Taco Fiesta Platter Casserole

If you ask my husband and daughter, they will tell you that I love tacos. Soft tacos, crunchy tacos, carne asada, chicken, pastor, American style, Mexican style, I honestly love them all. I will even, on extremely rare occasion, have a fish taco if it is a great one at a reputable restaurant.

Pre-pandemic, when Taco Tuesday rolled around, you would often find my little family at the neighborhood saloon, where they serve delicious $0.50 tacos. I admit, I’ve been known to put more than a couple away in one visit. They are the crunchy type and their simplicity makes them so good, well that and they were 50-cents each. How could you go wrong?

This week’s menu was a “clean out the cupboard and fridge” menu. I basically looked at what I had on hand, and planned around that. As I dug through our overflowing pantry, I realized I had the stuff for a taco night. Yum! However, rather than just make tacos, I decided to do something a little different…a casserole.

One of the things that the saloon’s Taco Tuesday is missing is the “platter” part of a taco dinner. While 90% of the time I am happy with a paper boat full of 50-cent tacos, sometimes a platter of rice and beans with the tacos is pretty satisfying. So my casserole plan tonight was to create an entire fiesta taco platter in one dish.

Here’s how I did it…

When thinking about how to build the casserole, I took inspiration from a seven-layer dip. I wanted to create a bite that basically gave you the entire platter on your fork: rice, beans and taco.

I started with the base. To a casserole dish I added a layer of crushed corn tortilla chips. (Which, by the way, is a great way to use up the crumbs at the bottom of a chip bag.) This was to create the idea of a crispy taco shell. Each bite would have a little crunch. (I love texture!)

Next came the beans. I like the fiber bang you get from a good frijole, so I went with a non-fat canned refried bean for simplicity sake. I considered going with whole black beans, which I enjoy, but when I asked my husband which he would eat (he’s not really a bean eater), he preferred refried. Which you use is completely up to you. Refried, whole black beans or whole pinto beans would all be great. I just spread the beans straight from the can over the chips. You’ll see I only spread half of the beans in the photo, that is because my kid has it in her mind that she hates beans, even though she has never tried refried beans.

I love Spanish and Mexican rices. They are so flavorful. While homemade from scratch is delicious, I decided to “cheat” and use a boxed rice mix. Here you can really do anything that works for you–prepared rice pouches or dry boxed. Normally my go-to boxed rice is Zatarain’s Spanish Rice. However, in the spirit of what I had on hand, tonight it was Rice-a-Roni Spanish Rice that I prepared and used in the casserole.

With the fiesta platter sides in place, I then moved on to the taco meat itself. I seasoned the meat with a store bought taco seasoning (Penzey’s is my FAVORITE) and also decided to add some chunky salsa, because it isn’t a fiesta without salsa. Plus, it added some additional texture, flavor and veg to the party.

Then came the cheese. In my opinion, a taco is naked without cheese. I layered on a cup of Tillamook Mexican 4 Cheese Blend. However, you can use what you have on hand. Cheddar, jack, or pepper jack are all delicious options. Even some crumbled cotija would be great. Once the cheese was in place, it was time to bake.

I decided to serve my casserole family style with all the toppings on the side. Then each person could customize their casserole to their tastes. I had lettuce, tomato, sour cream, lime and avocado on the table. However, you can do any of your favorites. If you prefer, you can also dress the casserole up and serve it ready to go. It is completely up to you.

This dish was a hit at our house tonight. In fact, I was asked to make it again soon. Give it a try and let me know what you think below.

Taco Fiesta Platter Casserole

Recipe by Kacey Baxter, Oven and SpiceCourse: DinnerCuisine: Mexican AmericanDifficulty: Easy

Servings

6

servings

Prep time

15

minutes

Cooking time

30

minutes

Calories

494

kcal

You won’t be one taco short of a fiesta platter with this family-friendly casserole. This easy bake casserole includes all the taco platter goodness in one convenient dish. Layers of tortilla chips, beans, rice, meat and cheese come together in Taco Tuesday perfection. Even better, you can set the table with a variety of toppings, so that everyone can personalize the dish to their liking!

Ingredients

• 2 teaspoons olive oil

• 1 pound ground beef 

• 1/2 cup onion, diced

• 4 tbs taco seasoning (or a 1-oz packet)

• 1/2 cup water

• 1/2 cup chunky salsa

• 1 1/2 cups (3 ounces) tortilla chips, lightly crushed

• 1 16 ounce can refried beans

• 2 cups prepared Spanish Rice

• 1 cup cheddar cheese or Mexican cheese blend

• Your favorite taco toppings, such as sour cream, shredded lettuce, diced tomato, lime wedges and avocado*

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 350F degrees. Coat a 9 inch square pan or 2 quart baking dish with cooking spray.
• Prepare the rice according to package instructions.
• Heat the olive oil in a large pan over medium high heat. Add the ground beef and cook for 5-6 minutes, breaking up the meat with a spatula.
• Add the onion and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes or until onion is translucent.
• Stir in the taco seasoning, water and salsa. Simmer for 3-4 minutes.
• Place a layer of tortilla chips in the bottom of the prepared pan. Spread a layer of refried beans over the top. Then layer prepared rice over beans.
• Pour the beef mixture over the rice and top with the cheese.
• Bake uncovered for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is melted. While casserole bakes, prepare any toppings you’ll be using. (Or get a jump on dishes!)
• Add toppings if desired, then serve. Enjoy!

Notes

• I personally like Zatarain’s Spanish Rice, however feel free to use any brand (dried or prepared pouches) that you like. The important thing is that you measure it prepared before it goes into the casserole. Any extra rice can be saved for lunch the next day.
• * Calorie estimate does not include toppings

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