Italian Beef and Rice (2024)

Ingredients Needed and Substitutions

Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The full recipe with quantities is listed below this text in the recipe card. If substitutions are available for this recipe, they'll be listed here. If you don't see a substitution you are looking for, please leave a comment below.

• ground beef / hamburger meat (if you use non-lean ground beef, you'll need to drain excessive rendered fat)
• herbs and spices (fresh rosemary, fresh parsley, garlic powder, and dried oregano)
• sun-dried tomatoes (get the oil-packed if you can!)
• canned diced tomatoes (or if you have good quality fresh, feel free to use them here)
• long-grain white rice (if you use another rice such as Jasmin or Basmati it may change the liquid and cook time so try to stick with long-grain white rice)
• onion + garlic + red bell pepper (a bit of my take on an Italian sofrito, but you can change up for any other veggies or aromatics you like)
• beef broth or water (beef broth will obviously produce a more full-flavored end result, so use it if you have it)
• olive oil
• parmesan cheese (use good quality if you can)
• coarse kosher salt (This recipe was tested using Diamond Crystal coarse kosher salt. If you use Morton's kosher salt or fine salt, decrease the volume by half)

This is a quick visual overview of the steps needed to make this recipe. If you are looking for the full recipe, keep scrolling!

Step 1: Rinse the rice and set aside to drain.

Step 2: Cook the Italian sofrito.

See Also

Beef and Rice with VeggiesGround Beef and Rice SkilletSkillet Ground Beef And Rice Skillet DinnerItalian Beef and Rice Skillet

Step 3: Add in the ground beef. Drain any excessive rendered fat (a little is ok, but you don't want it to be super greasy).

Step 4: Sprinkle the diced tomatoes and cheese over the rice, then add the beef broth. Try to ensure all of the rice is submerged in the liquid.

Step 5: Bring to a boil before lowering the heat and letting it cook for 20 minutes.

Step 6: Return the cover to the skillet, and let it sit for 5 minutes until the rice is fully cooked. Sprinle with additional cheese, rosemary and parsley.

Tips and Troubleshooting

The most common tricky part of making a one-pot rice dish is ensuring the rice is fully and evenly cooked through. Here are some quick tips to ensure success:

1. Don't skip rinsing the rice. This step is important because it rinses all that starch off of the rice, making for a lighter and fluffier dish. Also make sure to drain it well after rinsing it to not add to much additional liquid.
2. After adding the rice to the skillet, ensure that any stray pieces of rice on the sides of the skillet are moved down into the liquid so they cook through.
3. Measure the water (and the rice) carefully to adhere to the correct water-to-rice ratio.
4. Modulate the heat: Use medium-high heat to first bring the mixture up to a boil. Once it reaches boiling point, cover the skillet with a tight-fitting lid and lower the heat to a low setting. If your stove tends to have hot spots (like mine does), you can periodically rotate the skillet over the heat to make sure that the rice is cooked evenly.

In my experience, even following all of these tips, the type of rice you use (and how "old" it is), as well as the type of pan you use, can affect the rate of rice absorption and time needed to cook through. Here are some troubleshooting tips in case you run into problems:

If the rice isn't cooked but there is still some liquid left, keep cooking it, and cover it on low until the rice is cooked through. Let it steam off heat for an additional 5-10 minutes.

If the rice isn't cooked and all the water has evaporated: add about ½ cup of water and continue to cook on low, until the rice is cooked through. Let it steam off heat for an additional 5-10 minutes.

If the rice is cooked and there is still some liquid left: cook on low with the cover off until the liquid has evaporated.