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Picky eaters are going to love this Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole. Mom called it busy day casserole because it’s a quick and easy dinner.
Table of Contents
- Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole
- What’s in This Ground Beef Casserole Recipe?
- How to Make Hamburger and Rice Casserole Without Canned Soup
- What Rice to Use in Casseroles?
- Can I Use Brown Rice?
- What Vegetables are Good in a Casserole?
- Do I Need to Cover a Casserole with Foil?
- Why Didn’t My Rice Cook?
- What Should I Serve with Hamburger and Rice Casserole?
- Best Recipes For Picky Eaters
- Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Storage Tips
- Super Easy Ground Beef Recipes:
- Watch How This is Made…
- Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole Recipe
Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole
Alright, this Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole recipe is definitely not my norm, but it is who I am and it happens to be a recipe that I get a crazy amount of emails about. I get loads of emails about our fabulous buttermilk pancakes too…have you tried those?! Total comfort food just like this casserole.
A long time ago (and seriously, check out the picture and you’ll laugh your heart out at how little I knew about food photography), I posted a recipe called Busy Day Casserole and it has been one of my top recipes for years now. It never disappears from the most viewed recipes. In fact, a lot of our hamburger recipe ideas are our top recipes. You can find them all here.
People love this cheesy ground beef and rice casserole, and while it’s totally simple I know why. This quick and easy dinner idea with ground beef and melted cheese is in fact the cure for all picky eaters. It’s very dependent on you for the seasoning so for picky eaters it’s perfect, but if you want more flavor season it well or add in more vegetables. If you wanted to try something similar, but with chicken, try this cheesy ranch chicken casserole!
read more: Looking for easy casserole recipes? Try our Pork Chop Casserole with Rice next!
What’s in This Ground Beef Casserole Recipe?
The ingredients you’ll need for this ground beef and rice recipe will vary depending on whether you want to make this casserole completely from scratch, semi-homemade, or if you’d rather throw together something really quickly (i.e. use a few shortcuts).
If you have the time and energy, I highly recommend making this casserole recipe with ground beef from scratch. Don’t let the longer ingredients list fool you, I bet you already have most of them on hand already!
To make this cheesy beef and rice casserole completely from scratch, you’ll need some butter, onion, garlic, flour, cream, chicken broth, veggies, cheese, white rice, ground beef, and water. Oh, and salt and pepper, of course!
If you’re looking for a simpler hamburger recipe idea, the quicker version of this casserole (which is noted in the recipe card below) uses canned condensed soup, veggies, ground beef, cheese, and rice. Pick whichever version of this beef and rice casserole you have time to make — I know you won’t always have time for the from-scratch version!
How to Make Hamburger and Rice Casserole Without Canned Soup
When you read through the from-scratch recipe for this ground beef casserole, you’ll notice that I use my own mixture for the liquid instead of cream of mushroom soup. You can do either, we just don’t cook with cream of anything soup at our house anymore, but it is what I grew up with, so I wanted you to have all of the versions.
- To make this ground beef casserole recipe, you’ll first need to prepare the homemade canned soup. Making a homemade canned soup is actually quite easy. You’ll need some butter, flour for thickening, milk or cream and seasoning to taste. You’re basically making a roux. If you’re making a from scratch canned soup with mushrooms, just add those in too!
- Start by whisking the melted butter and onion or mushrooms with the flour in a hot pot until it clumps up. Next, add in the liquid and whisk, while boiling until it becomes a thickened creamy sauce. Add in your seasonings and you’ve got condensed soup!
- We have purposely kept the seasonings in this pretty bland so that it’s kid friendly, so if you want more flavor, this is the time to add it. You could add garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper, thyme, basil, oregano, etc.
- To finish making this casserole recipe, simply combine the soup mixture with the rice, water, browned ground beef, and veggies in a greased baking dish.
- Place the baking dish in a preheated oven and bake for around 90 minutes, then top with cheese and return to the oven until the cheese has melted.
What Rice to Use in Casseroles?
Long grain, white rice is the best rice to use in casseroles as it doesn’t become sticky or mushy when baked. You cannot use quick rice (Minute Rice) in this ground beef casserole unless you adjust the liquid according to package directions and cook the carrots completely before mixing it all together.
Can I Use Brown Rice?
Yes, but I honestly have never tried it. Brown rice soaks up a lot more liquid and will need longer to cook. I’d add an additional 1/2 cup of water and probably another 1/2 hour of cooking time.
What Vegetables are Good in a Casserole?
This Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole is a great casserole to add any veggies you’d like, but we recommend broccoli, peas, corn or even green beans.
Do I Need to Cover a Casserole with Foil?
This Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole does not need to be covered with foil to bake. I know it seems like it will, especially as you see that rice start to cook, but it’s just fine as is. In fact I really like the top and sides to get a very slight crispness as it adds so much flavor and texture to this hamburger rice casserole. You can tent with foil if you can’t resist.
Why Didn’t My Rice Cook?
If your casserole finishes cooking and you find yourself asking why didn’t my rice cook in my beef rice casserole, well I’m guessing you used the wrong rice, or your oven didn’t hold a constant heat. There’s plenty of moisture and time, so there’s no reason this casserole wouldn’t bake up perfectly.
What Should I Serve with Hamburger and Rice Casserole?
The beauty of this easy ground beef recipe is that it’s a full meal all by itself. You get carbs from the rice, protein from the beef, and fiber and extra nutrients from the veggies.
But if you’re trying to bulk up this meal or have a little extra time on your hands, you may want to consider pairing your serving of beef and rice casserole with a simple salad or sauteed veggies. Really though, you don’t need a side for this recipe!
Best Recipes For Picky Eaters
The cheese is also a little different only because again, we don’t really buy medium cheddar cheese, we usually get Colby Jack and since they are so similar I don’t mind using it, either one will work though. This Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole is something that even as a food blogger, I totally love to eat and the kids do too. It’s one of the best recipes for picky eaters. It’s something really simple on their little palates and it has cheese which is always a good thing.
Why You Will Love This Recipe
This recipe doubles perfectly to a 9×13 baking dish if you need to feed a larger crowd.
We also have recipes on the blog for making this casserole lower carb with cauliflower rice or in the Instant Pot if you need dinner in a hurry. We have also created a Mexican inspired version too!
Casseroles are pure comfort food and this recipe is no different. It is loved by everyone!
We provide instructions for making this recipe a variety of ways depending on how much time you have and how “from scratch” you want it to be.
Storage Tips
Leftovers of this recipe will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
This casserole stores wonderfully in the freezer and it will keep for up to 3 months. Let the casserole cool completely and place in a freezer safe container.
If the casserole is frozen, allow it to thaw in the fridge overnight (or at least all day) before reheating it in the oven. Place it in a baking dish and reheat at 325 degrees for 15-20 minutes or until hot and bubbly through the middle.
So, to my sweet momma who had to put up with my picky little self, thanks for this delicious Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole recipe that is feeding people everywhere. I say you’re famous for it now. You didn’t know you’d end up famous did you?
Super Easy Ground Beef Recipes:
- Mexican Ground Beef and Rice Casserole
- Shepherd’s Pie
- One-Skillet Enchilada Ground Beef Casserole
- 30 Minute Skillet Beef Pot Pie
- Cheesy Enchilada Chili
- Taco Pinwheels
- World’s Best Chili (Made in an Instant Pot!)
- Instant Pot Taco Soup
- Easy Sloppy Joes
- Teriyaki Piña Colada Burger
- Southern Pimento Cheeseburgers
You can find all of our beef recipes here.
Watch How This is Made…
Cheesy Ground Beef and Rice Casserole
Ingredients
Quick Recipe
- 1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup
- 1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, uncooked
- 2 Cups Water
- 1 Cup Carrots, sliced
- 1/2-1 Pound Ground Beef, cooked
- Cheddar or Colby Jack Cheese, sliced about 9 pieces
Semi Homemade
- 1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, uncooked
- 2 Cups Water
- 1/2 to 1 Pound Ground Beef, cooked, depending on preference
- 1 Cup Carrots, sliced
- Pacific Foods Mushroom Gravy, 13.9 ounces
- 1/2 Cup Milk
- Colby Jack or Medium Cheddar Cheese, for topping
From Scratch
- 3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- 1/4 Cup Onion, minced
- 1 Clove Garlic, minced
- 1/2 Cup White Button Mushroom, minced
- 3 Tablespoons Flour
- 1/2 Cup Cream
- 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
- 1/4 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper
- Salt, to taste
- 2 Cups Water
- 1/2-1 Pound Ground Beef, cooked
- 1 Cup Carrots, sliced
- Cheddar or Colby Jack Cheese, sliced, about 9 slices
- 1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, uncooked
Instructions
Quick Recipe
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees and spray an 8×9" baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Stir together the soup, rice, water, carrots, and beef.1 Can Cream of Mushroom Soup, 1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, 2 Cups Water, 1 Cup Carrots, 1/2-1 Pound Ground Beef
- Place in the baking dish and bake for 90 minutes.
- Top with cheese slices and bake a few more minutes or until melted.Cheddar or Colby Jack Cheese
Semi Homemade
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees and grease an 8×9″ baking dish.
- Whisk together the water, mushroom gravy, and milk.2 Cups Water, Pacific Foods Mushroom Gravy, 1/2 Cup Milk
- Add the mushroom mix, rice, cooked beef and carrots to a bowl and stir to combine.1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, 1/2 to 1 Pound Ground Beef, 1 Cup Carrots
- Dump into an 8×9″ baking dish and bake, uncovered for 90 minutes.
- Add slices of cheese and return to the oven for another couple of minutes or until the cheese is melted.Colby Jack or Medium Cheddar Cheese
From Scratch
- In a medium pan over medium heat, add the butter and melt.3 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
- Whisk in the onion, garlic and mushrooms.1/4 Cup Onion, 1 Clove Garlic, 1/2 Cup White Button Mushroom
- Add the flour, whisking continually and cook for 30-60 seconds.3 Tablespoons Flour
- Add the cream and broth and cook until thick.1/2 Cup Cream, 1/2 Cup Chicken Broth
- Season and remove from heat.1/4 teaspoon Freshly Ground Black Pepper, Salt
- Heat the oven to 350 and spray an 8×9″ baking dish with nonstick spray.
- Place the cream mixture, rice, water, beef and carrots into the dish and stir to combine.2 Cups Water, 1/2-1 Pound Ground Beef, 1 Cup Long Grain White Rice, 1 Cup Carrots
- Bake for 90 minutes, add the cheese and bake for a few more minutes or until melted.Cheddar or Colby Jack Cheese
Recipe Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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The confusion about the water comes from both the note at the bottom and the instructions. The note should read that if you use the cream of mushroom soup in a can you need to omit the milk. The way it’s worded is very confusing. aside from that the recipe is great. Made it for dinner and loved it. Did 1.5 lbs beef 1lb mushrooms. Half an onion 8 cloves of garlic and carrots sliced on the mandolin. seasoned with all kinds of awesomeness and did two cups of rice so 4 cups of water. I used real mexican cheese and sharp cheddar. It was amazingly awesome. I love food all mused together and this reminded me of my childhood.
Thanks Amie, I’ll make sure to correct it. I guess I’m used to my recipe and thought I had made it clear. 😉 Love the addition of garlic by the way. It totally enhances the flavor as well as the other add ins.
Making this for dinner to night-time the oven as we speak!
I had to use a 13×9 pan, it seemed so liquidy. As I was reading the comments I noticed it said to omit the milk when using the can of soup – unfortunately I didn’t see that until it was already in the oven as its not in the instructions.
I also added a total of 4 cups of water, 2 in the ingredients list, plus 2 for the can of soup.
So after reading thru the comments it seems as though what needed to be done was only omit the milk and just 2 cups of water, not 4?
I’m still confused.
Can you give some clarification?
Hi Stephanie, Sorry for the confusion. I wish I could make the note at the bottom of the recipe stand out more. When you use a can of soup you use 2 cups water and omit the other ingredients. If you scroll through the recipe at the bottom there is a note, just in case you print it out or something and need the reminder. 🙂
still need a clearer answer…2 cups water total OR 4 cups water total?
I’m confused here as well. Do I use the 2 cups of water in the recipe, plus 2 cups with the mushroom soup (so 4 cups of water total)? Or just use 2 cups of water altogether? I know I need to omit the milk, but I’m confused about how much total water the recipe needs when using the canned mushroom soup. Thanks!
Just saw the updated response at the top. Thank you. I think it would be clearer if in the note at the bottom for mushroom soup users if it simply stated make as directed, but leave out the milk. Thanks for sharing your recipe and can’t wait to try it tonight!
Hi Maggie, I guess I’m confused as to what people are seeing. The note does say that if you choose to make it with the soup to omit the milk.
Omg, this was really good. Not sure what Trixi did, all you had to do was put condiments(salt, pepper, garlic powder) .I did it with wild rice and also add shopped celery, onions and frozen veggies. And topped it with Mexican blend cheese and Panko….. So good. Thank you for the recipe.
We love using the Mexican cheese blend, it adds more flavor for sure!
I made this for dinner using cream of mushroom soup. This is bland bland bland. Perhaps my palate is more sophisticated than this recipe can accommodate. I will not make this again.
Trixie, I’m sorry you felt that way. I prefer to make my own sauce which helps, but this recipe is for sure meant to be very basic. In the post I mention that I was a picky eater and this is what my mom would have to make for my lame palate and for some reason it still hits the spot even though it’s opposite of how we normally eat. Again, sorry you didn’t like it so much, but it’s perfect for those darn picky eaters. 😉
I think Trixie just doesn’t understand the basic principle of cooking…you don’t need to follow the recipe exactly.
Have some fun with it…if you like spicy food add some green chili peppers, add a package of taco seasoning to the ground beef, add some basic spices: garlic powder, chili powder, curry powder.
Add anything you want, just make sure there’s enough soup, milk, liquid to cook the rice. You can find out how much liquid you need to cook the rice on the rice box.
🙂
I hope you didn’t mean that to sound as snotty as it does, Trixie!
Hi Cindy, I’m sure she didn’t but I had to leave a comment as “snotty” just came up in our family. Our little one gave a nasty look about not sharing a sucker (gross, why would she) and I said, “Now let’s not be snotty” to which she replied, “I wasn’t blowing snot at her!!” Oh the joys of a 4 year old. Haha, sorry for the randomness but since that word was just used here I had to share the story. 🙂
Lol! That was cute!
Try it again, but next time use the homemade sauce she provides a link to. It is so full of flavor. It was so delicious, I don’t think I will use any store bought “cream of” soups again.
We feel the same. We much prefer homemade now. Thank you for the sweet compliment!
I thought this recipe sounded perfect for my meat and potatoes husband, for something different to add to the rotation that was quick and easy. Even though my husband is a no-spice guy, we too found this too bland. Needs more soup/sauce to rice ratio or the addition of some other flavor/seasoning. I did add onion to the ground beef and sauteed, but it needs more. The flavor of the soup barely came through, I’m sorry but we just felt like we were eating boiled rice and hamburger topped with some cheese.
Will be reading through the comments to see how this can be spiced up a bit.
Jeanine,
I totally understand. For my taste buds these days I’m totally with you, but for those picky eating kids this is what my mom could get us to eat and now I still like it because it reminds me of her. 🙂 You really can do anything with it, add more veggies, add taco seasoning when you cook the meat so it’s a taco casserole, etc etc. Can’t wait to hear what you do!
I made this tonight but I used brown and red instant rice with chia and kale from Sam’s club with the can mushroom soup the milk and water, also added a can of sweet corn. cooked for 1hr 30 mins and it was delicious! Thanks for the recipe.
That sounds delicious! Wish you were my neighbor so I could have tried it!
Do you cook the rice first??
Nope! It all gets stirred together and cooks in the oven. Only the meat is cooked first.
Just curious, could I cook the rice first and then mix it all together?
The rice needs to cook with the water and soup but you could do that and then mix in the meat and veggies, but at that point it’s really best to just do it all together. 🙂
I will be making this tomorrow night because it looks delish, so my question is…I saw another post you replied to that says omit the milk. Do you use 4 cups of water total or just 2 cups total? Thank You!
If you’re just using the canned soup you only need the water and not the milk as well. 🙂 So 1 can and 2 cups of water
Sorry, yes that is what I was referring to. I just wasn’t sure since I was using the canned soup if I was to omit the other 2 cups of water along with the milk or add the other 2 cups (for the rice) as well as the 2 cups you mix with the canned soup. Thank You for the recipe. I can’t wait to try it tonight as my family (or I should say my 9 year old son) is very picky and I think this one sounds like a winner!
Yay, so glad you got the comment. I am never sure if my responses are received. 🙂
I did make this back in December and I put the carrots (as I always do) in the food processor as to hide them from my son…he loved it! Just wanted to drop you note to say thanks for the recipe and it is now in our monthly rotation…not that I make things over and over again because I’m ALWAYS finding something new to make but when I can make a healthy dish that my son will eat then its a keeper! 😉
How smart to process them! I hope others see your comment and try it out. Thanks Tanya!
I make something similar on days when I get home from work too exhausted to think about cooking. I don’t do the baking as a casserole part. I simply cook ground beef and drain it then add some shredded cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese over low heat til the cheese melts. Then I throw in the rice that’s been cooking in the mean time and mix it all up with some beef gravy. Your recipe looks delicious so I’m going to have to try it and compare!
I’m going to make this with cream of mushroom soup. Do you use the 2 cups of water and no milk, or 2 cups of water plus the milk?
Thanks!
Hi Ali,
Just the water. 🙂
So, if your family doesn’t like mushrooms (truly, none of us do!), do you have a suggestion for a replacement for the cream of mushroom? 🙂
I’ve got non mushroom peeps too. Cream of celery works great. You can also use her homemade version just omit the mushrooms.
Hi, Macfamily! You can actually use so many things, there’s a link to a green bean casserole in the post and you can make that and skip the mushrooms, cream of celery, cream of chicken or even cream of broccoli. 🙂