Slow-Cooker Cheeseburger Soup

More About This Recipe

• This tasty cheeseburger soup calls for the unsung hero of dinnertime: ground beef. Ground beef is cheap, versatile and easy to store in your freezer, making it a dinner staple in many households. But you may be wondering what kind of ground beef you should be buying at the grocery store—you’ll often see packages of ground beef labeled with different percentages, like “80% ground beef” or “90% ground beef.” These percentages describe the ratio of lean meat to fat. So, a package of ground beef that is labeled 80% means that it contains 80% lean meat and 20% fat. What’s the best choice, then? That depends on your diet and flavor preferences. Leaner meats will of course be more waistline friendly, but you’ll be sacrificing on some flavor that the fat provides. For recipes like cheeseburgers, 80% to 85% is usually recommended for the best flavor, but if you’re watching your weight, you can also opt for 90%. Now that you’re a ground beef expert, try more delicious beef soups after you try this cheeseburger one. Never get bored with them either by arming yourself with these easy tricks to make your soups taste even better.