Ground Beef and Rice One-Pan Meal

I think it’s safe to say that we all love an easy, quick and delicious one-pan meal. This ground beef and rice dish takes me way back to my childhood; it’s something that my mama prepared often. The cheesy part is all my idea, but who doesn’t love cheese?

What You Need

• 1 pound 80-20 ground beef
• 2 1/2 cups hot water
• 2 1/2 teaspoons beef flavor bouillon
• 1 cup jasmine rice, rinsed really well
• 1 cup diced onions
• 2 large garlic cloves, finely minced
• 1 cup orange bell pepper
• 2 large Roma tomatoes
• 1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• Salt, to taste
• Cilantro or chopped parsley, for garnish
• 2 1/2 cups freshly grated cobi jack cheese
• Avocado, for serving
• Corn tortillas, for serving

How to Make It

1. Set your cast iron skillet heat at about medium or just a little lower. Add the 1 pound of 80-20 ground beef. Move it around just until it loses all its pink color.
2. While the ground beef is browning, prepare your broth. Pour in two and a half cups of hot water and add two and a half teaspoons of the beef bouillon. Stir it really good until it dissolves. Set it aside until you’re ready to use it.
3. Continue browning your ground beef until it loses all the pink color, then drain all the excess grease. Leave just a little bit in there, about a tablespoon and a half.
4. Move everything over to the side. Add your 1 cup of rinsed jasmine rice and 1 cup of diced onions. Move the rice and the onions around on the side for about two and a half minutes or so. You just want to get rid of that really white color of the rice, and you want the onions to release their flavor.
5. After about two and a half minutes, add your two large finely minced garlic cloves. Put them in here for just about one minute; you want them to release their flavor really nicely in with the hot onions and the rice.

6. Now add your 1 cup of orange bell pepper and your two large Roma tomatoes. Mix all this together.
7. It’s time for the seasoning. Add one and a half teaspoons of onion powder, one teaspoon of paprika, half a teaspoon of ground cumin, half a teaspoon of black pepper, and your salt.
8. Pour in your two and a half cups of beef broth. Everything has come in together really nicely.
9. Replace your lid and let it cook like this for 15 to 18 minutes. It depends on your stove. You want to make sure that all the liquid is gone, and do not remove the lid during this time.
10. Once the rice and ground beef are ready (after about 14 minutes), add some cilantro on top. You can use chopped parsley if you’d rather do that.
11. Now add your cheese. Use two and a half cups of freshly grated cobi jack cheese.
12. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Put your skillet into the oven right on the middle rack for about five minutes, or until all the cheese is melted, without a lid.

Serving

Once the cheese is beautifully melted, it’s time to serve. We like to eat this with some corn tortillas and some avocado right on top. The rice, cheese, and ground beef season beautifully, and then with the avocado and corn tortillas, it’s heavenly delicious and super easy.

Recipe Notes

I like using 80-20 ground beef because of the flavor. You can use lean ground beef if you prefer. I also rinse my jasmine rice really well to remove that excess starch. The paprika gives it a beautiful color and flavor. You can use any kind of beef broth or any kind of cheese that you like, but I just love the flavor of the cobi jack.