Cheesy Hamburger Rice Casserole
Hamburger Rice Casserole is an easy, cheesy, one-pan meal that’s made with ground beef, onions, rice, savory seasonings, and topped with plenty of melted cheese.
One pan meals are some of the quickest and easiest when you’re looking for dinner options. Not only are they tasty, but clean up is a breeze.
A few of our favorites are Mexican Casserole with ground beef, cheese, and tortilla chips, Taco Pasta which is exactly as it sounds, seasoned ground beef and noodles with taco toppings, and Taco Casserole with Corn Chips. If you’re looking for a casserole side dish, our Twice Baked Potato Casserole is warm, cheesy, and tastes just like a loaded baked potato but in casserole form.
This hamburger rice casserole is similar. It starts with onions and ground beef, add in some beef broth, rice, seasonings, then top with cheddar cheese. It makes a great, easy dinner option.
How to make hamburger rice casserole
This ground beef and rice casserole is incredibly simple. Start by heating a large skillet over medium heat.
Add a tablespoon of cooking oil (your choice), some diced onions, and a pound of lean ground beef. Break up the ground beef as it cooks, so it’s in small pieces.
I like to use a meat spatula, because it easily gets along the circular edges of the pan. After the ground beef is completely cooked and no longer pink, drain the excess grease, and return the meat to the pan.
Add the broth, long grain white rice, tomato paste, onion powder, garlic powder, chili, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine ensuring the broth covers the rice.
Bring the liquid to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cover. Continue to cook at a simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until the rice is tender.
After the rice reaches the desired consistency, remove the hamburger rice casserole from heat, and top with shredded cheddar cheese. Add the lid back to the pan for about 5 minutes to allow the cheese time to melt.
Serve the cheesy hamburger rice casserole hot with a Homemade Fruit Salad or a side of Instant Pot Steamed Broccoli.
Tips and Variations for Hamburger Rice Casserole
- For best results, we recommend using long grain white rice, Jasmine, or basmati rice for this recipe. This recipe is not intended for Minute Rice.
- Use your favorite shredded cheese. Monterey jack, pepper jack, or white cheddar would be great options.
- For a protein variation, try ground chicken, turkey, or pork. The seasonings may need to be adjusted slightly.
- Know how strong the chili powder is before adding it to the ground beef. Some brands of chili powder have more heat than others, so the amount may need to be adjust to meet your desired heat level.
- We used a gas stove top on low heat to simmer this recipe. The cook time on the lowest setting was about 20 minutes. An electric stove top may yield slightly different results, so keep an eye on the rice beginning at the 15 minute mark.
Should the rice be cooked or uncooked in ground beef and rice casserole?
The rice should be uncooked for this cheesy beef casserole. The rice simmers in the beef broth and absorbs the flavors of the other ingredients.
Can you use brown rice in this cheesy hamburger rice casserole?
Yes, brown rice can be used in this casserole. However, it may require a longer cooking time to ensure that the rice is fully cooked.
Additionally, you may need to add more beef broth and adjust the seasonings slightly.
Can you use tomato sauce instead of tomato paste in this rice and beef casserole?
Yes, you can use tomato sauce instead of tomato paste in this casserole. However, the flavor will be slightly different and the consistency may be thinner due to the extra liquid that is found in the sauce.
How to Store Hamburger Rice Casserole:
Refrigerate: Refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days.
Freeze: To freeze this casserole, cook it as written then cool completely. Freeze for up to 2 months.
Thaw: Place ground beef and rice casserole in the refrigerator to thaw completely before reheating.
Reheat: To reheat, microwave a single serving on half power until warmed through, or place a larger portion in a skillet over low heat.
More Casserole Recipes
How to Video
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon cooking oil
- 1 pound ground beef, (We used 93/7.)
- ½ cup white onion, finely chopped
- 2 ¼ cups low-sodium beef broth
- ½ cup uncooked long grain white rice
- ¼ cup tomato paste
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon dried oregano
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium heat, add the oil, ground beef, and onions. Cook the ground beef until no pinks remain. Drain excess grease, and return to the pan.1 tablespoon cooking oil1 pound ground beef½ cup white onion
- Stir in the broth, rice, tomato paste, onion powder, garlic powder, chili powder, salt, cumin, oregano, and pepper. Bring the ingredients to a boil, cover, and reduce the heat to simmer.2 ¼ cups low-sodium beef broth½ cup uncooked long grain white rice¼ cup tomato paste1 teaspoon onion powder1 teaspoon garlic powder1 teaspoon chili powder½ teaspoon salt¼ teaspoon ground cumin¼ teaspoon dried oregano¼ teaspoon black pepper
- Cook at a simmer for 20 to 25 minutes or until the rice is tender and cooked to the desired consistency.
- Remove from heat, uncover, and top with shredded cheese. Return the lid and allow the residual heat to melt the cheese.1 ½ cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- Serve warm with your favorite side dish.
How to Store Leftovers
- Refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days.
Suggested Equipment
Notes
Nutrition
Tried this recipe?
We’d Love If You’d Rate It Leave a Review!Meet Kimberly
Hi, I’m Kimberly Vargo! Comfort food is at the heart of everything I make like easy dinners and sides to desserts, cocktails, and condiments. A lot of my inspiration comes from old family recipes, personal favorites, and vintage cookbooks.
Easy weeknight dinner. My kids call it “Army rations dinner” but like it so well and request it so often I have had to double the batch.
Oh my gosh! That’s awesome! John and I love that. Thank you so much for the sweet comment and for rating the recipe. We hope you have a great weekend! 🙂
great recipe, I work in a Care Home and our Residents loved it! So easy.
Thank you Maggie! We appreciate the comment and rating the recipe. Additionally, Kim and I are glad your residents enjoy the dish. Have a lovely day 🙂
So easy, cheesy and so good. We love casseroles.
Hi, Jill! John and I are glad you love it. Have a great evening! 🙂
Love love this dish. We eat it weekly! Now we have houseguests and I want to make it tonight, but need it to feed 4 hungry eaters would it work to just double up every ingredient?
Hey, Jill!
Thank you so much for the comment and star rating! John and I are happy that you love the recipe. Doubling all of the ingredients should work fine. If it looks a little dry, just add a splash or two of beef broth to make sure the rice cooks all the way through. Have a great evening!
I have made this 4 times, followed the recipe exactly, and LOVE it! I couldn’t remember if I rated it so I looked and there’s another Tracy that likes it! Funny! Just wanted to thank you for a “delicious every time” meal!
Thank you Tracy! It’s a small world, especially in the digital age. Kim and I are glad you like the casserole. Thank you again for commenting and rating the recipe! Have a lovely day 🙂
Flavor was good but not enough for a family of 4 adults. I basically made as recipe said.
Good morning Jacki, thank you for commenting and rating the recipe! We’re glad you enjoyed the flavor of the casserole. Have a lovely day 🙂
We had a pound of hamburger unthawed. It was a late night and my husband said let’s do hamburger with rice. I came apron your recipe. My husband was a chef at his Aunt’s restaurant in his younger days. (He is an amazing cook still.) We both loved your recipe. Thank you for sharing it.
Marty & Owen
Thank you for sharing your experience Marty! Kim and I glad Owen and you enjoyed the casserole. Have a lovely day 🙂
I have this simmering right now and it smells amazing. I can’t wait until its done and dig in. I had one and half pounds of ground chuck thawed so I just one and a halved all the other ingredients. It doesn’t seem like enough rice at the moment but it should double to 2 cups cooked. I have a small cup of cooked rice available if I need to add it later just in case. I’m going to add finely shredded Mexican style cheese at the end. Yummy 😋
Good morning Robin, we hope you enjoyed the dish! I’m glad you have the extra cup of cooked rice on hand. We don’t normally add a lot of rice to our dishes, so I can understand your concern. Thank you for commenting and rating the recipe. We hope you have a lovely day 🙂
can you substitute tomato paste with marinara sauce or another ingredient?
Hi Julie!
Yes, I’d recommend using tomato sauce, but any substitution isn’t going to taste quite the same. We haven’t tried marinara. Although, it may work great! We have an entire section in our FAQ section (in the post above the recipe card) devoted to this question. It may have some information you may find helpful. Have a great afternoon! 😊
this lil unassuming casserole was DELICIOUS!!! Followed recipe exactly, served with corn and taco toppings. perfect week day dinner! thank you for the recipe ❤️
Thank you Tracy! We’re glad you enjoyed the casserole. The leftovers work well as burrito filling too. Thank you again for commenting and rating the recipe. Have a lovely day 🙂
@John, there were no leftovers 😆 made again tonight and increase the recipe by 1.5x and there’s only a tiny bit left!
That’s wonderful to hear Tracy! Hopefully, you have enough leftover for lunch today lol! Thank you again for sharing 🙂 Have a great Wednesday.
I have this on the stove now, it smells great so far. I used a mushroom risotto rice packet I had on hand instead of regular rice. I figured it would give it a nice creamy texture and added flavor also. I had 2 packs of ground chuck both under a pound so it is more beef too.
This is a family favorite. It’s quick and easy to make on a week night. We love having leftovers. Will be trying making them into burritos!
Thank you Deb! Kim and I are glad you and your family enjoys the casserole. Thank you again for commenting and rating the recipe. Have a lovely day 🙂
My family now calls this “taco surprise.” We love this recipe for tacos and burritos. I double the recipe and use the leftovers for burritos for lunches. I use whatever broth I have, either beef or chicken. If I don’t have enough broth I use water to make up the different and it is still fantastic.
It is so easy for weeknight dinners and I always have the ingredients on hand.
Thank you for commenting and rating the recipe, we appreciate it! We’re thrilled to hear everyone enjoys the casserole. It’s awesome you use the leftovers for burritos. Thank you again for commenting and have a lovely day 🙂
This tasted good. My family enjoyed it. We all decided it would be good in a tortilla with taco toppings. Mine did not look as nice as yours, so my husband said he wasn’t sure about at first.
Good morning Jerilea, thank you for commenting and rating the recipe card! The taco idea sounds great. Looks can be deceiving. I’ve tried a few meals that looked delicious, but didn’t taste very good. Thanks again for sharing your experience. Have a lovely day 🙂
This was really good! I love a one-pan type meal that all the kids will gladly eat. We added a can of black beans (drained and rinsed), a can of corn (drained), and topped with crushed doritos. Will definitely be added into our rotation!
Good morning Molly, thank you for commenting and rating the recipe! The beans and corn sound like awesome additions. Have a lovely day 🙂
Easy one pot meal with things you already have in the kitchen. Thanks for sharing! I added a little sugar and some Parmesan.
Hi Rosie!
I love the addition of Parmesan cheese. Yum! Have a lovely evening! 🙂
So easy and very, very tasty!! Thank you for including measurements in the instructions…Brilliant!!
No problem Antonina, we’re glad you enjoyed the casserole. Thank you for commenting and rating the recipe. Have a lovely day!
I make the almost exact thing all the time but I add Doritos on top and put it back in the oven for 10 minutes
Doritos would be really good on this dish!
Can’t wait to try this! Can you use tomato sauce instead of tomato paste?
Hi Mary!
Please check out our answer to Belinda’s question in the comments below yours. It’s fairly detailed and may be helpful. Have a great weekend! 🙂
Could you use brown rice or instant rice?
Good Morning Linda, I wouldn’t recommend instant rice because the casserole has to cook for 20-25 minutes. Brown rice is an option; however, you’ll need to keep an eye on it. Make sure to watch the liquid level and add water/broth if needed. Also, the casserole may need to cook a little longer to ensure that the brown rice is done. Hopefully, this information helps, have a lovely day 🙂
Can tomato sauce be used in place of the tomato paste?
Hi Belinda!
Yes, tomato sauce can be used as a substitute. It may change the consistency a bit, though. As a rule of thumb, I use about 3 tablespoons of sauce for every 1 tablespoon of paste. For this recipe, that would equal about 12 tablespoons (3/4 cup) of tomato sauce. If you don’t want that much tomato flavor, it wouldn’t hurt to cut it back a bit. Hope that helps!
I’ve made this 2 weeks in a row, which tells you it’s a winner! I followed the recipe almost exactly, using ground turkey instead of ground beef. Sometimes with rice dishes like this it can take forever for the rice to cook through, but it was perfectly done at the 25 minute mark! The second time making it I deglazed with wine just to give it a little lift. Solid crowd-pleaser that will make it into our regular rotation – thank you!
That’s wonderful April! Thank you for sharing your experience. The ground turkey and wine combination sounds lovely. Have a great day 🙂
It’s good. Tastes like a taco. I’m going to add either beans or corn to it and will have a salad.
Those would be great additions! Enjoy!
Can you use water instead of the broth?
Yes, water will work in place of the broth. Have a great day! 🙂
I made this last night for a quick set it and forget it dinner while I had other stuff around the house to do. I made it in a dutch oven and it turned out perfectly! My son (4), doesn’t like tacos or ‘Mexican’ type food, but he scarfed this down so fast! I served it with tortilla chips!
Good Morning Rebecca, that’s wonderful to hear. We’re thrilled your son enjoyed the casserole. Thank you for sharing your experience and have a lovely day 🙂
Can this be made without tomato
Paste if I don’t have any?
Hi Nikki!
Yes, it can. Making the casserole without tomato paste will change the flavor and consistency, but if you don’t have it just skip it this time around. Happy Holidays! 🙂
Next time I will double up on the spices and rice. Also, I think 1 cup of cheese is more than enough. This recipe would be a great filling for hard or soft tacos. Will definitely make again!
We’re so glad you enjoyed the casserole! It would make a good taco filling. Great idea! We’ll have to try that sometime. Happy Holidays! 🙂