So whether you’re making it on game day or eating it as a main meal, this Mexican Ground Beef Skillet takes just one skillet and only 40 minutes of your time!
We love ground beef recipes at Fit Foodie Finds because beef adds so much flavor to anything you cook. Just continue scrolling to see more healthful ground beef recipes.
This Mexican Beef Skillet is a Fit Foodie reader favorite. It’s one of our best healthy ground beef recipes because it’s packed with vegetables, high in protein, and made with just one skillet!
Absolutely one of the BEST Healthy Ground Beef Recipes!
This is probably one of the best healthy ground beef recipes we’ve ever made! It has hundreds of 5-star reviews and many of you have made it many times over.
It’s all about versatility. Want to eat it as a healthy dinner idea? Need a game day app? Want a meal prep lunch recipe? Boy, it works for all of that!
Made in just one skillet, this Mexican skillet recipe is packed with flavor, plus it’s packed with veggies, beans, and rice too!
In this post, we’ll teach you how to make one of the best ground beef recipes on the internet, how to serve it, and how to freeze it.
What Does this Mexican Ground Beef Pan Taste Like?
Similar to our Mexican casserole, this skillet is made with ground beef, taco seasoning, rice, beans, and plenty of vegetables. It’s similar in flavor to a burrito bowl, but made in one pot on the stove.
How to Make a Mexican Ground Beef Pan
INGREDIENTS
- Garlic: every good Mexican dish starts with garlic and that’s a fact. Feel free to add more if your heart desires.
- yellow onion
- bell peppers: we like to incorporate vegetables into our dishes when we can and bell peppers fit quite nicely in this pan. Choose whatever color you like and double up if you feel like it.
- ground beef: the star of this dish is actually the ground beef. Now, we like a little fat on our ground beef, which is why we use 85%, but feel free to use less fatty beef OR even swap it out for ground turkey.
- taco seasoning: we always have an all-purpose taco seasoning in our house. It’s meant exactly for recipes like this! Basic seasoning, but a lot of flavor.
- tomato sauce: a little tomato sauce goes a long way. All you need is 1/2 cup and you’re good to go!
- green chilies: green chilies are mild for a pepper, but they taste really good. If you like spicy, be my guest and use jalapeños instead!
- black beans: black beans are one of the essential Mexican ingredients. I keep many cans in my cupboard because they are cheap and high in protein. Feel free to use pinto!
- Instant rice: instant rice is pure magic. Let me emphasize instant because for it to cook well, you need to use instant rice, not regular rice. We tested it with brown and white and it worked great!
- grated cheese: all pans deserve to have grated cheese on them. Add as much or as little as you want!
INSTRUCTIONS
As you can tell, this recipe only requires one pan and one baking dish! That means the instructions are rather simple.
- Cook the Vegetables: Start by partially sautéing the bell pepper, garlic, and onion in olive oil. The goal here is to partially cook them, but not completely.
- Add the Beef: Move the vegetables to one side and add the ground beef. Saute until the beef is fully cooked and then mix everything together.
- Add Other Ingredients: Add the remaining ingredients to the pot and bring to a boil. Then, reduce the heat and cover. Let it simmer for 15-20 minutes or until the rice softens.
As easy as 1, 2, 3! And cleanup is a breeze since you only dirty one pot.
Storage Instructions
Refrigerator: Allow the ground beef pan to cool completely. Then transfer into a glass container. Will last in the refrigerator for up to 3-5 days.
Freeze for Later
This is a great recipe to freeze for later! Hold off on adding the cheese and then allow the skillet to cool completely. Place into a freezer-safe gallon-size bag, then remove as much air as possible. Seal and freeze for up to 3 months.
Serving Suggestion:
- Nachos: Our personal favorite way to serve this skillet is with tortilla chips. Meaning, you can eat them as nachos for a main course or appetizer! Cough cough, game day! Try our ground beef nachos.
- Tacos: Take some street taco shells and stuff some of them inside as filling. You’ve got it all -> meat, veggies, and rice! Add a scoop of guac and you’re good to go! Here’s our favorite ground beef taco recipe.
- Bowls: Eat this skillet as is with #allthetoppings. Think avocado, hummus, fresh cilantro, and lime juice! Here’s our favorite Beef Taco Bowl recipe.
- Burrito: Have leftover skillet? Use it as a filling for freezer burritos. Just have to follow the directions in our Freezer Beef Burritos post on how to freeze them for later!
Mexican Ground Beef Skillet
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp minced minced garlic
- ½ medium yellow onion minced
- 2 large bell peppers diced
- 1 lb. 85% ground beef
- 3 tbsp homemade taco seasoning
- ½ cup tomato sauce
- 2 tbsp green chiles
- 15 oz. canned black beans drained and rinsed
- 1 cup quick-cooking brown rice quick-cooking white rice works too!
- 1.5 cups beef broth any kind
- ½ cups Mexican shredded cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Heat olive oil over medium/high heat in a large nonstick skillet.
- When olive oil is fragrant, add garlic, onion, and bell pepper. Saute for 3-5 minutes.
- Then, move veggies to the side and add in ground beef. Saute ground beef for 7-9 minutes, or until fully cooked. Mix everything together in the pan.
- Once the beef is fully cooked, add taco seasoning, tomato sauce, green chiles, and black beans and cook for a few minutes. Then, add in quick-cooking rice and broth. Bring to a boil over medium/high heat.
- Once boiling, turn down to low and cover. Let simmer for around 20 minutes or until the rice has softened and absorbed the majority of the liquid.
- Sprinkle cheese on top of skillet and either let melt naturally or pop it in the oven at 400ºF for a few minutes to fully melt cheese.
- Serve beef skillet with chips!