Beef and Bean Burritos

Leftover Beef and Bean Taco meat stretched with rice and rolled in a flour tortilla.

Burritos are an easy handheld meal.  You can get all of your food groups in one delicious bundle. They are very filling (you usually only need one) and inexpensive.  The only drawback is that they can be a little difficult to roll.  Luckily for me, my husband is pretty good at it so he is the Official Burrito Roller of the house (he's also the Oficial Crescent Roll Roller and the Official Broken Cookie Eater...he has many titles).

BeefandBean #Burritos are easy #handheldmeals  [Tweet this]

These burritos were a great use for leftover Beef and Bean Taco meat.  We had tacos for 2 nights but on the 3rd night, there wasn't quite enough leftover for two meals.  So, I added rice, tomatoes, and more spices making the leftovers last for another four meals.  I love being able to reuse leftovers and get even more bang for my buck.   I really only had to cook once for 2 different dinners that lasted all week.

More #bangforyourbuck reuse #leftovers in Beef&Bean Burritos  [Tweet this]

Beef and Bean Burritos

Cook time:  20-30 minutes
Servings:  4-6

Ingredients:

1 cup dry rice
1 1/2 cups water
1 13.5oz can of diced tomatoes
1 pinch of salt
2-3 cups leftover Beef and Bean Taco meat (or any taco meat)
Paprika (optional)
Cayenne (optional)

Place dry rice in rice cooker.  Mix in the water, tomatoes, and salt.  Turn on the cooker and cook until done.

Meanwhile, reheat the leftover taco meat in a large skillet over low to medium heat.  Mix in the cooked rice and season as desired.  Remove from heat.

Heat 12-inch flour tortillas, covered with a damp paper towel, in the microwave for about 15-30 seconds until warm and pliable.

Place about 1-2 cups of the meat mixture on a tortilla.  Add cheese, lettuce, and any other desired toppings but try not to over fill the tortilla.  Then roll up the burrito and wrap in foil.  There are many instructions on how to roll a burrito online.

Makes about 4-6 burritos.

Enjoy.

For more burritos try these taco/taco salad fillings:

Chorizo & Black Bean

Pulled Pork

Slow Cooker Chicken

Check out the recipes that gave my husband his titles (Official Crescent Roll Roller and Official Broken Cookie Eater):

Easy Crescent Rolls

Chocolate Chip Cookies

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Coconut Rice Pudding

Leftover rice and coconut milk combine to make a creamy, delicious, and vegan breakfast or dessert.

Rice is a great staple food.  It's inexpensive, easy to cook, versatile, and delicious.  Since moving to Hawaii, I eat much more rice than I used to.  A scoop or two of rice is often on the side of or the main component of many local meals.  While I don't have rice with every meal, I use it often.  I use rice in stir-fries, beans and rice, fried rice, soups, stews, and casseroles.  It never hurts to make extra rice because it will be eaten.

It never hurts to make extra rice. It will be eaten. [Tweet this]

A sweet way to use leftover rice is rice pudding.  It's such a simple recipe I always wonder why I don't make it more often.  Rice pudding makes a great breakfast or dessert and it's delicious.  Don't worry about making too much rice next time you cook.

There is no such thing as too much rice. Make Coconut Rice Pudding with leftovers. [Tweet this]

Coconut Rice Pudding

Servings:  4
Cook time:  20 minutes

Ingredients:

2 cups cooked rice (leftover rice is great)
1 (14 ounce) can coconut milk
2 Tablespoons maple syrup (optional)
1 dash of vanilla extract
Banana slices or other fruit

In a large saucepan, over medium heat, combine the rice (cold right from the fridge is fine), coconut milk, and syrup if using.

Stir and mix well breaking up any clumps of rice.  Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until thickened (about 15-20 minutes).

Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla extract.

Serve hot or cold topped with bananas or other fruit.  It would be great with some toasted shredded coconut too.

Makes about 4 servings.

Enjoy.

For more ways to use leftover rice check out:

Leftover Rice Pudding       -

Pork Fried Rice           -

Spicy Vegetable Fried Rice

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Chicken Burrito Bowls

Chicken, peppers, corn, beans, and rice all mixed together with tomatoes.  Ready to eat or wrap in a tortilla.

How can you make burritos gluten free?  Just don't use a flour tortilla.  Burrito bowls are everything that is great about a burrito without the tortilla.  If you don't want to get rid of the tortilla you can always use this as a filling too.

Chicken Burrito Bowls

Ingredients:

1 Tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
2 bell peppers, chopped
1 jalapeno, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup, uncooked, rice
1 can chicken broth (about 2 cups)
1 can corn, drained
1 cup cooked chicken (great use for leftover rotisserie chicken)
2 cups cooked black beans
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
Salt and pepper to taste

Heat oil, over medium heat, in a large stock pot.  Add the onions and peppers (generously season with salt and pepper)  and saute until tender.  Then add garlic and cook for a few seconds until fragrant.

Pour in the uncooked rice and stir to mix well.  Allow the dry rice to cook for a few minutes then add the chicken broth.  Bring to a boil then reduce heat to low and let simmer until rice is cooked.

Lastly add the corn, chicken, beans, and tomatoes.  Mix thoroughly and allow to cook on low until heated through.

Taste and add more seasoning as needed.

Serve in bowls topped with cheese, salsa (such as Roasted Pepper Salsa or Fresh Salsa), and/or any other toppings of your choice.  You can even roll it all in a tortilla for a traditional burrito.

Makes 6 servings.

Enjoy.

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Loco Moco

White rice, smothered in brown gravy and a beef patty, topped with a fried egg.  The Hawaiian breakfast of champions.

What is a loco moco?  I'm glad you asked.  A loco moco is a common breakfast food here in Hawaii.  It's white rice covered with a beef patty and brown gravy with a fried egg on top.  Usually, the egg is sunny side up (it's best when you have that runny egg yolk to mix with the gravy), but you can choose if you'd like it cooked differently.  I tried for sunny side up but of course when I try to keep the yolk intact I end up breaking it (the next day I was making scrambled eggs and I cracked all the eggs perfectly with no broken yolks...I was so mad).

Loco Moco: the Hawaiian breakfast of champions.  [Tweet this]

I first had this delicious meal when a Hawaiian friend made it for me in Minnesota (where she now lives and I lived for a few years).  I don't know any of the history behind the loco moco, but I do know it's delicious.  It's super filling and a great comfort food.  I like to think of it as a Hawaiian version of biscuits and gravy (see those are my southern roots talking...but I actually don't like the white gravy on biscuits and gravy I would prefer brown gravy).

A Hawaiian version of biscuitsandgravy | Loco Moco  [Tweet this]

Loco mocos make a great  breakfast for those early morning football games too.  You can even make this while out tailgating (I imagine that locals here in Hawaii do) you just need to have a rice cooker then everything else can be cooked on the grill.  It's easy and pretty quick too.

Loco Moco: great for football tailgaiting in the AM.  [Tweet this]

Loco Moco

Ingredients:

White rice, cooked
Beef patties (mine were precooked and frozen but fresh grilled are the best)
Fried eggs (sunny side up is preferred, but I broke my yolks...still good though)
*Brown gravy

*Brown gravy:  1/4 cup butter, 1/4 cup flour, and 2 cups beef broth.  Cook the butter and flour in a skillet over medium heat just until it turns a nice brown color (this is a roux).  Then pour in the beef broth and stir or whisk well.  Allow to come to a boil then lower heat to a simmer.  Allow to simmer until desired thickness.  Lastly, season with salt and pepper to taste. (makes 2 cups)

In your bowl/plate start by adding the rice.  You can use 1 or 2 scoops (as much as you like).

Top the rice with your fully cooked beef patty (I simmered my frozen patties in the gravy to thaw and warm them) and plenty of gravy.

Lastly top with the fried egg.  You can add a bit more gravy on top of the egg but if you have a good sunny side up egg you don't need to because you'll have that nice runny yolk.

Serve immediately. You can add sriracha if you like it spicy (if you look close in the 2nd picture you can see my husband's bowl smothered with sriracha).

Enjoy.

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Sausage and Bean Sweet and Sour

Pineapple sausage and beans in a spicy sweet and sour sauce served over rice.

Pineapple sausage.  I'd never seen it before but when I had some in the freezer (given to us by a friend) I had to use it.  It was fully cooked pork sausage with small bits of pineapple through out.  I initially planed to use it for sausage and beans (kind of like beans and wienies) but as I started making it something different and incredibly delicious developed.  I turned my sausage and beans into sweet and sour.  It was full of flavor and had a wonderful fresh and bright flavor that both my husband and I enjoyed.

Sausage and Bean Sweet and Sour

Ingredients:

4 pineapple sausages (or any fully cooked pork sausage), sliced
1 Tbsp oil
1 Tbsp garlic, minced
1 Tbsp ginger, minced
3 Thai chilies, minced
1 large onion, chopped
1 large bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeno, chopped (with or without seeds to your liking)
2 cups fresh pineapple, chopped
2 cups red beans (or one can)
1/4 cup brown sugar
juice of 2-3 limes
salt to taste

In a stock pot, over medium high heat, saute the sausage until browned.  Add a little oil to the pan if needed then add garlic, ginger, and chilies.

Saute until just fragrant then add the onion, bell pepper, jalapeno, and pineapple (season liberally with salt).  Cook until softened.

Add the beans, brown sugar, and lime juice.  Stir thoroughly and turn heat to low.  Allow mixture to cook on low, uncovered, for about 15 minutes then taste for seasoning and serve.

Serve over rice garnished with green onions or cilantro (or both).  Makes about 6 servings.

Enjoy.

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Pork and Peas Stir Fry

A sweet and spicy stir fry made with leftover Herb Roasted Pork Tenderloin and a variety of peas.

This is my third and final new meal from the same pork tenderloin.  Stir fries are a staple in my house because they cook up quick and are relatively inexpensive.  I wanted to do something a little different from my usual stir fry so when I saw beautiful sugar snap peas and snow peas, at my local market, I knew I had to use them.  I also like the sound of pork and peas and the color is great.  The peas make this dish super simple too.  No need to chop just wash and add them to the stir fry.  Young sugar snap and snow peas do not even need to be trimmed and stringed; but if they are a little older just snap off the ends and pull off the strings along the seams because they can be a little tough.

Pork and Peas Stir Fry

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp garlic, minced
2 Tbsp ginger, minced
1 onion, sliced
1/2 pound sugar snap peas
1/2 pound snow peas
Leftover Herb Roasted Pork Tenderloin, cut into bite sized pieces

Sauce:

1 Tbsp Hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp Sriracha
2 Tbsp Soy Sauce
Honey to taste

Mix together the sauce ingredients and set aside.

Meanwhile wash and string the peas (if necessary) and prepare the other ingredients.

Heat a large saute pan (or wok) over medium high heat.  Add about 1 Tbsp vegetable, peanut, or canola oil to the pan and swish around.

Add the ginger and garlic, stirring constantly, until fragrant.  Then add the onion and peas cooking until tender crisp.  Add the pork and sauce and stir until everything is coated and pork is reheated.

Remove from heat and serve with rice.

Makes 2 servings.

Enjoy.

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Beans and Rice Taco Salad

A vegetarian meal of tortilla chips and lettuce, topped with spicy rice and beans, and finished with avocado sour cream and cilantro.

Oh no, not another taco salad recipe.  Yes another taco salad recipe.  As I'm sure you all know by now I love taco salad.  Not only is it my favorite meal but it's also a great way to reuse leftovers.

I had leftover cilantro, avocado lime dressing, and a jalapeno from my Tequila Lime Shrimp Tacos.  I also had some leftover rice...from something...and plenty of tortilla chips from the huge Costco bag that we frequently buy.  So in my mind the only way to use all of these leftovers is taco salad.  I could probably make taco salad with just abut anything. I could have also just made rice and beans but I always eat my rice and beans with tortilla chips on the side (to satisfy my crunchy fetish) so I just put it all together for one simple and delicious, meatless meal.  This can easily be made vegan by omitting the sour cream.

Bean and Rice Taco Salad

Ingredients:

1 jalapeno, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 cups beans (I used red beans but black beans or pinto would be great too)
2 cups cooked rice
1 cup salsa, hot
2 Tbsp paprika
1 Tbsp garlic powder
lettuce
tortilla chips
cilantro
*Avocado Sour Cream

*Avocado Sour Cream:  Blend together about 1/4-1/2 cup Avocado lime dressing (optional), 1 small avocado, and 8 oz sour cream.  Add milk 1 Tbsp at a time to thin it to what ever consistency you prefer.  

In a large skillet or stock pot (over medium heat) cook jalapenos, in a bit of oil, until soft.  Add garlic and cook until fragrant.

Then add the rice, beans, salsa, spices, and salt & pepper to taste.  Mix thoroughly.  Cover and cook until heated through and salsa cooks down.

Serve atop lettuce and tortilla chips with cilantro and Avocado sour cream.

Makes 4-6 servings.

Enjoy.

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