Satisfy your craving but skip the local fast-food joint – this White Castle Casserole is a simple and delicious family-approved weeknight meal!
White Castle Casserole
One of my favorite things to do on trips through the Midwest is to eat at White Castle. I’m not sure if they have restaurants outside of that region of the United States? If they do, I have never seen them. If you’ve never been there and you get a chance, definitely stop in and grab a sack – and relish in the fact that you are eating a part of American history! From White Castle’s website – “It’s an experience that transcends time, space and sometimes, rational thought.”
White Castle, founded in 1921 by Walter Anderson and Billy Ingram, is famous for it’s “sliders” – a simple, small, square burger. What you may not know is, White Castle, is generally credited as being the first ever “fast-food chain.” Anderson is credited with inventing the hamburger bun and for using Henry Ford’s model of the assembly line in the kitchen. Who knew?
Trips to the Midwest are a little more scarce for us these days. With a large family and my husband’s 60+ hour a week job, it all prevents us from doing many things. Our priorities are in other places rather than galavanting around the Midwest eating at White Castle. Our “trips” tend to be a little closer to home right now.
How do I enjoy White Castle without a restaurant near me?
And that’s not necessarily a bad thing. And, that doesn’t have to stop us from enjoying White Castle. We could buy those pre-packaged boxes of sliders in the freezer section of our nearest big box store. Or we could make this super easy casserole that has all the same great taste!
Obviously, we went for the latter. And you should too! It’s so easy to make this White Castle Casserole at home. And it’s a family-approved recipe! My kids love when this casserole makes an appearance on the menu!
I will note that although ketchup is not listed as an ingredient, sometimes I like to add a drizzle of that underneath the top layer of crescent rolls along with the mustard and pickles. If BBQ sauce is your jam, feel free to substitute that. You just can’t go wrong with this easy White Castle Casserole!
Other recipes you may enjoy
White Castle Casserole
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground beef
- 1 box dry onion soup mix you will use both packets of soup mix
- 2 tubes crescent rolls 12 oz. each
- 8-10 slices American cheese
- Dill pickles chopped, to taste
- Mustard to taste
- Additional condiments if desired
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly spray a 9×13-inch baking dish with cooking spray and set aside.
- In a skillet, brown and crumble the ground beef with both packages of dry onion soup mix. Drain meat into a colander; using paper towels or a clean dish towel, press down on the beef and squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible.
- Unroll one tube of crescent rolls into the prepared baking dish. Flatten slightly to seal the seams and cover the bottom as necessary. Top with ground beef. Add cheese slices. Top with pickles and drizzle with mustard. Unroll the other tube of crescent rolls over the top, sealing seams and covering the contents in the pan.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
- To serve, cut into squares and serve with additional condiments if desired.
Notes
- Sometimes I like to add ketchup before placing the crescent rolls on top!
Nutrition
Please note that the nutritional information listed on this page is an estimation based on the products I used. Ingredients and nutritional information can vary significantly between brands. Always be sure to read labels. Please verify that a recipe fits your needs before using it. Nutrition info may contain errors, so please verify it independently. Likewise, recipes may contain errors, so please use your common sense when following them.
We do not have tubes of Crescent Rolls 🙁 Not even a clue what it is… and this dish looks so delicious!
It's found with the canned biscuits!
Crescent rolls are a very light pastry with a buttery flavor. they are found in the refrigerated case near the canned biscuits..yummy and can be used in many recipes. I use them for the crust for pot pies and for making piggies in a blanket.
Tubes of Crescent Rolls is by Pillsbury. You must of seen them advertised on TV. They now have Crescent Roll sheets that come with two sheets that you don’t have to seal seams but comes all in one sheet which would be easier to use where you’d put one sheet on the bottom and the other sheet on top of the meat mixture. Hope this helps you.
Oh my goodness, this looks SO good! I'm a big fan of anything cheeseburger. Pinning this!
Wow, simple and sounds so delicious. Will you share this over on our hop too?
I've only been to a White Castle a couple of times, but I remember their little oniony burgers. This casserole sounds great. Thanks for sharing the idea/recipe. Bless you, Gail
Awesome! You always have great stuff. This is the second time in a few days I have clicked on you from different parties. I will put this on my list of things to try when I am being bad for sure. Have a great week!
Oh this looks amazing Jamie!! On my must try list now! Thanks for sharing this at the party this week! I also featured this on my Facebook page 🙂
Found and followed you through Adorned from Above's link party! LOVE WHITE CASTLE but I live in the south and there are none to be found. Will definitely try this one out!!
Hope you stop by my blog sometime 🙂
http://www.the-not-so-desperate-chef-wife.com/
Krista
Krystal’s are the White Castle’s of the south.
Not as good most grocery have them in the frozen section
Remember Krystal’s from childhood. Wonder if they’re still around
YES!!!! ALABAMA FOR SURE!! LOVE DOUBLE CHEESE KRYSTALS!!
You will love these…I’m in the south too and miss my Whites…these are the closest thing to any I have had…here or made. My second time making them.
Hmmm….this looks GOOD.
Never been to a White Castle / probably not in our area…..though the name sounded vaguely familiar
interesting idea.Thanks for sharing with us at Foodie Friends Friday this week
Dawn
http://spatulasonparade.blogspot.com
Love this! and I used to love White castle hamburgers LOL! Thanks for linking up at Heavenly Treats Link Party, You have been featured! Check tomorrows post and get your button!
Being from the Midwest (chicago) I love white castle, bu to be honest they don't like me so much as I get older. The dehydrated onions are so good, but so bad, if you know what I mean – they don't call them "sliders" for nothing. But I will give this a try, since the onion soup mix is dehydrated onions. Sounds yummy! Thanks for sharing your inspiration with Sunday’s Best – you helped make the party a success!
Your recipe is probably cheaper and more delicious than the frozen White Castle. I have only been to White Castle once… it was very late at night and I found the super small burgers to be strange… now sliders are so vogue.
Hi Jamie,
Wow, I just love White Castle and to have it all in a Casserole is awesome! Hope you are having a great weekend and thank you so much for sharing with Full Plate Thursday.
Come Back Soon!
Miz Helen
I know White Castle well…as my husband and kids love the place. I have yet to obtain the cravings for the mini burgers. My family will go nuts for this casserole too I'm sure:-)
Jamie,
I've never been to White Castle (I don't know if we even have any out west) but I know of them. This casserole looks delicious and I do love a good casserole. I'll definitely give it a try. Thanks for sharing at Creative Thursday 🙂 Have a great week
Michelle
Hi Jamie,
Based on your delicious White Castle Casserole photos, we'd like to invite you to submit your food photos on a food photography site called http://www.foodporn.net so our readers can enjoy your creations.
It is absolutely free and fun to make others hungry!
Thanks 🙂
Jamie,
Thanks so much for sharing at Adorned From Above. I have featured this post as one of my Friday Favorite Blog Links. This looks delicous.
Stop by http://www.adornedfromabove.com to get your featured blogger button.
Have a great week.
Debi @ Adorned From Above
White Castles are the same as Krystal Burgers, if any of you have Krystals where you are.
If you want this to be closer to a true White Castle burger and not one of those nasty Krystal burgers, leave the mustard off. White Castle does not put anything on their burgers except for onion and pickle and perhaps a little sprinkle of love. You can get all the HORSERADISH mustard and ketchup your heart desires on the side though!
I was just about to say the same thing! No mustard on White Castle. Steamed onions and pickle only.
If you want this to be closer to a true White Castle burger and not one of those nasty Krystal burgers, leave the mustard off. White Castle does not put anything on their burgers except for onion and pickle and perhaps a little sprinkle of love. You can get all the HORSERADISH mustard and ketchup your heart desires on the side though!
I agree
From St Louis never put mustard on white castle but only if you like it as a condiment
I will try this recipe too
This sounds awesome! I'm from Minnesota and I go every chance I get! I have the copy cat White Castle burgers posted on my blog and I can't stop making them. Love their chicken sandwiches too! Thanks for sharing!
We made this on Saturday and it was very good but a little too salty. I will try using only 1 package of the onion soup mix next time and as others have said I did not include mustard as that is not traditional White Castle. I will definitely make it again with the modifications, it was very tasty and easy.
Thanks
My husband is a White Castle Burger freak….I've GOT to try this for him! 😉 What a fun recipe- thanks, Jamie! 🙂
I cut the recipe in half and used a 7" x 11" pan. Perfect! Yummy. Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks
What a super fun idea! I can see my family gobbling this right up!
Mmmm……want to try this one!!!!
This looks like a fun recipe! I lived in NJ for 10 years and made many visits to White Castle. I’m a native Texan, so it was a new thing for me. I’ve kinda missed them, we’ve been back in Texas a year now. Thanks for sharing! Will def pin.
Made tonight and it was delicious!! We left off the mustard, White Castles does not have mustard. I thought they taste pretty close to the real thing!
Thanks
Does the bottom crust come out puffed up and crispy on the bottom or soggy? Was thinking of baking the bottom crust a little first. What do you think?
Could I use slider buns instead of the crescent rolls
Made it and loved it but would rather have the bun. Didn’t make me belch like the ones from the restaurant
I moved from the Midwest to the west coast and I miss White Castles. (Frozen doesn’t do it). When I saw this I had to make it. We love it. My sister in MN made it and it’s her family’s new favorite. My mom made it and my brother raved over it.
Thank you for this recipe!!
We love this! I have made it twice.
I used more cheese slices the 2nd time and it made it less dry.
It was gooey and moist.
Up the recipe about 6-8 slices of cheese and you’ll be amazed.
We love this casserole at our home. My husband is from Minnesota and remembers when he was a little boy that a sackful of White Castle Hamburgers was a divine treat for dinner at their house. And when he couldn’t buy them, he’d walk past the restaurant, open the door, and sniff the wonderful aroma.
After we got married and were living in California, he found many co-workers, friends, and people from church who missed White Castle burgers. So he called the regional manager in Minnesota and had him send enough for 440 people. They were flown out on dry ice and hubby picked them up at LAX freight. He did this 3 times for a total of almost 3000 burgers. We had a line of people winding down the driveway and along the sidewalk. Several years later, after White Castle’s burgers were now being delivered to the freezer section of local grocery stores, our oldest son saw a contest to nominate someone who had an unusual story to the White Castle Cravers Hall of Fame. Hubby’s story was selected and he is now in the Cravers Hall of Fame! It’s family history now. Thank you for this recipe that rekindles wonderful family memories and meals.
Blessings, Janis Van Keuren
http://heartfilledmoments.com
I bet this would be great with king’s Hawaiian buns.
I’M MAKING IT TO NIGHT JULY 8 TH 7/8/2019
I am IN Saint Louis where “BELLY BOMBER’S” are a staple. So I am going to try this casserole this week. I have grown up with White Castel .
Made this for dinner tonight and my husband loved it! He is a huge White Castle guy. He actually said this casserole was better then White Castles! I used extra lean ground beef and beefy onion soup mix, but otherwise kept the recipe the same. This will definitely go into our rotation.
Do you have a way to make the recipe for 2 people?
My best suggestion is just to cut the recipe in half. Use only one tube of crescent dough – cutting it in half – one for the top and the other half for the bottom.
I just have a quick question. Can you use cheddar cheese instead of American? I don’t know why but I’ve never liked American Cheese.
It would be fine to change out the cheese. Enjoy!
I was wondering if canned biscuit dough would work in place of crescent? Has anyone tried it?
Although I have never tried it, I think it will work fine. You may need to keep an eye out and adjust the baking time if necessary.
I had high hopes for this recipe. It was disappointing. The flavor was just off. Dry. Threw most of it away.
We love this recipe! I squirt mustard and ketchup on it. It’s on my regular rotation. Thanks for a great recipe!
loved this. did not need to drain, added spinach, fetta cheese, oinion and garlic. needed to cover top lightly with tinfoil cause need 40min baking time. i made a smaller dish. im not even a fan of cresent dough and dont know white castle. very nice i will make again
I’ve not ever been to White Castle but husband recalls it fondly. I made this for him and he absolutely loved it! I don’t care for the taste of Pillsbury crescent rolls so I set some of the beef mixture aside for me and had it with shredded cheddar cheese and a drizzle of sugar free ketchup. Low carb and really good! I also used dill pickle relish because I already had it. This is on our monthly menu rotation now. Thank you for a great recipe!
I grew up on White Castles, my husband even worked there when we were teens. Yes, mustard and ketchup aren’t on the regular sliders, but can be ordered to be put on. When using mustard, they actually use a Dusseldorf mustard, found in most condiment sections and/or ethnic sections of your supermarket.
I’ve made this several times and found some issues that needed changes.
The meat tends to end up on the bland side even with the onion soup. Fat equals flavor so instead of draining the fat, I cook it down to reduce it until there’s very little liquid left, but all the flavor.
I do add a diced small onion to this. The fresh onion adds to the dehydrated onions that are already in the soup mix.
I add about a teaspoon of “Accent”/ MSG to the meat. This gives it that “fast food” flavor and brings it more in line with how a White Castle tastes.
For the oven, I start with a 400 degree oven and bake for 10 min, then reduce the temp to 350 and bake for another 10 minutes. This crisps up the bottom to avoid the undercooked or doughy crescent roll that I was getting.
I’m thinking this can adapt pretty easily to be any other kind of burger. Add Mac sauce instead of mustard to make it a Big Mac casserole. Add pizza sauce and mozz to make it a pizza burger. Add mayo and ketchup and make it a Whopper. Bacon and mayo to make it a Baconator. Just don’t forget that MSG… that makes or breaks a fast food burger taste.
I veganized this recipe by using Beyond Meat burgers and.vegan cheese. Also, Pillsbury crescent rolls are accidentally vegan too. It was yummy. I also went with the idea of cooking the bottom layer of crescent rolls first so it didn’t get soggy.
Thanks so much for that feedback! I hope if anyone else has questions regarding making this vegan or using Beyond Meat burgers for this recipe, you’ve helped them!
Yummy! I’ve made casseroles similar to this one and one suggestion I would make is to bake the bottom crust for about 7 minutes in the oven first. This will make sure you don’t have raw dough once you are finished making the dish.
I made this with one can of the crescent sheets cut into 8 pieces. I browned the ground beef ( 1 lb was much more than needed for one can of biscuit sheets) put the dough pieces in a cupcake tin, add cheese to the dough, add the drained ground beef and cook at 350 for 10 minutes. Really good! I used the leftover ground beef in the morning added to scrambled eggs.
Why all the Krystal’s haters in here? I don’t understand the need by people now days to be so rude. Krystal burgers are delicious and I’ve had both and they taste almost identical.
We love your recipe! I made a tik tok of it! Thanks for sharing!