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- This Tex Mex Rice Casserole makes for a delicious one-pan meal! It’s family-friendly, budget-friendly, gluten-free, packed with simple and easily modifiable ingredients! Also perfect for meal prep. Nutfree Soyfree
Are we ready for an easy yet delish casserole dish? I hope so because I have a good one for you. An easy Vegan Tex Mex Rice Casserole with lots of Tex-mex flavor like chipotle chili and cumin. This is a comforting and not too spicy Mexican-inspired dinner that is perfect on any weekday and leftovers make for a great lunch the next day.
I make this Tex-Mex rice casserole all the time because it feeds the whole family, is super flavorful, and the ingredients are fairly budget-friendly. It’s kind of one pot dish, but instead of on the stove you put your ingredients into a casserole dish and pop it into the oven.
You can’t really mess this up! Casserole dishes are very forgiving and you can tweak this one your own taste. Add some corn or chickpeas instead of beans or add some green beans.
Serve this deliciously flavorful rice casserole dish at dinnertime tonight! The whole family will love trying this cheesy Tex-Mex Rice Casserole.
More Mexican recipes:
Quesadilla with Walnut Taco Meat
Vegan Tex Mex Rice Casserole
Ingredients
- 2 teaspoons oil
- 1 cup chopped onion
- ½ cup of chopped red bell pepper
- ½ cup chopped green pepper
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 bay leaves
- 3/4 cup of washed and soaked white rice, , I use white basmati rice soaked for 10 mins then drained
- 1/4 cup of dried red lentils, or split red lentils
- 1 cup cooked black beans or use entire 15 ounce can or 1 1/4 cups cooked
- 2 teaspoons chili powder blend of choice, less or more to preference
- 1/2 teaspoon chipotle pepper flakes or powder
- ¼ teaspoon each red pepper flakes and black pepper , omit if you want less heat
- 1 teaspoon each garlic powder, onion powder
- 1 teaspoon oregano
- 2 teaspoons hot sauce or use 3 teaspoons for spicier
- 14 ounce can of diced tomato or use 1 to 1 ½ cups of salsa or tomato pasta sauce of choice
- ½ teaspoon salt, , less or more based on salt content of the liquid used
- 1 3/4 cups water or veggie broth , 2 cups if the tomatoes or salsa is less moist
To top the casserole:
- ½ cup vegan cheddar cheese or other cheese of choice
- 2 tablespoons sliced pickled jalapeno
- Cilantro,, green onion and lemon juice for garnish
- tortilla chips for serving
Instructions
- In a 9×11 or similar sized baking dish brush the 1 teaspoon oil on the baking dish then add the onion, bell peppers, cumin, bay leaves and salt. Mix well then drizzle the remaining oil on top and mix lightly again.
- Then bake at 400F (205C) for 9-12 minutes or until mixture is starting to get golden.
- Remove the dish from the oven then add in the spices and tomatoes and mix in, then add the rest of the ingredients, drained rice and mix really well with the spatula. Cover with foil or parchment or a clean baking dish and put it back to bake for 30-35 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, take off the sheet or the foil. Fluff the rice a little bit then top it with cheese, pickled jalapeno and put back in oven for the cheese to melt. You can also add some fresh jalapeño or serrano pepper slices. Broil it for 2-3 minutes until the cheese has melted.
- Then take it out of the oven, garnish with cilantro, green onion, lime juice and serve.
- Serve as it is or you can serve it with salsa or guacamole and some tortilla chips
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Ingredients:
- chopped onions and bell pepper are baked with cumin and bay leaves to get the flavors started
- the rice is added uncooked – but make sure to wash and soak it
- I added dried red lentils for more protein – if you use a different kind of lentil, cooking time will vary
- I added some cooked black beans
- spices: I like a blend of chili powder, chipotle pepper flakes, red pepper flakes, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and oregano
- hot sauce for spicier
- diced tomato or use 1 to 1 ½ cups of salsa or tomato pasta sauce of choice
- I top my casserole with vegan cheddar cheese but any other cheese of choice works
- sliced pickled jalapenos are another delicious addition
- for a touch of color, sprinkle some cilantro and/or green onions on top
Tips:
- As for sides, I usually serve this with tortilla chips but a green salad is also an excellent choice
- If you want add some canned corn as well
- If you find that your rice isn’t cooked through all the way after the baking time is up or something isn’t cooked through completely, just keep the casserole in the oven a little longer
How to Make Vegan Tex Mex Rice Casserole
In a 9×11 or similar sized baking dish brush the 1 teaspoon oil on the baking dish then add the onion, bell peppers, cumin, bay leaves and salt. Mix well then drizzle the remaining oil on top and mix lightly again.
Then bake at 400F (205C) for 9-11 minutes or until mixture is starting to get golden.
Remove the dish from the oven then add in the spices and tomatoes and mix in.
Then add the rest of the ingredients and mix really well with the spatula. Cover with foil or parchment or a clean baking dish and put it back to bake for 30-35 minutes.
Remove from the oven, take out the sheet or the foil. Fluff the rice a little bit then top it with cheese, pickled jalapeno and put back in oven for the cheese to melt.
You can broil it for a minute or two until the cheese has melted.
Then take it out of the oven, garnish with cilantro, green onion, lime juice and serve.
Serve as it is or you can serve it with more jalapeno or salsa and guacamole and some tortilla chips.
storage;
Refrigerate for upto 3 days.
This is one of our favorites! Can I assemble this a day ahead then cook it the next day,
Yes!
I made this on stove top today and it came out so delicious! Amazing blend of mexican flavors. Leftovers would go great with some tacos we are planning later this week. Thanks for this easy and simple weekday fix Richa 🙂
Yay!! Thanks for sharing.
Looks amazing! Can’t wait to try! Thanks so much for adding the variations. I want to use the brown rice, so it’s nice to see the easy instructions.
Yes! Always check the recipe notes.
Delicious!! Comfort food at its best and so much flavor. Thank you!
Yay!!
Very delicious and also very spicy. We added the corn in and served it up with flour tortillas and avocado on top. Very easy to make as well.
So glad you liked it!
Recipe is very easy. I used two cans black beans because we love them. Brown rice sub. It took longer than 45 min, but maybe because of extra black beans? Was not a problem; I just tasted and kept cooking. We all loved it, including my 30 year old Omni son. Delicious flavors. Will definitely make again; and likely double next time for more leftovers!
So good to hear!
I like to make things ahead and freeze for later use. Can I do this with this recipe?
You can freeze cooked rice. Cool it as quickly as possible by placing it in a shallow container and placing it in the fridge. Once the rice is cold, transfer it to freezer bags in your preferred portion sizes, flatten it to about 3cm thick and squeeze out as much air as possible before sealing it tightly.