Spanish Beef and Rice Bake

One dish dinners are my jam. I love how simple it is to throw together for a quick and filling meal.

If you are anything like us, Mexican food is a weekly thing, on our menu. We love how easy and delicious it is.

If you have a busy night ahead of you, you could easily make this ahead of time. I will sometimes prepare it in the morning, then heat it up for dinner, if I know I am going to be gone all day.

I can throw it together in the morning real quick, and have it all ready by the time everyone gets home. It is the perfect meal for reheating.

The flavors of this are delicious, I promise you’ll love it.

how to make spanish beef and rice bake

This is a simple and quick recipe, your family is sure to love. It doesn’t require any expensive or weird ingredients. It’s simple, basic, and delicious.

•  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
• Brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat, lower heat to medium low heat.

  To brown ground beef, I place it in a pan, and use a spatula to cut it up, and flip it. I do this until there is no pink, and the meat is diced up into small bits.

  I also like to rinse and drain my ground beef. I do this by putting it under Luke warm water, until the meat is almost fully immersed (but not too full, because I don’t want the meat to fall out of the pan).

  I then use the spatula to keep the ground beef in the pan, and drain out the water, by tilting it slightly, and letting the water run out.

  I repeat this process about 2 more times, to be sure that the grease is washed out.

•  Stir in the onion, green bell pepper, tomatoes, water, salsa, rice, chili sauce, salt, brown sugar, cumin, Worcestershire sauce and ground black pepper.
• Let this simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, then transport this to a 9×13″ casserole dish sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.

  Press down firmly into the pan, then spread refried beans on the top and sprinkle with the shredded Cheddar cheese.

•  Bake in preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro and chopped tomatoes.

  You can also garnish with your favorite taco garnishes. I love putting a little salsa, sour cream, and guacamole on mine. You can really add any of your favorite toppings to it, and it will taste delicious.

how could I make this recipe healthier?

This recipe is already pretty healthy, however there are a few things you could switch out, to make it even healthier.

–Switch the ground beef out for ground turkey. This is just a simple exchange, that is less greasy, and less fat. I use ground turkey in almost every recipe that calls for ground beef.

It does taste a little lighter, but it is also a little easier on tender stomachs.

Ground beef is definitely a cheaper alternative, but to me, a few dollars, is worth a happy stomach, and less meat grease.

-Substitute the Brown Sugar for Honey. This is an easy switch that won’t have much of a different taste in this recipe. You could even take out the brown sugar completely without replacing it.

It is only a small amount of brown sugar (1 teaspoon), so it won’t make much of a difference. Honey is still a sweetener, but it is a little more natural, so I feel better about it. Again, the brown sugar is totally optional.

-Use brown rice instead of white. Brown rice is also a little more natural than white rice. It contains all parts of the grain, while white rice has no grain, fiber, or much nutritional value at all.

Watch how to make ground beef in the instant pot, here:

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Watch how to make ground beef in the instant pot, here:

looking for more mexican inspired dishes?

Crescent Roll Burrito Bake
Spanish Cauliflower Rice
Chicken Burrito Bowls
Creamy Spinach Enchiladas