Ground Beef & Rice Casserole

Easy, creamy, filling, and very much a throw it together and feed everybody kind of supper.

Nothing fancy, just good comfort food.

What you'll need

2 lbs ground beef
Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning, to taste
Garlic powder, to taste
Onion powder, to taste
Worcestershire sauce, to taste
1 (10.5 oz) can cream of mushroom with roasted garlic soup
Milk, fill the Campbell's soup can, or roughly 1 cup
Beef broth, fill the Campbell's soup can, or roughly 1 cup
1 (12 oz) bag frozen mixed vegetables
About 2 cups Minute Rice
Shredded cheese, as much as you want
Cooking spray or butter, for greasing the baking dish
Optional, as needed: a little extra beef broth, milk, water, or heavy cream if the mixture seems too thick

How I make it

1
Preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking dish.
2
Brown the ground beef in a large skillet, seasoning it with Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, and Worcestershire sauce as it cooks. Brown it completely, then drain off the excess grease.
3
Return the beef to the skillet and stir in the cream of mushroom with roasted garlic soup.
4
Use the empty soup can to measure: fill it with milk and add it to the skillet, then fill it again with beef broth and add that too. No need to dirty another measuring cup.
5
Stir in the entire 12 oz bag of frozen mixed vegetables and let everything warm together for a few minutes. They don't need to cook completely since they'll finish in the oven.
6
Stir in about 2 cups of Minute Rice and mix everything together really well. If it looks a little dry or thick, add a splash of beef broth, milk, water, or heavy cream. You want it creamy, the rice will soak up some of that liquid while it bakes. It may even look a little too watery at first, that rice really soaks it up.
7
Spread the mixture evenly into the prepared baking dish and top with as much shredded cheese as you want.
8
Cover with foil and bake for about 40 minutes.
9
Remove the foil and bake another 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and everything is hot and bubbly.
10
Let it sit for a few minutes, then scoop it up and call supper done.

Extra notes

Don't overthink the measurements on this one. If it looks too thick, add a splash of something. Want more veggies? Throw them in. Want more cheese? Obviously add more cheese. This is one of those recipes that doesn't need perfection to taste damn good.

A little rice trick: if you use more or less rice, aim for about the same amount of liquid as rice, plus roughly another 1/3 cup. Minute Rice soaks up more than you'd think, so don't panic if the mixture looks a little loose before it goes in the oven.