Spanish Rice Bake

Info
Cook Time:

Serves: 4

Ingredients

 * 1 pound lean ground beef
 * ½ cup onion, finely chopped
 * ¼ cup green bell pepper, chopped
 * 1 (15.5 ounce) can tomatoes
 * 1 cup water
 * ¾ cup uncooked long-grain rice
 * ½ cup chile sauce
 * 1 teaspoon salt
 * ½ teaspoon ground cumin (optional)
 * ½ teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
 * 1 pinch ground black pepper
 * ½ cup shredded Cheddar cheese
 * 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro (optional)

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 375°F.

2.Brown the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Drain excess fat and transfer beef to a large pot over medium low heat. Stir in the onion, green bell pepper, tomatoes, water, rice, chile sauce, salt, brown sugar, cumin, Worcestershire sauce, and ground black pepper.

3.Let this simmer from about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, then put into a 2-quart casserole dish. Press down firmly and sprinkle with the shredded Cheddar cheese.

4.Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and bubbly. Garnish with chopped fresh cilantro, if desired.

Variations

 * To lower fat content: Use lowfat cheese.

Source

 * Tomatoes Canned by the US Department of Agriculture, public domain government resource—original source of recipe