Spanish Rice Casserole (freezer meal)

I love it when a meal doesn’t need side dishes. This cheesy all in one Spanish Rice casserole freezer meal is so easy to make. Everything is cooked ahead so it can be on the table quickly.We’ve been making this recipe for many years. It makes it into about every second freezer meal rotation because it’s just a solidly good recipe. And it’s on the table in 30 or 40 minutes so it’s great for busy weeknights. 

Spanish Rice Recipe:

• 1 lb. ground beef, cooked
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 4 cups pasta sauce
• 2 cups cooked white or brown rice, cooked and cooled
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 1/2 green pepper, diced
• 2 1/4 oz. can sliced black olives (or half the can)
• 2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Assembly instructions:

1. Brown the beef.
2. Cook and cool the rice.
3. Chop the vegetables.
4. Place the grated cheddar cheese in a medium resealable bag.
5. Put all the other ingredients in a large resealable bag and squish to mix together. Remove excess air and seal. Staple the bags together above the seal.
6. Freeze.

Cooking instructions:

1. Thaw.
2. Put the contents of the large bag in a large casserole dish and top with cheese.
3. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350°.

Variations of the Spanish Rice Casserole:

• Use veggie ground round in place of the ground beef to make this meal vegetarian.
• Omit the olives if you’re not a fan of black olives or add the full can if you can’t get enough.
• Use red or orange peppers in place of the green peppers if you want a milder flavour. 
• Serve with hot sauce if you like things spicy.
• You can change up the flavours a bit by trying this recipe with different pasta sauces. Use whichever your favourites are.

You can find this easy freezer meal recipe in our Gluten Free Freezer Meal Menu Plan. It also contains other recipes, prep lists, shopping lists, and printable labels.

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Spanish Rice

Prep Time

25 mins

Cook Time

35 mins

 

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: Mediterranean

Ingredients

• 1 lb. ground beef cooked
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 4 cups pasta sauce
• 2 cups (cooked) white or brown rice cooked and cooled
• 1/2 cup onion diced
• 1/2 green pepper diced
• 2 1/4 oz. can sliced black olives or half the can
• 2 cups cheddar cheese shredded

Instructions

Assembly instructions:

1. Brown the beef.
2. Cook and cool the rice.
3. Chop the vegetables.
4. Place the grated cheddar cheese in a medium resealable bag.
5. Put all the other ingredients in a large resealable bag and squish to mix together. Remove excess air and seal. Staple the bags together above the seal.
6. Freeze.

Cooking instructions:

1. Thaw.
2. Put the contents of the large bag in a large casserole dish and top with cheese.
3. Bake for 30-40 minutes at 350°.

Check out these other freezer meal casseroles:

Chicken Asparagus Casserole

Chicken Wild Rice Casserole

Southern Style Ground Beef Casserole