Basic Beef Burritos with Black Beans, Rice, and Peppers
By Isabella Quinn
Cook
45 min
Total
45 min
Servings
4
Prepare four helpings of beef, pepper, bean, and rice mixture, with tortillas and other supplies for making burritos. Basic burrito ingredients include browned ground beef and cooked-down peppers flavored with cumin, paprika, and a bright squeeze of fresh lime juice.
The filling consists of sautéed onions, peppers, garlic, and jalapeños; cooked ground beef with cumin, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, ginger, pepper, and salt; water and lime juice and squeezed lime wedges; and black beans and jasmine rice added to the mixture at the end after the vegetables have been cooked.
Peppers and onions need to be fully cooked, and some of the meat needs to be browned before adding other ingredients, including leftover beans and other leftovers, to the dish. Browning is part of this recipe. Overcooking is a common mistake when preparing this recipe. More liquid can be added to keep the dish from sticking during simmering. Lime wedges should be removed before reheating rice and beans.
Serve the filling in flour tortillas with cilantro, lime, tomatoes, cheese, sour cream, salsa, lettuce, avocado or guacamole, and pico de gallo. Other ideas from the original include using leftovers to make nachos and other dishes in addition to the initial burrito meal.
Why we keep this one around
- The four-person recipe is a good amount because you can portion out ingredients such as beef, beans, rice, and vegetables into individual burritos for later consumption.
- Made with a cooked filling, this recipe lets you make individual burritos in advance and refrigerate the tortillas and other cold items until ready to serve.
- Cooked rice and rinsed black beans are mixed into the pot with cooked vegetables to make a filling. The filling can be served as a stand-alone dish or portioned out into other side dishes.
- Fresh vegetables are added at serving to keep greens and tomatoes from wilting if the dish is made ahead of time to be served later.
- The long cooking time helps the peppers and onions combine with the meat to form a cohesive filling that will heat faster than separate foods.
- Remaining cooked burrito ingredients can be used to make Friday night nachos, the source says, an idea for using leftover burrito ingredients that weren't used in burritos.
Ingredients
- •tbsp oil (a few tablespoons)
- •1 large yellow onion (chopped well)
- •3 bell peppers (chopped well)
- •4 cloves garlic (minced)
- •1 jalapeño (chopped very small)
- •2 tbsp cumin
- •2 tbsp paprika
- •1 tbsp chili powder
- •hot chili powder (to taste, optional)
- •1 tsp garlic powder
- •½ tsp ground ginger
- •½ tsp black pepper
- •1 ½ tsp salt
- •1 lb ground beef
- •1 lime
- •1 can black beans (15 oz., drained and rinsed)
- •1 cup cooked rice (jasmine rice used)
- •1 cup water (about, plus more if needed)
- •flour tortillas (for serving)
- •cilantro (for topping)
- •lime wedges (for topping)
- •tomatoes (for topping)
- •cheese (for topping)
- •sour cream (for topping)
- •salsa (for topping)
- •lettuce (for topping)
- •avocado or guacamole (for topping)
- •pico de gallo (for topping)
Instructions
- 1
Sauté the bell peppers, onion, garlic, and jalapeño over medium-high heat until slightly browned.
- 2
Combine all the spices together and season the ground beef with about 1 tablespoon of the combined spices.
- 3
Brown the ground beef in the pan with the peppers.
- 4
Once the meat is browned and begins sticking to the pan, add about 1 cup of water and the remaining spices.
- 5
Cut the lime into wedges, squeeze the juice into the meat, and stir the squeezed lime wedges into the meat mixture to simmer.
- 6
Continue simmering until the peppers and onions are totally cooked down, maybe about 30 minutes. Add more water if the mixture begins sticking again.
- 7
Adjust the seasonings to taste and remove the lime wedges.
- 8
Add the black beans and rice, mix well, and continue cooking until heated through.
- 9
Serve on flour tortillas with desired toppings.
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