This hearty Italian Beef and Rice Skillet is made in less than 30 minutes and perfect for your busy weeknight!
My one pan Mexican Beef and Rice Skillet is where I got the inspiration for this recipe, I just switched up the flavor profiles for a more Italian twist.
Another quick and easy skillet dinner! A great way to use up your ground beef for a delicious meal.
Ground Beef and Rice Skillet
I wasn’t necessarily going for an “Italian” flavor profile when I set out to switch up this dish, but when I started playing around with different liquids and veggies to add, it all just fell into place.
Ingredients Needed
Here’s the basic list of ingredients you’ll need in order to whip up Italian Beef and Rice Skillet. As always, you can find the full list of ingredients located in the printable recipe card below.
- Ground Beef – you can swap with ground turkey if desired
- Onion – Diced
- Diced Tomatoes – no need to drain the liquid
- Mixed Veggies – Peas and Carrots (any variety of vegetable would work too)
- White Rice – You can switch the rice out with any small pasta for a pasta-based version of this recipe
- Beef Broth – low sodium
- Seasonings – Oregano, Garlic, Basil, salt and pepper
- Mozzarella Cheese – Shredded
How To Make Italian Beef Skillet
I love recipes like this because they come together so easy. There is little preparation and even less dishes
Cook the Ground Beef
In a heated skillet, brown the ground beef until there is no more pink. Drain the excess fat out of the pan.
Cook The Rice
Return the skillet to the stove and add in the rest of the ingredients except the mozzarella. Stir everything together. Bring the mixture to a light boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer.
Cover and let everything cook until the rice is nice and tender. This should take about 17 minutes.
Finishing Touches
Once everything is cooked, fluff up the rice with a fork and top off the skillet with the mozzarella cheese. For a melted effect, cover the pan for an extra 3 minutes. Top with chopped parsley if desired.
Tips and Variations
P
RICE or PASTA?
Feel free to swap out the rice for a smaller pasta – similar to this Italian Beef and Pasta. The cooking time may vary when using different kinds of pasta.
VEGGIES
If you don’t have frozen peas and carrots on hand, you can use your favorite type of veggies – green beans, chopped broccoli or zucchini would be nice!
EXTRA SAUCE
For a saucier dish, try adding in 1/2 cup tomato sauce after the rice has cooked. If you want a cheesier dish, add parmesan to the mozzarella.
FREEZER FRIENDLY
This one pan meal is great because it’s easy to prep ahead and freeze. Once it’s cooked I like to stash it in my Souper Cubes and freeze for a later date. It will last in the freezer for up to 3 months.
One of my favorite things about this dish is that I pretty much have all these ingredients on hand at any time.
Similar Recipes
If you love how simple this recipe is, and I bet you would love these ones too!
- French Onion Beef and Rice – A classic flavor turned into a tasty easy dinner
- Creamy Ground Beef Taco Pasta – Another use of ground beef mixed with pasta
- Ground Beef Stuffed Pepper Skillet – One skillet recipe for a simplified stuffed peppers recipe
- Chicken Fajita Rice Skillet – A quick Mexican skillet dinner using fresh ingredients
I know you’re going to love this quick and easy ground beef recipe too!
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Italian Beef and Rice Skillet
Ingredients
- 1/2 onion, diced
- 1 lb. ground beef
- 15 oz diced tomatoes, canned
- 1 1/2 cups mixed veggies, peas and carrots
- 3/4 cup white rice
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp garlic salt
- 1/2 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp pepper
- 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
Instructions
- Brown the ground beef and onion in a large skillet until no longer pink, drain any excess fat.
- Return skillet to stove top and add in the tomatoes, mixed veggies, rice, beef broth, oregano, garlic salt, basil and pepper. Stir until combined and bring to a light boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, cover and let cook until rice is tender (about 17 minutes).
- Fluff rice with fork and top with the mozzarella cheese. Cover with the lid for about 3 minutes to let cheese melt. Sprinkle with parsley if desired. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Very good and quick to throw together! I used frozen peas, green beans would be good too I think ! It’s a great basic recipe that could be altered so many ways, different meat, spices, whatever.
We made this several times with ground beef, as the recipe is written, and enjoyed quite well. Then one day, we were out of ground beef but had ground pork. We used the ground pork, and that took it to the next level! That was the only change we made, but I highly recommend it.
I liked this a lot! The label on my can of diced tomatoes said “basil, garlic, oregano.” They did well, but I had to guess on adjusting those herbs given in the recipe. I used 2 beef bouillon cubes in 2 c of water for the broth. I kept everything else identical to the recipe. My husband dished himself exyra servings repeatedly, so he must have liked it, too! Good job, IwashYouDry! Thanks SO much! Can’t wait to try the Mexican version!
Very good quick dish with ingredients already on hand!
It was soooo good and very easy cleanup – I made this with sweet Italian sausage 🙂
Did you use fresh veggies, canned or frozen in this recipe. Would love to try it tomorrow.
THank you
I used a bag of frozen steamers that I just dumped in. Worked well.
I also changed out the veggies to diced green pepper, celery and cherry tomatoes. I used organic brown basmati rice that requires only a 90 second heat up and did not add any liquid to the dish. I opted to add some shredded Italian Blend cheese at the time of serving. We really enjoyed the one pan preparation and will make this often. Thank you!
Shawn
Doubled beef, bumped rice to 1 cup. Subbed zucchini, orange pepper and celery for the frozen veg. and added a whole diced fresh tomato and a squeeze of tomato paste. No cheese…maybe some for those that want it at serving time. My college, protein-crazy/rock-climbing son will surely love it. Thanks for the idea and for sharing.
Will this freeze and reheat well?
This recipe comes together easily and is full of flavor! I’ll be making this again. I used fresh veggies I had on hand and diced them in small pieces, so they were cooked through at the end of simmer time. Thanks for sharing!
It was easy to make and was great. Will be making it again.
Quite tasty recipe. I made it as directed except I only had a can cruched/diced tomatoes but worked well.
We love this dish! When I make it, I substitute sliced zucchini for the mixed vegetables.
Well, I needed something simple and I’d thawed out some grnd beef already so gave this a go. Added a little bell pepper, celery to the saute. It was easy as promised. Will definitely make again. For us, I will double most of the dried seasonings & use 2 cans of tomatoes (Italian & Fireroasted) for complexity. Also, will add 1/2 cup or so chop bell pepper & celery ea. to the saute again. We also felt it was a bit much rice so I’ll go to 2/3 Cup instead. My hubby really enjoyed it on this Friday after work as it is pretty cold here for Florida. Thanks so much.Kj in Tampa Bay
I am looking to lower the sodium in this recipe. Did you use regular broth, unsalted broth or no salt added broth?
The nutritional information is calculated with regular broth. So you could use a lower sodium broth and also use just garlic powder instead of garlic salt to reduce the overall sodium level.
Made this tonight and it was really good. Next time I’m going to add a little sour cream on top of the cheese. Husband and adult grandkids loved it.
Awesome! I’m so glad you all enjoyed it Doria!
OMG! Absolutely delicious! will definitely make this again. thank you for sharing .
I had my doubts when I was making it, but all 3 of my pickiest eaters loved it. So easy! Especially appreciated a recipe that was gluten-free and easily made dairy-free.
Do you instant or reg rice in the Italian beef and rice skillet? It’s looks so easy and delicious I want to try it the next time family is over.
This recipe uses regular long grain white rice. Enjoy!
My husband loved this. I just put in ground beef and leftover rice. Since the rice was already cooked I used a small amount of broth. Used Italian Seasoning instead of Oregano. Added a dash of Lea and Perrin also with a cup of Rao. Unless it’s a bakery recipe I can’t seem to stop myself from doctoring up recipes. I did taste it before and it was very good. Husband approved.
Can you use brown rice?
Made this tonite, it was so easy and tasty will definitely make again.
Also checked out the Mexican version and will be trying that too.
Thanks for the recipe.
I made this low fodmap friendly (it’s a diet I need to follow for stomach issues) by using green onions , no garlic and making sure the broth was onion and garlic free, and switching out some of the veggies and it was very delicious!
Can you use instant rice?
Instant rice will change the amount of liquid needed and time it takes to make this recipe.
Thank you looking forward to trying this.
What a great evening meal.
Fixed this dish for dinner tonight and my husband loved it. It’s definitely a keeper.
I’m so thrilled you enjoyed it Cheryl!
Such a good recipe! I didnt have frozen veggies so I just used some red and green bell pepper I had on hand and cooked it with the meat and onion, then added in the rest. Everyone in my family loved it! Reminded us of stuffed bell peppers, but without the outer bell pepper shell. Thank you for a great family meal!❤
I love that you were able to make it work with what you had on hand! Sounds very similar to my Ground Beef Stuffed Pepper skillet! 🙂
I found only using 3/4 cup rice was too soupy so I upped to a full cup the second time and it came out much better. Overall this is a fantastic super easy recipe that everyone loves.
Can i use brown rice instead of white and ground turkey?
Yes and yes! The brown rice will take longer to cook through though.
Hi! How much longee.i have so much brown rice and scared to cook with it ♀️
A wonderful substitution is using riced cauliflower instead of real rice or pasta. The flavor is the same but many fewer calories.
Hi there, are the veggies frozen? thanks!
The peas and carrots are a frozen blend, yes! 🙂
What is the serving size? 1 cup? Thank
You!
I would say about 1 1/2 cups.
What do I do if I don’t have beef broth
You could use chicken broth, or if you just have water, that will do. It just wont be as flavorful.
We didn’t care for it.
Too bland .
How would you adjust this if you wanted to sub cauli rice after its cooked. I assume liquid would need to be reduced but how much??
You wouldn’t really need more than maybe 1/4 cup liquid to keep it all moist.
I tried this with Basmati rice, zucchini instead of peas and carrots, and Fire Roasted diced tomatoes vs regular diced tomatoes. Very impressed with how good this was and how easy it was to cook.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Tony!
Is the rice cooked or uncooked? I cannot wait to try this!
The rice is uncooked when you start!
What is 1 tomatoes?
Sorry, when we switched recipe cards some info didn’t transfer! You’ll need 1 (15oz) can diced tomatoes.
I’ve made this several times and I always use zucchini in place of the mixed vegetables. I dice it and add it when I add the rice. It’s so good! It’s a regular on my menu rotation!
Love the zucchini in there!
Can I double the recipe?
Yes, definitely. You’ll just need a large pan for it.
What is one portion size
Hey Theresa, I would say a single portion would be about 1 cup.
Love this recipe!! Modified it and added cauliflower rice at the end to reduce carbs!!
Can the beef be substituted with ground turkey?
Definitely!
Same time and liquid for all white rice? Basmati , jasmine for ex
Thanks
I use Jasmine rice for this recipe, but Basmati should work just fine with the same liquid and time.
Easy, tasty, forgiving recipe my family enjoyed. I didn’t have all the ingredients, i.e., only frozen corn and stewed tomatoes, so I added extra Italian seasoning. Thank you for a really great idea!
So glad you were able to make it work with what you had on hand!
Hello, I am not much of a cook and I stumbled across this recipe. I made it and my family loved it! It is now one of my new go to meals. It tastes so good and so easy to make. Thank you!
That’s fantastic! I’m so glad you enjoyed it Maricruz!
I made this today. My family of six loved it! Thank you for the recipe. Greetings from our family from the netherlands
Fantastic! So glad you all enjoyed it!
SO good!!! Definitely 5 stars. I didn’t have canned tomatoes so I used 3 very small ones, still used 2 cups of broth, and it came out perfect. Still 17 min cooking time. Thank you so much!!!
Awesome! So glad you enjoyed the recipe!