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Healthy Slow Cooker Ground Beef Rice Bowls: Easy Dinner

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This hearty, hands-off slow cooker meal combines lean ground beef, rice, and vegetables in a savory tomato broth for a comforting and healthy dinner that’s perfect for busy weeknights.

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1 pound lean ground beef (90/10)
  • 1 medium yellow onion, diced
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • ½ teaspoon cumin
  • 1 cup long-grain white rice (basmati or jasmine)
  • 1 ½ cups low-sodium beef broth
  • 1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
  • 1 tablespoon tomato paste
  • 1 medium carrot, diced
  • 1 cup frozen peas
  • Fresh parsley or cilantro, chopped (optional topping)
  • Shredded cheddar cheese (optional topping)
  • Sour cream or Greek yogurt (optional topping)
  • Hot sauce (optional topping)

Instructions

  1. Brown the ground beef (5 minutes): Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until no longer pink—about 5 minutes. If using 90/10 beef, there won’t be much fat to drain. If there’s more than a tablespoon, carefully pour it off. Add the diced onion and minced garlic to the skillet and cook for another 2 minutes, until the onion softens.
  2. Transfer to the slow cooker: Spoon the beef mixture into your slow cooker. Add the diced tomatoes (with their juices), tomato paste, beef broth, salt, pepper, smoked paprika, oregano, cumin, and diced carrot. Stir everything together until the tomato paste is fully incorporated.
  3. Cook on low for 3 hours: Cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 3 hours. This gives the flavors time to meld and the carrots to soften. You can also cook on high for 1.5 hours, but low heat gives better depth of flavor.
  4. Add the rice (cook for 1 more hour): After 3 hours, stir in the 1 cup of rice. Make sure it’s fully submerged in the liquid. Cover and cook on low for another 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Check at the 1-hour mark—the rice should be tender and have absorbed most of the liquid. If still a little firm, let it go another 15 minutes. Do not overcook, or the rice will get mushy.
  5. Add the peas (5 minutes before serving): Once the rice is done, stir in the frozen peas. They don’t need much cooking—just a few minutes to thaw and warm through. Cover and let them sit for 5 minutes.
  6. Rest and serve: Turn off the slow cooker and let the mixture rest for 5 to 10 minutes. This allows the rice to absorb any remaining liquid and the flavors to settle. Spoon into bowls and top with your favorite toppings—fresh herbs, cheese, sour cream, or hot sauce.

Notes

For meal prep, let the bowls cool completely before storing. The rice will continue to absorb liquid as it sits, so don’t worry if it looks a little wet when first portioned out. It will thicken overnight. If using brown rice, cook it separately and stir in at the end. For a vegetarian version, swap ground beef for cooked lentils or crumbled firm tofu and use vegetable broth.

Nutrition

Keywords: slow cooker, ground beef, rice bowls, healthy dinner, weeknight meal, meal prep, gluten-free

Find it online: https://cookluma.com/healthy-slow-cooker-ground-beef-rice-bowls-easy-dinner/