Creamy Beef and Shells is an easy ground beef recipe that your family will love! Serve it with Garlic Bread with Cheese for an easy Italian dinner with simple ingredients!
Be sure to try my heart Beef Vegetable Soup recipe next!
Creamy Beef and Shells
I promise you- the extra ingredients that I have listed in this recipe are all SO entirely worth the outcome. It might seem strange to have a dab of hot sauce or mustard powder in here, but they really compliment and enhance the other flavors in this recipe. (And don’t skimp out on the cream cheese! It’s heavenly.)
This sauce has the perfect balance of every flavor. It’s creamy, but still has a distinct tomato flavor with a perfect ratio of ground beef and pasta.
You will be super proud of yourself when you taste it. My husband’s exact reaction: “Mmmm…. (4 seconds later)… Oh my GOSH! This is REALLY good!” -all of those flavors roll in after a few seconds and that’s what makes this recipe so great.
Okay- let’s do it!
How to Make It
See recipe card below this post for ingredient quantities and full instructions.
Shred the cheese and measure out all ingredients prior to beginning. Begin heating the pasta water for boiling.
Cook and crumble the ground beef over medium-high heat. Add onions halfway through and cook until softened. Drain any grease. Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
Add 1 tsp hot sauce, 1 TBS Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp Italian seasoning, ½ tsp mustard powder, 1 pinch of red pepper flakes, and 3 TBS flour. Cook for one minute.
Add the beef broth and use a silicone spatula to ‘clean’ the bottom of the pot.
Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and softened cream cheese. Let the sauce simmer while you boil the shells for 7-8 minutes or as instructed on package. (Optional, add a few teaspoons of kosher salt to the boiling water.)
Decrease heat to low. Stir in the half and half. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the shredded cheese until well-combined.
Add the drained pasta shells and stir to combine. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with garlic bread with cheese and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Pro Tips
- Shred the cheese from a block. It will melt and taste much better than bagged shredded cheese, which contains cellulose to prevent it from clumping in the bag (which also makes it melt less creamy.) I use Cracker Barrel sharp yellow cheddar.
- The hot sauce enhances all of the other flavors in the dish. It won’t make it spicy. I use Texas Pete hot sauce.
- If you don’t have mustard powder or tomato paste, they can be omitted, but they do add subtle yet excellent flavor to the sauce. The tomato paste also helps to thicken the sauce.
- A variety of different pastas will work in this recipe, including rotini, farfalle (bowtie), and fusilli.
Storage
Store in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Tools For This Recipe
(Amazon affiliate links)– Check out all of my kitchen essentials here.
- Kitchen Scale– Perfect for weighing the pasta or ground beef if needed.
- Deep 13-inch skillet– You’ll have this one forever.
- Box Grater– Always shred cheese from a block for best flavor and meltability. (Yes, that’s actually a word! 😂)
Try These Next
- Homemade Hamburger Helper
- Beef Tips and Gravy
- Stuffed Bell Peppers
- Chicken Alfredo Pasta
- Caprese Pasta
- Beef Noodle Soup
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Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
![Creamy Beef and Shells with fresh parsley sprinkled on top.](jpg/beef-and-shells-recipe-f4-200x200.jpg)
Creamy Beef and Shells
Ingredients
- 1 lb. ground beef, 85% lean
- Salt/Pepper
- 1 small diced yellow onion, can sub 1 tsp onion powder
- 3 cloves minced garlic, can sub ½ tsp garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce
- 1 Tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon mustard powder
- 1 pinch red pepper flakes, optional
- 3 Tablespoons flour, optional-helps thicken the sauce
- 1 cup beef broth
- 16 oz. tomato sauce
- 1 Tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 Tablespoon cream cheese, softened
- ½ cups half and half
- 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
- ½ pound medium shell pasta
- Fresh parsley, to garnish
- Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving.
Instructions
- Shred the cheese and measure out all ingredients prior to beginning. Begin heating the pasta water for boiling.
- Season the ground beef with salt/pepper. Preheat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the beef. Cook and crumble it for 4 minutes. Add the onions and cook for 5 more minutes, or until the onions are softened and the beef is cooked through. Drain grease.
- Add minced garlic and cook for 1 minute.
- Add hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Italian seasoning, mustard powder, red pepper flakes, and flour. Cook for 1-2 minutes.
- Add the beef broth and use a silicone spatula to ‘clean’ the bottom of the skillet.
- Add the tomato sauce, tomato paste, and softened cream cheese. Let the sauce simmer while you boil the shells for 7-8 minutes or as instructed on package. (Optional, add a few teaspoons of salt to the boiling water.)
- Decrease heat to low. Stir in the half and half. Remove from heat and gradually stir in the shredded cheese until well-combined.
- Add the drained pasta and stir to combine. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve with garlic bread with cheese and freshly grated Parmesan cheese.
Notes
The hot sauce enhances all of the other flavors in the dish. It won’t make it spicy. I use Texas Pete hot sauce.
If you don’t have mustard powder or tomato paste, they can be omitted, but they do add subtle but excellent flavor to the sauce. The tomato paste also helps to thicken the sauce.
A variety of different pastas will work in this recipe, including rotini, farfalle (bowtie), and fusilli.
It was wonderful!!
That’s great to hear Jessica! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
So so delicious!
I’m so happy to hear that Miriam! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
Would I need to make any seasoning changes if I used ground turkey vs. ground beef?
Thanks!
Hi Cindy! I would season it with salt, pepper, and maybe add in about 3/4 teaspoon of Italian seasoning for a little more flavor.
New favorite! I absolutely loved making and eating this dish. It’s creamy taste is so good.
I’m so happy you liked it Elizabeth! It’s one of my favorite weekday meals to make my daughter! Thanks for the great review💗
So good! I made it using rotini pasta as I didn’t have shells. I used the entire pound box of pasta without doubling the recipe and it was great! Definitely would make this again.
Great to hear you enjoyed it with rotini pasta Suzan, thanks so much for the review💗
Could I use a meat substitute to make it vegetarian?
Hi Kim, they have a lot of “impossible meat” options that you could try in this 🙂
I made this tonight with impossible ground beef and veggie stock. It came out great!
I’m so happy you enjoyed it with the impossible ground beef and veggie stock Melissa, nice work! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💕
Made for dinner tonight! DELICIOUS!!! My kids said it reminded them of lasagne! This dish was super easy to make and will definitely be in our rotation!
I’m so happy it was a hit with the kiddos Chrissy! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!💖
This was a delicious comfort meal! I made a double batch to freeze so my teenagers could heat up for themselves between school & sports or a quick meal in the evening for all of us. Followed the instructions to a tee and I’m glad I did. Thank you!
I’m so happy this was a hit Jessica! Nice job making extra for the freezer! Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a review!
Thank you for your prompt response and help . Always look forward to your daily postings with new , yummy recipes . Take care
Made this last night 2/24/2023 and it was oh so delicious. Prior to finding this recipe I had been craving pasta, looked for recipes and found this one, lots of flavor. I didn’t think the beef broth would go well with the pasta but it did…all the ingredients worked well. I will make this again and again, it was so good. Thank you for the recipe.
I’m so happy that you loved the recipe Andi!! (And that you trusted the ingredients!) Thank you so much for taking the time to leave a review, I really appreciate it! 🙂 -Stephanie