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I could run skillet recipes like this for a year and still not run out, Amish kitchens are full of wonderful recipes that you can make in a single skillet. Cast-iron and stainless steel pots are stock and trade in the average Amish kitchen.
🍳 Why Are Skillet Recipes So Popular Among the Amish?
It's a pretty easy answer, the same answer that would apply for any non-Amish person. Well, the first one anyway, there's something nice about just having to mess with one cooking utensil. No 2-quart casserole baking dish to scrub when this is over and the heat from having to bake in the oven won't overpower the house, this is just a single burner meal.
I could run skillet recipes like this for a year and still not run out, Amish kitchens are full of wonderful recipes that you can make in a single skillet. Cast-iron and stainless steel pots are stock and trade in the average Amish kitchen.
🍁 Recipe Comes To Us From Geauga County, Ohio
This Cheeseburger Casserole recipe comes to us from an Amish woman in Geauga County, Ohio. The area is known for its maple syrup and the local newspaper is even called The Maple Leaf. Geauga County, Ohio has, by the way, the nation's fourth-largest Amish community. Well, fourth largest Amish community in the world. Because they’re only Amish found in the United States and Canada. Geauga doesn’t sometimes get the attention on it that maybe it should, because Holmes County, Ohio is the world's largest Amish settlement about 90 minutes away. So Geauga kind of flies under the radar, but it’s a great place to visit if you want to experience Amish culture. There are plenty of places to visit, Amish stores to explore. It’s been a while since I’ve been there and I need to make it back
📋 Step-by-Step Cheeseburger Casserole
Okay, this is about as easy - and delicious - as it gets. Start out with a skillet full of hamburger. And, yes, you can use ground turkey, ground sausage, or venison instead. Or use a blend of meats. That is what many Amish cooks do. If you are using ground beef go for the most lean ground beef you can find.
Ground beef and onions (I like a yellow onion) are the "base" of these casserole, start with nice, fresh burger and you can season it to your taste. Fry the beef mixture in a large skillet over medium-high heat. True to Amish form, this recipe does not have a ton of seasonings, but you can add your own. Garlic powder would be a nice addition. So would a sprinkle of black pepper or onion powder.
My parents made this and really liked it. They always go light on the seasonings. It's an easy, quick "skillet supper". My Dad usually exercises great restraint when it comes to his food portions but he declared this one a "winner," going back for three helpings.
Dad thought the splash of mustard really made the meal shine giving it a perfect cheeseburger flavor. In that sense, this really does mimic a cheeseburger in a skillet. Oooh, now if you want to make it a bacon cheeseburger then feel free to fry some bacon crumbles. I think a bacon cheeseburger casserole would be amazing.
The ketchup makes this just like a burger in a skillet. Without the bun! Add plenty of cheese, the cheese sort of disappears after you mix it, it just melts into the meal. If you really like cheese, you can increase the amount.
🙋 FAQ
Yes! Fifty years ago there weren't many fast-food restaurants in rural areas, but as the quick eateries and their drive-thru lanes and moved into more and more small, rural towns, Amish buggies can be seen ordering their burgers and being asked if they'd like fries with that. There are even some fast-food restaurants with hitching posts in their parking lots.
These types of quick, but hearty, skillet meals are popular in Amish kitchens on busy days, so if you want something quick, easy, and delicious, try Cheeseburger Casserole!
You can, by the way, doctor this recipe up to your tastes. Use a blend of sausage and hamburger, for instance. Experiment with jalapenos if you like a bit more kick, or even adding some hot sauce. Frank's Hot Sauce is my weapon of choice when I want some fire. Or just keep the recipe the way it is for Wendy's in a skillet! A dollop of sour cream on your portion would cool any fire you add to it.
When you top it with cheese, the recipe calls for cheddar cheese, but you can use a blend or just whatever kind you like.
This is a great meal to serve with a side of veggies, I recommend broccoli.
My parents had plenty of leftovers. But they show more restraint than I do with their helpings and portion sizes. Store leftovers in an airtight container.
🍔 More Amish Cheeseburger Recipes
Cheeseburger Salad- Wow!
Juicy Baked Burgers - Add a slice of cheese!
Impossible Cheeseburger Pie- So good!
Simple Cheeseburger Casserole - Classic
🖨️ Full Recipe
Homestyle Skillet Cheeseburger Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 pound hamburger
- 1 /2 cup onion chopped
- 2 /3 cup ketchup or pizza sauce
- 2 tablespoons mustard
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- 1 cup uncooked rice
- 1 cup shredded cheese
Instructions
- Cook rice until tender.
- In a skillet brown beef and onion.
- Add ketchup, mustard, salt and pepper.
- Mix well. Stir in rice and simmer
- Top with cheese and let stand 5 minutes.
Judy
What are salt coupons?
Kevin
Coding error, I removed it, thanks!
Gale
I have tried to pin this recipe but there is no picture, therefore it won't pin. Please fix. Thanks
Cheryl
I found this recipe yesterday and made it today. It was very easy to make and smelled like a cheese burger while cooking. It was absolutely delicious, my husband and i enjoyed it and have leftovers. I will make this again!
Kevin Williams
Good to hear, Cheryl, thank you so much for telling me!
Bree
We added cut up pickles at the end and it tasted just like a McDonalds cheeseburger. Even my pickiest kid ate it with gusto. Thanks!
Kevin Williams
Glad to hear that, the pickles as an addition are a super idea!
Ali Redford
This worked out wonderfully! I made it according to instructions, but did also put out chopped pickles (hamburger dills) per a comment I read. We so thoroughly enjoyed this!
Kevin Williams
Thanks, Ali, for telling us, glad you enjoyed it!
Cathie
Your grandmother’s hamburger story made me remember the hamburgers my grandmother used to make. My mom’s never tasted the same. We were eating at a Polish buffet and one taste of their Polish hamburgers (klupskies or kotlety) took me right back to grandma’s kitchen! I later discovered the secret was an egg and dried bread!
LORIE
I read what you wrote about that comment that someone wrote to you. Some people are just mean spirited and, I presume, very unhappy with their lives. Be assured that more people don't feel that way about your stories. I find them very endearing so keep telling them and forget about that person. Your recipes are very nice homestyle cooking and I am glad to know where they came from.
Kathy L
This looks really good. I’m going to make it tomorrow for two of my grandchildren. I’m sure we will all love it!
Rhonda Hitchcock
I love everything about your column! And your life and Amish life!
Keep up the great work.
Cecilia Pegarella
Great articles and recipes, please ignore others' rude comments. Keep being positive. Take care.
Judy
I enjoy all your readings not just the recipe. Keep it up and thanks for sharing.
Patricia Underwood
The very rude “reader” may leave and not come back. So this is not for him. Ok no one likes everything. I do think his rudeness could be left outside this forum.
Keep going as most people enjoy your articles or stop reading them but no need for the rudeness you received.
Keep doing what you do.
Paula Sayre
I am eager to try this recipe, as we have plenty of our own farm-raised beef in our freezer! I look forward to your Amish recipes and comments every day. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and little glimpses of your life with us! Gloria's column is always a blessing and an encouragement in the faith, too....I have learned so much from it, and from you, about Amish culture.