Ground Beef Casserole with Cauliflower Rice
Apr 06, 2020, Updated May 28, 2024
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Ground Beef Casserole is packed with fresh spinach, beef, and cheese, then combined with cauliflower rice and baked. A low-carb and Keto casserole the whole family will love.
This ground beef casserole is an easy and delicious dinner recipe! Casseroles make everyone’s lives easier, and this one is a true timesaver. It is a fusion of lean ground beef and fluffy cauliflower rice, all baked to bubbly perfection. It requires minimal prep, and then you just pop it in the oven and forget about it for the next 30-ish minutes.
It’s low-carb and Keto, too. Swapping traditional rice for cauliflower rice significantly lightens the dish, making it not just tasty but also waistline-friendly. Get ready to make a meal that’s perfect for a cozy family dinner or as a meal prep solution, packing nutrition, convenience, and a whole lot of yum into one dish!
Why We Love This Ground Beef Casserole
- Nutritious. This recipe is the epitome of comfort food but without guilt. The lean ground beef provides a protein boost, and the cauliflower rice offers a low-carb alternative to traditional grains. We add extra veggies like spinach for added sustenance.
- Quick. The recipe is quick, making it a perfect choice for busy weeknights. This casserole can be on the table in 30 minutes.
- Easy. Only uses simple, easy-to-find ingredients you’ll likely spot in your pantry and fridge.
Ingredients You’ll Need
This easy ground beef casserole recipe is quick to put together and perfect for feeding a crowd! It’s a comforting dish made with wholesome and simple ingredients, swapping out rice for cauliflower.
- Olive oil: For sautéing the onions and garlic. You could use any other neutral cooking oil.
- Yellow onion: White onion is a suitable substitute.
- Garlic: Fresh garlic is almost always my go-to, but garlic powder (1/4 teaspoon per clove) will also work.
- Ground beef: If you’d instead use ground turkey or ground chicken, that’s okay, too!
- Italian Seasoning: You can also use a blend of dried oregano, basil, and thyme.
- Sweet paprika: Adds a mild, sweet pepper flavor. Smoked paprika or regular paprika also works.
- Salt and black pepper: Enhances the overall flavor of the casserole.
- Baby spinach: Adds freshness and nutrients.
- Frozen cauliflower rice: Substitute with cooked white rice or brown rice.
- Sour cream: Adds creaminess to the dish..
- Butter: Helps to blend the ingredients.
- Dried basil: Adds a subtle herb flavor, or you could also add in dried oregano or parsley.
- Milk: Helps with the desired creaminess.
- Shredded Italian blend cheese: For the topping. Any shredded cheese you prefer.
How to Make Ground Beef Casserole
I can’t wait for you to make my tried-and-true recipe for the best ground beef casserole with cauliflower rice, packed with simple everyday ingredients and loads of cheese! Follow the step-by-step instructions below.
- Preheat: Set your oven to preheat to 375˚F.
- Saute: Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic.
- Brown: Add the ground beef and season it with Italian Seasoning, salt, and pepper. Continue to cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon until the beef is completely browned.
- Add: Add in the spinach. You might have to do this in batches, depending on the size of your skillet. Stir frequently for 1 more minute or until the spinach is wilted. Remove the skillet from the heat, drain liquid from the skillet, and set it aside.
- Combine: In a baking dish, combine cauliflower rice, sour cream, butter, and dried basil. Stir and mix until everything is completely combined and creamy. Add the prepared beef mixture to the baking dish and stir until everything is incorporated. Then, top it all with shredded cheese.
- Bake: Bake for 22 to 25 minutes or until the juices are bubbly and cheese is melted.
- Serve: Remove the dish from the oven and let stand for several minutes before cutting and serving.
Recipe Tips
- Be sure to let the casserole rest before serving. This will allow it to firm up and make it even prettier and more yummy on your plate. Trust me, it’ll be worth the wait.
- Don’t cover the casserole. I know, that’s like casserole blasphemy, but since everything is already cooked and warm, it’s really not necessary. Baking it uncovered will allow the cheese to get bubbly and melty, which I really like!
- More veggies? No problem. If you want to add more veggies to this casserole, you could throw in some diced and sauteed carrots, or some frozen peas or corn.
- Meat options. You can opt to use ground turkey, ground pork, or sweet Italian sausage in place of the ground beef, if you prefer.
- Make A Day Ahead: Prep this casserole in the morning or the night before, and tightly cover it. Keep it in the refrigerator until you’re ready to bake it. For even cooking, take the casserole out of the fridge about 15 to 20 minutes before it goes into the oven.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes and No. I have tried this casserole with both methods, and it works either way, but you should thaw the cauliflower if frozen because it’s easier to work it in the sauce. However, I prefer to precook it because it’s much easier to get a creamy consistency when the cauliflower is warm.
This casserole can definitely be modified to be vegetarian. My favorite way to do that is by using mushrooms in place of ground beef. Mushrooms have a hearty meat-like flavor, and I bet you won’t even miss the meat! Another option is to make a lentil-based ground meat substitute. This is commonly done as a taco meat substitute and could work easily here.
This ground beef casserole makes for a great freezer meal. I love to make it for my new mom friends or where a parent has just undergone surgery. This is also a great freezer meal idea for meal prep, making weeknight dinners a little easier for you. This casserole can stay in the freezer for about 3 months. All you have to do is defrost it and bake it in the oven when ready.
How to Store Leftovers
Once the casserole is baked, leftovers can be refrigerated in an airtight container for 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months.
To reheat, allow the casserole to reach room temperature, then heat it at 375˚F until warmed throughout. For individual portions, scoop your desired amount into a bowl and microwave, stirring midway, until hot.
More Casserole Recipes
- Cheesy Chicken and Cauliflower Rice Casserole
- Tex Mex Cheesy Beef Quiche
- Spaghetti Beef Casserole
- King Ranch Chicken Casserole
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Ground Beef Casserole
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning
- ½ teaspoon sweet paprika
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 6 ounces fresh baby spinach
- 10 ounces frozen cauliflower rice, cooked according to the directions on the bag
- 1 cup sour cream, or plain yogurt
- 1 tablespoon butter, room temperature
- ½ teaspoon dried basil
- 2 to 3 tablespoons milk, if needed
- 8 ounces shredded Italian blend cheese, or any other shredded cheese that you have/prefer
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375˚F.
- Heat the olive oil in a large 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook for 20 seconds.
- Add ground beef and season it with Italian Seasoning, paprika, salt, and pepper.
- Continue to cook, breaking up the meat with a wooden spoon, and cook until beef is completely browned.
- Add in spinach – you might have to do this in batches, depending on the size of your skillet – cook, stirring frequently, for 1 more minute or until spinach is wilted.
- Remove from heat, drain the liquid from the skillet, and set aside.
- In a 9×13-inch baking dish, combine cooked cauliflower rice, sour cream, butter, and dried basil; stir and mix until completely combined and creamy. If sour cream and butter aren’t melting completely, stir in some milk. The cauliflower rice should be warm enough to melt the butter.
- Add prepared beef mixture to the baking dish; stir until everything is completely incorporated. Top with shredded cheese.
- Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, or until bubbly and cheese is melted.
- Remove from oven and let stand for 7 to 10 minutes before cutting and serving.
Notes
- Add vegetables. Feel free to add more veggies like sauteed carrots or frozen peas.
- Substitutes. Swap ground beef with turkey, chicken, pork, or Italian sausage.
- Don’t cover. Avoid covering the casserole with foil before baking to let the cheese melt and bubble up.
- Rest. Let the casserole rest for a few minutes after baking and before serving.
- Make ahead. Prep the casserole a day ahead, store it in the fridge, and bring it to room temperature 15-20 minutes before baking.
Nutrition
Nutritional info is an estimate and provided as courtesy. Values may vary according to the ingredients and tools used. Please use your preferred nutritional calculator for more detailed info.
This was super good! Hubby, who thinks we eat too much cauliflower and complains about it, actually exclaimed โoh my goodness, this looks DELICIOUSโ as he pulled it out of the oven. He says if heโs going to eat cauliflower, this is the way to do it. We both enjoyed it very much!
That’s wonderful to hear! I’m very glad you and your family enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
Do you happen to know how many cups of fresh riced cauliflower equals a bag?
10 ounces is about 1-1/4 cups.
People keep asking what is a serving, ans you arenโt responding. So I ask, how much is a serving?
Hi!
I have answered this question – the recipe serves 4, as indicated on the recipe card above, thus 1/4 (one out of 4) is a serving. It amounts to around 10 ounces as a main course.
This is a great base! All I added was carrots and extra spinach. Made it for my pregnant diabetic daughter in law. Sounds so good! Thanks
Holy smokes. This is one of the best dishes I have ever made and enjoyed! I added halved cherry tomatoes, some feta crumbles and a light sprinkle of dill on top of the riced cauliflower base before adding the hamburger spinach combo on top. This is a very easy to make and very flavorful meal! I wish I could give it more than 5 stars!
That’s great to hear! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for chiming in! ๐
Do you need to get the liquid out of the cauliflower rice before you mix it?
There shouldn’t be liquid if the cauliflower rice isn’t cooked. In this recipe, you don’t have to precook the cauliflower rice; it will cook up while baking.
To clarify, you donโt cook the cauliflower?? In the list of ingredients it says โcooked according to package instructionsโ on the cauliflower, as well as in the instructions. Just checking so I donโt get a soupy casserole ๐
It was super good. I struggle to eat cauliflower rice sometimes but this was pleasantly spiced so we all ate it without complaining (even the 9 yr old). I did use cream cheese instead of sour cream -I didnโt realize I was out until after I started. Iโll make it with sour cream for a little more bite next time. Excellent recipe though! I have a hard time using ground beef while staying keto sometimes. Thanks!
This is a fantastic recipe that I make quite often, I add feta and tomatoes to the mix. Itโs a family favourite!
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! ๐ Thank YOU ! ๐
Hi, I made this tonight and it is DELICIOUS! But I was wondering is it really only 4 servings? Your picture shows 8 pieces cut up. Just wondering because I want to know how best to enter the macros ๐ thank you for the yummy recipe regardless!
I did ground Turkey in this instead of beef. And did fat free greek yogurt instead of sour cream. This was AMAZING. So many great things to say. Will make it again.
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
Can I use cream cheese instead of sour cream??
Can I make my own cauliflower mix. If yes what would the directions be.
Sure! Here’s my recipe for how to make your own cauli rice: https://diethood.com/how-to-make-and-store-cauliflower-rice/
I used a cast-iron skillet to make this recipe, added kale in place of spinach and added broccoli and carrots. I also took this out of the oven at about 20 mins-added panko crumbs on top and then broiled for 2 mins. TURNED OUT FABULOUS! Thank you for the recipe!
That’s great! I am very glad you enjoyed it! Thank YOU! ๐
It says to cook the cauliflower rice first, but your comment says no need to because it cooks while baking? Which is it? Thanks