Taco Rice with Queso (2024)

A one-pan skillet dinner recipe made with ground beef, taco seasoning and Mexican style rice drenched in an easy queso cheese sauce.

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My baby boy’s absolute favorite type of food in the world is Mexican. When the family’s going out to eat he begs to go to our local Mexican restaurant or Moe’s. He BEGS.

When we’re there he always orders the same thing or a combination of dishes that yield three things: taco meat, Mexican rice and queso.

When we’re at our local Mexican restaurant, that comes in the form of soft tacos, queso dip and a side of rice. When we’re at Moe’s, it comes in the form of a burrito made with taco meat, queso and rice.

However he orders the three, he inevitably mixes them all together (ditching the tortillas) and gobbles it all up with a fork. And I must say, it looks mighty tasty!

We eat a ton of ground beef during the week. Whether it’s spaghetti, hamburger steaks or even Hamburger Helper, ground beef is the cheapest and fastest way for me to get supper on the table after work.

So I decided to create a recipe that my boy will LOVE using taco seasoned beef and rice that’s also super-fast to get on the table. Plus sometimes ya just get tired of eating the same ol’ things week after week.

I made this recipe by combining two easy staples – taco meat and Mexican rice – and prepared all of it in one skillet.

Less dishes to clean makes me a happy mama! Then I drizzled it all with quick and easy homemade queso cheese sauce and BOOM! I’ve got a one-pot wonder that’s done in 30 minutes!

And a happy boy.

To make this we’re going to cook the ground beef and onion in a skillet (make sure you choose a skillet with a lid), seasoning both with salt and pepper.

Then we’ll add uncooked white rice, a packet of taco seasoning, garlic and chicken broth and let everything cook together until the rice is tender.

When ready to serve you can leave everything in the skillet or spoon it into a serving bowl (which is what I did for the sake of taking pretty pictures) then drench the whole lot in velvety queso sauce.

I have a recipe below for making easy queso but feel free to use your favorite prepared queso sauce (store bought or from your favorite Mexican restaurant) if you prefer!

TIP: I make this and similar recipes so often, I stock up on the taco meal kits you find at the grocery store when they're on sale. You know, the ones that come with a packet of taco seasoning, taco sauce and taco shells or soft tacos? I use all three of those ingredients frequently enough that it's nice to have the ingredients around when I need them.

If you enjoy quick and easy main dishes made with ground beef, try some of these recipes too!

• Hamburger Steaks with Brown Gravy - The BEST recipe for Hamburger Steaks with easy, homemade brown gravy.
• S.O.S. Casserole- A quick and easy casserole recipe made with S.O.S. (creamed beef) gravy topped with buttered toast cubes perfect for breakfast or dinner.
• - Hamburger steaks, potatoes and gravy cook in one pan for an entire scratch-made meal made in just 30 minutes.
• Egg Roll Stir-Fry - A skillet recipe with all the flavor of an egg roll without the wrapper! Like an unstuffed egg roll in a bowl!
• Unstuffed Cabbage Roll Skillet - All the goodness of cabbage rolls without precooking the rice or parboiling the cabbage in this deconstructed cabbage roll recipe that cooks in a skillet!
• Smothered Salisbury Steak Tips - A quick and easy recipe for Salisbury Steak "tips" smothered in gravy and onions in a quick and easy weeknight meal.

NOTES ON MAKING TACO RICE & QUESO

• We need the pan drippings from the ground beef for flavor and richness but if your beef produces an excessive amount of fat, drain some of it if you prefer.
• Feel free to use whichever queso sauce you like best. I’ve been known to order an extra cup from Moe’s just to use with this recipe.
• If you can’t find the Queso Blanco variety of Velveeta, use white American cheese (it’s actually better than using Velveeta but I never feel like standing in line at the deli to get the white American cheese).
• Keep temperature at the lowest temperature possible while still maintaining a simmer.
• Do not open the lid to the pot/pan or stir more often than necessary.
• Only stir with a fork and be sure to scrape the bottom of the pot/pan when stirring.
• Don’t stir or open the lid of the pot/pan the last 10 minutes of cooking.

Recipe for Taco Rice with Queso