodles. With ground beef almost always in the freezer, I figured it couldn't go too wrong. I didn’t have a lot of fancy gadgets, just a reliable skillet and a wooden spoon Grammy had passed down—part of her subtle nudge for me to embrace cooking.
As I unpacked the chaos of cardboard boxes, the scent of onions and green peppers softening in the skillet began to mingle with the faint, lingering aroma of old paint. Adding a can of diced tomatoes felt almost too easy, but the sudden burst of color lifted my spirits. I threw in the egg noodles, a staple from bargain shopping sprees, and let the mixture bubble away, curiosity brewing as much as nostalgia. A splash of Heinz Chili Sauce gave the dish a playful kick, exactly the kind of surprise Grammy would have wanted. The sound of bacon crumbling in my hands, a final flourish to the dish, marked a small victory.
Before I knew it, the neighborhood and my heart felt a little warmer. Between mouthfuls, I learned the secret to perfect ground beef dishes: always drain the grease for a cleaner, prouder result. This simple recipe became my welcome-home dinner after long days in my bustling new city life, reminding me of Grammy's kitchen where everything was familiar and full of promise.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 small green pepper chopped
- 1/3 cup onion chopped
- 3 1/4 cups medium egg noodles
- 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/4 cup chili sauce such as Heinz® Chili Sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon pepper
- 4 strips bacon cooked and crumbled, for topping
Directions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, add the ground beef, the green peppers, and the onions and cook, while crumbling the meat, until the beef is no longer pink, about 5-7 minutes.
- Drain the excess grease from the skillet.
- Add the egg noodles, the tomatoes and their juices, the water, the chili sauce, the salt, and the pepper to the beef mixture and stir to combine.
- Bring the beef mixture to a boil.
- Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover the skillet.
- Cover and let the beef mixture simmer, stirring frequently, until the noodles are tender, about 15-20 minutes.
- Serve topped with the crumbled bacon.
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