One Pot Cheesy, Easy Mexican Ground Beef and Rice

This One Pot Cheesy, Easy Mexican Ground Beef and Rice is a hearty and nutritious dinner, that the whole family will love digging into. Make it for dinner tonight!

This is an easy recipe for those busy weeknights, with a cooking time of roughly 30 minutes and one pot to prepare so fewer dishes, this recipe is packed with Mexican flavors and cheesy ground beef layered with fresh and delicious lime, avocado, green onion and feta. It's the ultimate comfort food and perfect for the next time you feel like a Mexican feast.

Ingredients you'll need to make this Easy Mexican Beef and Rice

Spice Mix Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
• 1 tablespoon dried oregano leaves
• 2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 2 teaspoon onion powder (you can use garlic powder instead if that is what you have).
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon optional chili flakes (adjust to taste) or chili powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon pepper

Mexican Casserole ingredients

• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 brown onion, diced
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels
• 400 g canned black beans, drained
• 2 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 4 tablespoon tomato paste
• 500 g ground beef
• 300 g mild chunky tomato salsa
• 200 g cherry tomatoes
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 cup frozen corn kernels or canned corn
• 1 tablespoon cornflour
• 250 g Instant rice (microwave rice) - you can use white rice or brown rice.
• 100 g cheddar cheese
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano leaves

Garnish Ingredients:

• ¼ bunch coriander (cilantro)
• ¼ bunch green onions (scallions)
• 1 avocado, sliced
• 2 limes, cut into wedges
• 100 g feta cheese

See details and quantity variations on the recipe card.

Substitutions and Add-ins

• Instead of feta cheese, you can top with sour cream.
• Instead of ground beef or beef mince, you can use other ground meat like ground turkey or ground chicken.
• I call for instant rice (minute rice) because it is quicker and easier, but it you want to use uncooked rice, simply add chicken broth and uncooked rice at step 4, and increase cooking time of this step to about 15 minutes, or if you use an instant pot you can speed that up.
• Option to serve with corn chips or tortilla chips for a fun addition, and add hot sauce to adult dishes if you like.

How to make this Easy Mexican Beef and Rice

Instructions to make this easy Mexican rice casserole.

1. In a bowl, combine all the spices from the "Spice Mix" section.
2. Prep the vegetables: Mince the garlic, dice the onion, and measure out the corn. Drain the black beans.
3. Heat a deep oven-proof casserole pot, deep, large skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add vegetable oil, minced garlic, diced onion, tomato paste, and the prepared spice mix. Cook for 1-2 minutes. Then, add the ground beef and brown meat (about 4-5 minutes).
4. Stir in salsa, cherry tomatoes, drained black beans, Worcestershire sauce, corn kernels, and cornflour to the cooked beef. Cook, stirring, for about 3 minutes, until the tomato sauce mixture thickens slightly.
5. Break up the microwave rice and stir it into the mixture until well combined. Smooth the top.
6. Sprinkle grated cheddar cheese over the top and add dried oregano. Place the pan under the oven grill for 3-4 minutes or until the cheese melts and is golden brown. Keep a close eye on it to avoid burning.
7. For garnish, rinse and chop the coriander, trim and slice the green onions, slice the avocado, and cut the limes into wedges.
8. To serve, crumble feta cheese over the cheesy pan and top with chopped coriander, sliced green onions, avocado slices, and lime wedges, squeezing over lime juice. Enjoy!

Kid-Friendly Variations

• This is a very kid-friendly dinner and a great recipe for picky eaters. Make sure you don't add any chilli or red pepper if creating for kids, and they may prefer to skip the toppings except for avocado.

How to Store Easy Mexican Ground Beef and Rice

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days. Store toppings separately to keep fresh.

Equipment

You will need a deep, oven-proof casserole pot or saute pan, a stovetop, a microwave, an oven grill.

More One Pot Meals

If you like this one pot Mexican dinner, try some of my other one pot meals like my One Pot Greek Chicken Risoni, or my One Pot Greek Chicken Orzo with Lemon and Mint, or even this Rice Cooker Chicken Rice - One Pot Hainanese Rice.

Recipe