Bankruptcy Beef Soup–lean ground beef is browned with onions and herbs, then pressure cooked or slow cooked with beef broth, tomato sauce, potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms for a hearty, satisfying soup.
Bankruptcy Beef Soup
This completely hit the spot on a fast Sunday. It was hearty but not heavy and perfectly seasoned. Greg and I were honestly sad there were no leftovers. Next time I’m doubling it for sure! The original recipe comes from Food.com. The author states, “My husband and I both put each other through college. We found the name ‘Bankruptcy Stew’ very fitting! We also found that chatting while chopping up the vegetables was a good time to catch up with each other. This makes a thick and hearty stew-who says there isn’t a silver lining in every cloud!” Greg mentioned to me that it should be called bankruptcy soup because the price of ground beef right now will cause you to go bankrupt lol. He reminded me of when ground beef was $1.99 a pound and said, “they have gaslighted us into thinking that $5.99 is a good price for ground beef now.” But honestly, even with expensive ground beef, this soup is so good it’s still worth every penny.
Ingredients/Substitution Ideas
- Lean Ground Beef–or ground turkey
- Diced Onion
- Kosher Salt
- Black Pepper
- Garlic Powder
- Rubbed Sage
- Dried Rosemary
- Ground Thyme
- Beef Broth–or water and Better than Bouillon beef base
- Tomato Paste
- Potato–I used Russet potatoes. You can also use yukon gold and red potatoes.
- Carrots
- Mushrooms
- Tomato Sauce
Steps
Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. When display says HOT add in the ground beef and break it up. Add in the onion. Brown for 5 minutes, drain off excess grease. Stir in the salt, pepper, garlic powder, sage, rosemary and thyme.
Pour in the broth and scrape the bottom of the pot so that nothing is sticking. Turn off Instant Pot.
Add in the tomato paste, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and tomato sauce.
Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set manual/pressure cook button to 3 minutes on low pressure (or use the soup button for 3 minutes). When time is up let pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
Stir. Ladle into bowls and serve.
Notes/Tips
- Serve with crusty bread or dinner rolls for dipping. Cornbread is also a good side.
- Add frozen peas, corn, or green beans at the end for extra veggies.
- Stir in a handful of baby spinach before serving for color and nutrients.
- Skyler likes to stir in a splash of heavy cream or milk into his bowl. This helps make the soup creamy and also to cool it down so he can take it down quicker 😉
- Low pressure keeps the veggies from turning to mush, so resist the urge to use high.
- This recipe is gluten free and dairy free.
- I used my 4 quart Instant Pot*. You can also make this in a 3, 6 or 8 quart pot.
- Can I double this recipe? Yes, just don’t fill the Instant Pot more than 2/3 full
- Store leftovers in an airtight container* in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- Other recipes you can make with sage are Instant Pot Creamy Sausage Parmesan Pasta and Instant Pot Dolly Parton’s Stone Soup.
Did you know you can filter the recipes on my website to search by meat type, IP or Crockpot, low carb, gluten free, etc.? Use the filter to find exactly what you are looking for.
Bankruptcy Beef Soup
- Prep Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
Lean ground beef is browned with onions and herbs, then pressure cooked or slow cooked with beef broth, tomato sauce, potatoes, carrots, and mushrooms for a hearty, satisfying soup.
Ingredients
- 16 oz lean ground beef
- 1 small onion, diced
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp rubbed sage
- 1/2 tsp dried rosemary
- 1/2 tsp ground thyme
- 3 cups beef broth
- 2 Tbsp tomato paste
- 1 large potato (about 14–15 oz), peeled and cut into cubes
- 2 carrots, peeled and sliced
- 2 oz sliced mushrooms
- 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
Instructions
Instant Pot Instructions:
- Turn Instant Pot to sauté setting. When display says HOT add in the ground beef and break it up. Add in the onion. Brown for 5 minutes, drain off excess grease. Stir in the salt, pepper, garlic powder, sage, rosemary and thyme.
- Pour in the broth and scrape the bottom of the pot so that nothing is sticking. Turn off Instant Pot.
- Add in the tomato paste, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and tomato sauce.
- Cover Instant Pot and secure the lid. Make sure valve is set to sealing. Set manual/pressure cook button to 3 minutes on low pressure (or use the soup button for 3 minutes). When time is up let pot sit for 5-10 minutes and then move valve to venting. Remove the lid.
- Stir. Ladle into bowls and serve.
Slow Cooker Instructions:
- Heat a pan over medium high heat. Add in the ground beef and break it up. Add in the onion. Brown for 5 minutes, drain off excess grease. Stir in the salt, pepper, garlic powder, sage, rosemary and thyme. Transfer to the slow cooker.
- Sir in the broth, tomato paste, potatoes, carrots, mushrooms and tomato sauce.
- Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
- Stir. Ladle into bowls and serve.
- Category: Soup
- Method: Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
More beef and potato soups…
Instant Pot Campfire Soup
A hearty meal in a bowl. It’s a flavorful beef and vegetable soup that you can make in the Instant Pot or the Crockpot.
Witches Brew Stew
A spooky soup for your little ghosts and goblins. An easy ground beef and smoked sausage vegetable soup made in your Instant Pot or Crockpot.
Appalachian Burgoo
Beef stew meat, sausage and potato soup with tons of flavor. Make it in your Instant Pot or Crockpot.
Saddle Soup
A cowboy soup packed with seasoned beef, tender potatoes, ranch-style beans, cheddar cheese and bacon, made in the Instant Pot or in the slow cooker.
*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
Hi Karen
I made this last night for supper. OMG was it good! And very filling! I like this way better than my recipe for hamburger soup. There’s only 2 of us, so we had the rest for lunch today and it was even better.
We buy our ground beef in bulk, so we only have extra lean and it’s just fine in this recipe..
Thanks for another excellent, flavorful recipe!
This makes me so happy! I love that you enjoyed it for dinner and lunch. Soups like this always get even better the next day. Extra-lean ground beef is a great choice too. Thanks for trying the recipe and for brightening my day with your comment! 💛
Karen, can’t wait to make this and prove to my precious (but a bit hard-headed) chowhound that “Yes, Virginia, you CAN make soup using ground beef”. He says it won’t be any good. We’ll see what he says when he smells it cooking and starts doing the “hover” thing he always does. I think I’m gonna be mean and make him ASK for a bowl. ;-}. I’ll be back with stars because I know it’s gonna be delicious!
W.O.W.!! Made a believer out of him. 🙂
YAY!
My mom made something like this when I was growing up. Usually we’d get it after Thanksgiving since she’d make turkey stock and then use it for the soup. No mushrooms but I bet she would have loved it. I never got the recipe because she said it was simple. So I’m grateful when I can find a real recipe like this and I can recreate it. It will always miss that secret ingredient (love) but it is so satisfying to eat. When I’d come home from college, I’d always request it.
Lara, what a sweet memory. I’m so glad this recipe helps you recreate something your mom made. Nothing can replace that secret “love” ingredient, but I’m happy it brings back those cozy feelings.