Best Mexican Ground Beef Casserole Recipe with Pasta

Mexican casserole in a glass baking dish.

Best Mexican Ground Beef Casserole Recipe with Pasta

The key to this is using a lot of Rotel tomatoes and green chilies for heat and blending ingredients to make a Mexican inspired main dish that tastes amazing.

Course Main dish, Tex-Mex

Cuisine Mexican flavors

Keyword Mexican casserole, Mexican ground beef casserole

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 1

Total Time 1 15

Servings servings

Calories 435kcal

Author Joe Boyle

Ingredients

1 lbs . 93% lean ground beef
1 large onion, yellow or white , coarse chopped
2 medium red bell peppers , coarse chopped
1 tbsp vegetable oil
8 oz Rotini pasta, or similar curly pasta
2 10 oz . cans Rotel original tomatoes and green chiles
1 15 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 12 oz. bag of frozen sweet corn
8 oz . grated sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp salt or to taste
ground black pepper to taste
cooking spray like Pam

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°.
Place chopped onion, red bell peppers and vegetable oil in a large skillet on medium to medium high heat and cook for 5 or 6 minutes, then save in a large mixing bowl.
Use the same skillet to fully brown the ground beef, 6 to 8 minutes.
Add the corn, black beans and Rotel tomatoes to the meat to heat, 1 to 2 minutes, then place the meat mixture into the bowl with the vegetables.
Cook the pasta in boiling, salted water until just before it becomes al dente (according to package instructions), drain, and place in the mixing bowl.
Fold all the casserole ingredients together, taste and add salt and pepper. Add any other ingredients as desired now also.
Spray a 9 by 13-inch casserole dish with cooking spray then add a thin layer of the meat mixture to the bottom of the baking dish. Top this with a layer of grated cheese. Continue to add a layer of meat mix , topped with cheese until the casserole dish is full. Reserve about 2 ounces of the cheese to add when finishing the baking.
Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and place it in the oven for 35 minutes. If you have an instant read thermometer, the casserole temperature should be around 160°F.
Remove the casserole from the oven and take off the foil covering and add the remainder of the grated cheese. Place the casserole back in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes to allow for the cheese to melt. Serve hot out of the oven.

Notes

This casserole can also be made using rice. Cook 1 1/3 cups of long grain white rice like jasmine or basmati according to package instructions and add the rice to the dish as you would the pasta.
You may like to add a dollop of sour cream or some chopped green onions to the casserole for added flavor.
Store leftovers, refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 4 days. Reheat in a microwave and add a bit of liquid such as fresh pico de Gallo or salsa since the pasta may be somewhat dry.
Freezing pasta has never worked well for me as the pasta seems to get pretty mushy so it is not recommended. If you make the dish using rice, that should freeze nicely for up to 3 months.

Nutrition