Spicy Ground Beef and Rice (GFCF)

I have been crazy busy with searching for good family friendly (and easy) meals for me to make that are GFCF to replace my old standbys--like pasta and hamburgers.

After a lot of failed attempts, I found one that everyone liked. Everyone being, me, my hubby, my 16 year old sister AND most importantly, Gabriel.

Not bad for a good cross section of people.

Here is the recipe which is modified from one I found when I was searching (recipezaar.com) and was not originally intended to be GFCF. But I always love a good challenge. :)

Now, here is the disclaimer: I am not a GFCF expert, and there could very well be traces of Gluten in any of the items I am using, so please use your common sense and read the labels of everything before you use it. We are not Nazi Gluten Free at my house, we are a little more laid back (ie, didn't buy gluten free soaps, or shampoos, and am not a maniac about any ingredient that may have minor traces of gluten). Please do not substitute my judgement for your own as every kid is different.

Now back to the show.

Here it the recipe with my alterations:

Ingredients:

· Extra Virgin Olive Oil to coat pan
· 1 pound ground beef
· 1 medium onion, finely chopped
· 1 clove garlic, finely minced
· 1 can Rotell w/liquid (could substitute canned tomatoes w/liquid)
· 1 1/2 cups water
· 1/2 cup ketchup
· 3/4 cup long grain rice, uncooked
· 1 teaspoon chili powder or more to taste
· 1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
· 1/2 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
· dash black pepper
· shredded Mexican blend cheese, for garnish, (omit for casein free, but Jeff and I liked it)

These ingredients are all things I have on hand. If you do not have them on hand, omit or substitute at will. If Rotell is too spicy for you even using the mild, use canned tomatoes and some sauteed green peppers. Or you can make this even spicier by using hot sauce of your choice instead of Worcestershire sauce as that makes it slightly tangy.

Easy prep instructions:

Coat the pan in EVOO (love you Rachel Ray!), and then brown the ground beef. Add the onion and garlic (and green peppers if you are choosing that route) and saute for about 2-3 minutes or until the onions are clear.

Add the Rotell, water, ketchup, rice, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper, stir and bring to a boil. Once it is boiling, reduce to a medium/low simmer and cover for 30 minutes or until the rice is tender and ready to eat.

Once it is finished it will be casserole style (kind of looks like slop when you serve it, but it's tasty slop). We added cheese at the table for those of us that can eat cheese and some crushed chips (tortilla or Frito's) on top for garnish.

Other alterations would be to add a can of rinsed black beans with the tomatoes, rice and spices. That is a great way to add some more fiber and protein to your diet. You could also use the black beans in place of the ground beef if you are vegetarian or just don't have beef on hand.

I also love the idea of serving it with corn tortillas as a sort of rice and beans taco. Or, if you have GFCF enchilada sauce (haven't checked to see if the kind I buy is Gluten free or not...) you could wrap them up and bake them enchilada style.

You can serve this with a side of vegetables, an easy salad or just a little sweet fresh corn (a fave at our house). All yummy ideas!

Our family also talked about putting the crushed chips and cheese on it (you can use soy cheese) and baking it before serving --as more of a hot dish casserole. If you do this, it will require less cooking time on the stove so that the rice doesn't turn to mush in the oven.

There are many ways I can think of altering this dish, and that is why I like it so much!

I hope someone out there gets the chance to make this easy easy meal. If you do, let me know what you think and I will publish your review.

Happy GFCF Cooking,
H