Creamy Beef and Shells [Video]

Creamy Beef and Shells is a delicious and hearty pasta dish similar to the hamburger helper, but creamier and way more flavorful. It is ready in just 30 minutes, making it perfect for a quick dinner for the whole family! Rich, flavorful, and cheesy, even kids will love it!

Shell pasta, also known as “conchiglie” pasta, is well-known for grabbing and hanging onto juicy and chunky sauces like in this creamy beef and shells dish. This comfort food has everything you love, including tender ground beef, marinara sauce, cream, and lots of melted cheddar cheese. It takes about 30 minutes to make, and the recipe is fool-proof!

Creamy Beef and Shells Recipe

This deliciously simple dish is full of an array of tastes in every bite. Creamy beef and shells are made with sweet and tangy marinara sauce, two different kinds of rich cream, and thick, gooey cheddar cheese. The shells are perfectly cooked so you can bite into them, and they hold onto a good amount of sauce, ground beef, and flavor. With this recipe, you can have all of this finished and on the table in about 30 minutes!

You boil the pasta, brown the beef, saute the vegetables, add the rest of the ingredients, and simmer for a few minutes before melting the cheese on top. It is so easy; anyone can do it. No special tools or expensive ingredients are needed for this comfort food. It is great for a busy weeknight when you want to feed everyone and then relax with the family.

This can be altered to be a fancy dinner for a party or other occasion, or you can have a casual dinner with the family. For a fun dinner with the kids, I like to serve it with some of their favorite side dishes, such as crispy potatoes or onion rings. I made sure that the flavors and textures in this easy meal are to die for, no wonder its one of the most popular recipes on the blog. Make sure you try it too.

Why you will love this recipe

• Fast and easy: It takes less than 30 minutes to make and has just a few steps.
• It is a comfort dish: Full of carbs. It may not be a diet food, but it will make you feel warm and fuzzy.
• Mix it up: You can add, remove, or change ingredients as you wish.
• No expensive items: No expensive ingredients or tools are needed for this recipe.

What you’ll need to make creamy beef and shells

Special items:

• Saucepan – You need a large pot to cook the pasta.
• Colander – To drain the pasta.
• Skillet – For cooking everything.
• Wooden spoon – To stir it all.

Ingredients:

• Pasta shells – I prefer and recommend medium pasta noodles. They hold a lot of meat and sauce.
• Ground beef – I use 80/20 for a nice blend of lean meat and flavor.
• Beef stock – Organic low-sodium beef stock is best for full flavor without all the salt. 
• Marinara sauce – You can use store-bought or try my homemade marinara sauce.
• Heavy cream – For the richest and thickest creamy sauce.
• Sour cream – This is also important for creamy, thick sauce.
• Cheddar cheese – Always shred your own cheese from a block of fresh cheese. The pre-shredded stuff has a wax coating to prevent it from sticking which causes it not to melt right. It also affects the flavor.
• Onion – I typically use a sweet yellow Vidalia onion if they have organic at my farmers’ market. If not, a white one will do.
• Garlic – This is important. Mince your garlic cloves from scratch to get a deliciously rich and sweet flavor and aroma without a bitter aftertaste.
• Olive oil – I recommend extra virgin olive oil of the highest quality for the best results.
• Italian seasoning – Try my easy recipe for homemade Italian seasoning.
• Parsley – High-quality dried parsley, crumbled or chopped.
• Oregano – Also dried and high-quality, oregano is very pungent, so be sure to chop it.
• Smoked paprika – If you do not like the smoky flavor, use sweet or spicy paprika.
• Flour – I use all-purpose, but you can use what you usually use for cooking.
• Kosher salt – Use this for the cleanest salt taste without any additives.
• Pepper—If you have never tried it, grind your own pepper. It only takes a minute and is inexpensive and easy. After this tongue-tingling experience, you will never go back to regular pepper again.
• Basil – Freshly chopped basil is best, finely minced.

How do you make beef and shells recipe?

1. Cook the pasta: First, bring a large pot of water to boil and cook the pasta by following the instructions on the packaging. In addition, make sure to cook it al dente.
2. Brown the meat: In a skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and cook stirring and breaking it with a wooden spoon until nicely browned. After that, drain the excess fat, then, set aside.
3. Make the sauce: In the same large skillet, sauté the sweet onion, add the garlic and cook stirring. Next, sprinkle the flour, stir and cook for about a minute. Slowly pour in the stock and also stir. After that add the marinara sauce, the herbs, and seasonings. Finally, let the whole thing boil and thicken.
4. Combine: Add in the cooked pasta, browned meat, heavy cream, salt, and pepper. Then, add in the sour cream and cheese.
5. Serve: Once the cheese has melted, serve it while hot!

Expert tip

A word about ground beef

You probably already know that there are different ratios of fat in ground beef packages you buy, whether at the grocery store, meat market, or your favorite butcher shop. But sometimes, those labels can be confusing. The grocery stores like to confuse shoppers to get them to buy what they want to sell. So, it is best for you to know the facts before buying what you need. I am going to start with the least expensive beef.

Ground beef (70/30) is the most common and the least expensive because it has the most fat. It is 70% lean with 30% fat. It will give you the juiciest burgers, though, with a lot of flavor. However, you will need a lot of napkins, and they will shrink as they cook.  Ground chuck (80/20) was taken from the chuck portion of the cow and only has 20% fat. It is also suitable for burgers but does not make as much grease.

Ground round (85/25) comes from the round of the cow, so it is very lean with only 25% fat. With less fat, it also has less flavor, which makes this a good choice for seasoned mixtures like taco mix, chili, soup mixtures, and meatloaf. It is also a little more expensive than the others. Ground sirloin (90/10) is the king of ground beef with just 10% fat. They cut it from the area where they would cut a tenderloin or filet mignon, so you will pay top price. It dries out quickly so use it in chili, soup, lasagna, and meat sauce.

Recipe variations and add-ins:

• Other sauce: Instead of marinara sauce, try my easy, tangy pasta sauce with chunks of Italian sausage and real tomatoes. Or try this creamy homemade vodka sauce.
• Add vegetables: To make this a more filling dish, add some veggies. I like to add chopped zucchini, mushrooms, and yellow and orange bell peppers. 
• Different cheese: I have made this with several other cheeses with excellent results. I love it with pepper jack, and my kids like it when I mix Monterey jack with mozzarella.
• No cream: If you do not have sour cream, you can substitute it with cream cheese or Greek yogurt.
• Swap the meat: You can swap the ground beef for ground turkey, chicken, pork, or sausage. I like it with sausage. It adds so much flavor.
• Heat it up: Chop some jalapenos or poblano peppers and add them to the sauce as it cooks for an extra spicy dish. Try making it spicer by using red pepper flakes and 1/2 cup of buffalo sauce.
• Gluten-Free: Make it gluten-free use gluten-free flour and gluten-free pasta.
• Whole-wheat. Make this recipe using whole wheat pasta for an alternative high in fiber.
• Bacon: Cook some crispy bacon, chop it and stir it into the pasta, to take this recipe over the top!

Serving suggestions:

• Turn pasta night into game night with board games, a big bowl of this pasta, and a plate of my soft and delicious homemade breadsticks.
• Instead of breadsticks, dinner rolls or garlic toast would also work well for soaking up the extra marinara sauce.
• Top it with some homemade salsa, guacamole, and avocado slices for a more Mexican-style creamy beef and cheese dish. Don’t forget the tortilla chips, tequila, and margaritas!
• Any pasta goes terrific with a salad. Beef and shells would be great with my classic Caesar salad, which is made with fresh, crispy romaine lettuce, shaved parmesan, and homemade Caesar dressing.
• Soup also goes with pasta—any soup from creamy tomato soup to chicken noodle would be a nice starter.
• Also, a tangy side like these Bread and Butter Pickles would make a great choice.
• For dessert, serve something Italian, such as lemon tiramisu, cannoli poke cake, Italian butter cookies, or gelato.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I use a different shape of pasta?

Although the name and recipe call for shells, you can certainly use a different pasta shape. But there are a few that I suggest over others. There are more than 600 different types of pasta, from agnolotti to ziti. However, you have probably never heard of many of them. The basic ones I like for a recipe like this include shells (of course), cavatappi (a corkscrew with ridges), rigatoni (a ridged tube), elbow macaroni, and shellbows (a hybrid of elbow and shells).

Why is my pasta soggy?

If you boil your pasta too long, it will turn mushy. Because you will be cooking it again during the last four minutes of preparation, you only need to boil your shells to just under al dente. Shells are easy to overcook, so you have to pay attention. At about eight minutes, I start checking mine two minutes before al dente. After draining them, rinse them in cold water and keep them moist so they do not stick to each other. Do not add oil, or the sauce will not stick.

Why soak ground beef in milk?

Some people soak ground beef in milk because the acid in the milk will tenderize the beef without damaging the proteins on the surface. This way, your meat will be nice and tender without being mushy or having that pasty texture. The calcium acts with the meat’s enzymes to soften the enzymes in the protein, break down connective tissue, increase moisture content, and tone down any acidic flavors.

What is the difference between this and Hamburger Helper Cheesy Italian Shells?

Although the ingredients on the Hamburger Helper box say it includes real cheese and sauce, you know that everything in that box is dried. Nothing is fresh. The cheese is a salty powder with sodium phosphate, maltodextrin, silicon dioxide, malic acid, annatto extract, citric acid, and sugar. The rest of the ingredients are additives, preservatives, flour, salt, and spices. You mix it with your ground beef, milk, and water. And it tastes nothing like my recipe.

Do you need to discard beef grease?

The answer is both yes and no. You will be throwing away flavor along with the grease when you discard it. So, there are two answers to this question. Yes, if you used the kind that has too much fat. Since too much grease is not desirable so you need to discard it. Actually in this case, I like to leave about 1-2 tablespoons in the pan.

And no, if you used extra lean meat. Then there is not much grease that will develop, so you can keep that tiny amount and not discard it. Hence, I strongly recommend that you use extra lean meat for this one as it would be more flavorful. And since this dish has sauce, do not worry about it getting too dry.

How to store leftovers:

• Refrigerate: Let it cool completely and transfer it to an airtight container before putting it in the fridge. Consume it within 3 days. Keep in mind that once chilled, the pasta will absorb more sauce. Therefore, when reheating add a bit more heavy cream or beef stock.
• Freeze: Actually, you can freeze this for a few weeks, simply thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating. This way, when you reheat, you will not be breaking the pasta into pieces.
• Make-Ahead: Another great option that is perfect for those who do meal planning is to freeze the sauce and simply add cooked pasta on the day you want to serve it. Also, you can pre-cook the pasta and freeze it. Before freezing, remember to drizzle some oil to prevent sticking.

More pasta recipes:

Recipe Tips:

• You can choose from penne, elbow macaroni, or rotini as a substitute for the shells.
• To prevent the pasta from being soggy, make sure to cook it just al dente so that when you combine it with the sauce, further cooking will not make it too mushy.
• Equally important is to drain the beef grease, just leave in 1-2 tablespoons for extra flavor.
• You can vegetables like bell peppers, zucchini and carrots, but remember to sauce them with the onion until tender.