Healthy Budget Ground Beef Recipes

This easy Mexican-inspired lasagna recipe replaces the noodles with tortilla strips that become like tender ribbons in the cayenne- and cumin-spiked tomato sauce. Topped with Cheddar and cream cheese, the lasagna is just as soulful as its Italian cousin and can be made on a busy weeknight in about 30 minutes using a single skillet. Excerpted from The Dinner Plan by Kathy Brennan and Caroline Campion, published by ABRAMS © 2017.

How do you get classic beef stroganoff on the dinner table in under an hour? Use ground beef instead of cubed steak. Ground beef cooks in a fraction of the time but is just as delicious in a creamy sauce with mushrooms and served over whole-wheat noodles.

This classic chili recipe features beef, beans and shredded sweet potatoes for a nutritional boost. The sweet potato blends into the chili so well that even picky eaters will gobble it up.

Traditionally meat pie recipes are made with mostly ground pork. This recipe for French-Canadian meat pie, or tourtiere, is lightened up by using lean ground beef with a little ground pork for flavor and bulked up with plenty of shredded vegetables. You can make it even easier by using a store-bought crust.

Swap tortilla chips for pita chips in this healthy Mediterranean nacho recipe. For a party, create one large platter--just be sure to serve with plates!

Building the perfect taco is a very personal task--cheese under meat, cheese on top, no cheese at all? This is just our recommendation.

Slow-cooked onions add moisture and flavor to these lean beef burgers for two. A quick blend of mayonnaise, ketchup, relish and vinegar makes a perfect tangy, sweet and creamy “special sauce” for this burger. We love the dill relish here, but use sweet relish if you prefer it. Serve with sweet potato fries.

This healthy beef taquitos recipe calls for baking instead of deep-frying, making the taquitos substantially healthier than what you'd get at a restaurant. One order of these little deep-fried, rolled-up tacos at a restaurant can set you back almost 1,000 calories and 60 grams of fat! Don't worry if some of the taquitos crack open while baking--they're still crispy and delicious. Serve with your favorite salsa, guacamole and reduced-fat sour cream.

Individual meatloaves not only take the guesswork out of portion size, they cook quicker than a large loaf. Look for ground chipotle in the spice section of the market--it gives the glaze a hit of smoke and spice. Serve with roasted broccoli and brown rice tossed with cilantro.

A touch of cinnamon distinguishes these delicious tomato-sauced meatballs. Adding whole-grain bulgur allows you to use less meat, resulting in meatballs with less than half the total fat and saturated fat of the original. Plus a vibrant-tasting combination of fresh and canned tomatoes in the sauce helps reduce the sodium by two-thirds. Serve with pasta, polenta or even on a whole-grain roll with a bit of melted part-skim mozzarella for a meatball sub.

In this lightened-up meatloaf, healthy low-calorie shredded zucchini keeps very lean beef moist but doesn't take away from the meat itself. The flavor gets a boost from a touch of smoked paprika, Worcestershire and a sweet ketchup glaze. We've also included a variation with Italian flavors.

Plenty of dark leafy greens deliver the moisture needed to balance lean ground pork and beef in this spicy meatloaf recipe. Serve any leftovers with extra ketchup as meatloaf sandwiches.

In this Tex-Mex-seasoned stuffed delicata squash recipe we swap out half of the ground beef you'd normally use for bulgur to reduce saturated fat without skimping on the amount of stuffing. Serve with a mixed green salad with cilantro vinaigrette.

In Greece, moussaka is made with beef or lamb, layers of sliced eggplant and a creamy béchamel sauce all baked together in the oven. This variation takes plenty of liberties to make it easy, quick and healthful. Serve over whole-wheat pasta or with potatoes.

Why put the cheese on top of the burger when half of it just melts off? Instead, form the burger around the cheese so you can char the meat and safeguard the more delicate flavors. Use any mixture of hard or semihard cheeses--Emmentaler and Gouda or Asiago and Parmigiano-Reggiano also pair well.

Inspired by the classic Reuben sandwich, this nontraditional, healthy Reuben meatloaf recipe includes sauerkraut, Swiss cheese, dill pickles and rye breadcrumbs.

To slash 150 calories in this healthy chimichanga recipe, we bake rather than fry and use less beef by stretching the filling with mushrooms and beans. Top the baked chimichangas with fresh salsa (found near other refrigerated dips and sauces) instead of jarred salsa to save on sodium.

Our updated Sloppy Joe takes lean ground beef and adds chopped cremini mushrooms and diced fresh plum tomatoes, all in a zesty sauce. Served on a whole-wheat bun, it's a hearty dinner sandwich that will please adults and kids alike.

Do you like bacon cheeseburgers? Try this healthy meatloaf recipe packed with bacon and Cheddar cheese. It has all the flavor of a bacon cheeseburger with none of the guilt.

We braise these spicy beef meatballs and Chinese cabbage in a bit of beef broth. Make it a meal: Ladle over brown rice or noodles with steamed broccoli and carrots on the side.

Kids and adults alike will love these quick, zippy burgers. The beans make the burgers a little fragile, so be careful when taking them off the broiler pan. Make it a meal: serve a green salad and frozen mango slices for dessert.

Cincinnati has a unique spin on chili--they serve it over spaghetti. Typically the chili is just made with meat, no beans, but we couldn't resist adding beans to add fiber and nutrients. Serve with sliced cucumber and red onion with lemon juice and olive oil.

This healthy beef taquitos recipe for two calls for baking instead of deep-frying, making the taquitos substantially healthier than what you'd get at a restaurant. One order of these little deep-fried, rolled-up tacos at a restaurant can set you back almost 1,000 calories and 60 grams of fat! Don't worry if some of the taquitos crack open while baking--they're still crispy and delicious. Serve with your favorite salsa, guacamole and reduced-fat sour cream.

Whole grains take too long to cook, you say? Well, say hello to bulgur, which can be ready in less than 15 minutes. Try this Middle Eastern-inspired healthy dinner recipe topped with plain yogurt or store-bought tzatziki for an extra hit of creamy flavor.