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Taco rice casserole is an easy dinner idea and freezer friendly. It is a great recipe to stretch your meat and easy on the budget.
Taco Rice Casserole
If you are looking for an easy dinner then this Taco casserole recipe is one you just have to try today! Remember, my freezer cooking adventure where I made 16 meals for the freezer? Well this easy taco casserole recipe was one of them, and it was a huge hit.
My husband practically licks the pan clean when I make it. It is seriously that good!
My recipe below is for 2 meals. Why? That way you can make one to eat now, and then the other one goes in the freezer. One mess, but you get 2 meals.
If you don’t want to do that, just cut the recipe in half. However, why wouldn’t you want to? You hardly have to do any extra work to make a second one.
To be honest, I normally make 4 of these taco casseroles because they freeze so great and they make a busy weeknight so much easier. Make this Cinco De Mayo Recipe for a Easy Mexican Recipes. You may even want to make this Ground Beef Tostadas Recipe.
Let’s get started with this taco casserole!
Ingredients for the best taco casserole:
- 2 lbs ground turkey (or ground beef)
- 1 onion chopped
- 2 cups corn
- 2 cans black beans
- 2 cans diced tomatoes with green chiles (aka Rotel)
- 1 package taco seasoning (We love homemade taco seasoning.)
- 4 cups cooked rice
- 3 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- 2 9×13 pans
How to make taco rice casserole:
If you want to this taco casserole with rice right away:
- Bake covered at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes until cooked through.
How to freeze taco rice casserole:
- Cover with foil and label. To reheat, let thaw overnight in fridge. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes covered with the foil. Then remove foil and cook until the top is nice and brown.
Time saving tip:
Another time saving tip is to use a small food chopper or food processor to quickly and easily chop onions and bell peppers.
If you do not have one of these, I highly recommend them. They are such a time saver and you make cooking so fast and easy.
I usually just chop the entire vegetable and freeze what I don’t need. It’s so nice to be able to just take the diced onion out of the freezer for recipes.
This is how I meal prep. It’s so quick and easy and helps get dinner on the table fast.
Learn and how to freeze onions and also how to freeze peppers to save so much time in the kitchen! Lots of the recipes we cook call for onions and peppers so this is such a great time tip that we use frequently.
You will love having peppers and onions all ready to go! It is quick and easy.
Everyone will enjoy taco rice casserole!
This recipe will surprise you. It doesn’t seem like much, but it has some amazing flavor. We served it with salad to make it a complete meal.
If you want, you could add some crushed tortilla chips on top before you serve it. YUM! My husband even likes to top his with lettuce and fresh tomatoes to make almost like a taco salad. Green onions are also amazing.
If you need Taco Dinner Ideas, this casserole is a great option to serve. You may want to make this Walking Taco Recipe.
You can use white rice or brown rice in the casserole. Both are delicious.
However your family eats it, I think you will love it. Make one for dinner and one for the freezer. You will thank me later. 🙂
It is also a great meal to take to someone recovering from surgery or with a new baby. You can grab one from the freezer and bless them with a great meal.
Let us know once you try it and how it turns out for you. It is sure to be a hit with everyone!
Print this easy taco rice casserole recipe below:
Taco Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Ground Beef
- 1 Onion chopped
- 2 cups Corn
- 2 cans Black Beans drained and rinsed (15 ounces each)
- 2 cans Diced Tomatoes with Green Chilis (10 ounces each)
- 1 Package of Taco Seasoning (or 4 tablespoons of homemade seasoning)
- 1 tsp Salt
- 4 cups Cooked Rice (I used regular that I cooked but you can use any)
- 3 cups Shredded Cheddar Cheese
Instructions
- First brown your ground beef. Add in chopped onions and cook until soft.
- Stir in Taco seasoning seasoning.
- Add corn, tomatoes and beans.
- Spray 2 9×13 pans with non stick spray. Spoon 2 cups of rice into the bottom of each pan, spreading it out evenly.
- Spoon the meat mixture over the rice.
- Top with the ½ of the cheese on each pan.
If you want to eat it right away:
- Bake covered at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes until cooked through.
If you want to freeze it:
- Cover with foil and label. To reheat, let thaw overnight in fridge. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes covered with the foil. Then remove foil and cook until the top is nice and brown.
Recipe Notes
Nutrition Facts
You might also like our One Pot Cheesy Taco Pasta Recipe where everything is made in one pot.
I have made a recipe similar to this one for several years so the little differences in this recipe come as a refreshing change. I used half chorizo half ground turkey because my husband loves a burrito of the same meat base at our favorite Mexican Restaurant. I will donate the second casserole to my local drive through food bank as they serve people who live in cars. Very tasty recipe.
Thank you so much for sharing Kari. I loving hear about you donating food – That is awesome! Also, the changes of the beef to chorizo and ground turkey sound amazing! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I am planning to make this soon. My question is when adding the Taco seasoning do I add 3/4 cup of water as directed on package. Thank you in advance.
Ann – No I don’t add the water in this recipe just the taco seasoning. I hope you enjoy this recipe!
Love this…easy and yummy.
I am surprised I didn’t write a review yet (or at least I cannot find it), probably because I love to make this recipe on a busy night when I have no extra time. It is definitely on our regular rotation for sure! One of the best things about it is that it uses ingredients that I most always have on hand. I also throw leftover corn (often from the cob in the summer), and cooked rice in the freezer, and pull them out and use them up in your casserole recipe. I seldom have Rotel on hand, but keep canned, diced tomatoes in my pantry, to which I add a small can of green chilies. Thanks for this simple, satisfying recipe!
I’m so glad you liked it!
I’ve made this several times over the last few years. I don’t like onions but do grate a zucchini to add a little extra veggies. My kids love it. We top with lettuce, avocado and sour cream and scoop with tortilla chips. And I love that it makes an extra for the freezer no extra work!
Making this for supper tonight. It smells so good!
What size can for the beans and diced tomatoes
I use 15 ounce cans for the beans and 10 ounce cans for the diced tomatoes with green chilies.
I made this and REALLY loved it. I used Mexican corn instead of just regular corn, YUM! The recipe doesn’t say if you should drain the diced tomato with green chilis. I drained it but next time I’ll leave some of the natural juice from the diced tomatoes so that it can seep down into the rice. I served mine with a side of sour cream.
Silly question… is it 12 servings each pan? Or 12 servings total for the 2 pans? Delicious!
Hey Megan – The 12 servings is for both pans or 6 servings per pan.
This casserole recipe sounded good when I read it, but it was even better than I thought. We all loved it:
I will make it many times again. Loved the easy prep.
Instead if diced tomatoes I used a jar of salsa! It worked perfectly! Great fast recipe!
Thanks for sharing! I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
Made this for dinner tonight. I only made half the recipe. I didn’t know if I should use the liquid in the tin of diced tomatoes. I dsdrained it, but then added water. I should have left some or all of the juice.
I made half the recipe for three people. My 87 year old mother, who lives with us, doesn’t like beans (who knew) and doesn’t want any leftovers.
However my husband and I loved it! We ate lots and have four more meals.
I definitely recommend and will make again.
Thanks for sharing!
What if I don’t use cheese? Will it be fine?
Yes, I think it will still taste great without cheese.
Well…. I tried it using “instant rice” – which said “pre-cooked” on the box – so I didn’t bother to cook the rice before I started the recipe. I figured that the liquids from the other ingredients would soften/cook it for me. I was wrong. Cook the rice first! Mine came out hard/uncooked. I’ve added some water to the pan and I’m reheating it in hopes that the rice will soften. Also, I layered Tater Tots on the top and topped them with a Mexican cheese also. That part came out really nice. I used one and a half packets of taco seasoning and some Tabasco to spice it up a bit more. I had some of the meat mixture left over and tried that on left over mashed potatoes. Very good!
Yummy, healthy, I added chopped peppers and a can of tomato sauce before covering with cheese. Crowd pleaser.
Fabulous!! Was a huge hit with my family and friends. Will definitely make again soon
Hi! What size can of tomatoes?
Thank you for this recipe! I absolutely *love* it! However, I use two packets of taco seasoning when I double it. One packet was very bland. Not sure if that’s a typo?
Delicious and so quick and easy!
My husband said I could make this casserole anytime! He loved it. I made two and gave one to a new mom and her family. Great recipe. Easy and so delicious!