Easy Cheesy Rice and Beans

This recipe was updated on March 30, 2021 to include video and new descriptions.

I originally thought of this Easy Cheesy Rice and Beans as a hearty side dish to serve with almost anything Tex-Mex, but then I realized that it’s actually delicious enough to serve as an entree!

The whole rice and beans recipe comes together in one skillet which makes for easy clean up. If you are serving it right away you can serve it straight out of the skillet and if you want to do the entree version, serve the cheesy rice and beans with warm flour tortillas.

I made this base version very mild so my kiddos wouldn’t complain, but it would be easy to spice it up either by substituting a spicy salsa or adding in a few diced peppers in the beginning of the recipe.

No matter how you serve it, this Cheesy Rice and Beans recipe should be in your arsenal. You might even have everything you need to make it in your pantry right now!

Cheesy Rice and Beans Video

What kind of Beans and Rice to Use?

I like to keep it easy for this recipe and use plain white rice and black beans, but there’s no reason you couldn’t use other options. Pinto beans would work great and you could substitute brown rice for the white rice if you wanted to. You might need to add a little more liquid to cook the brown rice. You’ll just need to watch it.

Cheesy Beans and Rice in One Skillet

Everything for this rice and beans dish comes together in one skillet, but obviously not at the same time. Order is important!

Start the recipe with a drizzle of oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Then add the diced onion and garlic. Cook them until they are translucent (not browned at all).

Then you can add the salsa. I kept mine very mild, but again – you do you!

Base onions and salsa for cheesy beans. — Starting the mix.

Adding the Rice to the Skillet

I like a long-grained white rice for my rice and beans, but you could use any rice. The most important part is to rinse it well before you add it to the skillet. Like, you should rinse the rice until the water is clear.

If you don’t rinse the rice well, then the starch on the rice will make everything clump together in the skillet and it’ll take way more water for it to cook correctly.

Rice for cheesy rice and beans — Rinsed rice.

Assuming you are using canned black beans, rinse them well also!

Then you can add the rice and beans to the skillet with everything else!

Adding beans to the skillet for the cheesy beans and rice. — All together!

Finishing the Cheesy Rice and Beans

Stir all the ingredients together really well and then add the liquid. I just add water but you could use stock if you wanted.

Bring the beans and rice skillet to a simmer and turn the heat down to low. Cover it and cook until the rice is cooked and the liquid is evaporated, about 15 minutes.

It helps to stir it once or twice while it cooks also to make sure the rice isn’t clumping together. If it seems too dry, add a little more water.

Eventually, the rice will be tender and everything will smell delicious! This is when you can season your rice and beans skillet.

Skillet Rice and Beans — Simmering and stirring.

Now to finish it! Add some big handfuls of cheddar cheese in pockets around the rice and beans. If you work fast, you can cover the skillet again and the residual heat will melt the cheese.

Or, you can stick the skillet in a 350 degree F. oven for just a few minutes to make the cheese super-melty. That’s my preference!

This cheesy rice and beans skillet also gets some sliced avocado and fresh cilantro!

Serve these cheesy rice and beans as a side or load it into a tortilla with some sour cream. YUM!

Storing Cheesy Beans

If you have leftovers of this one skillet beans and rice meal, good news! It keeps wonderfully for a few days. It actually reheats well in the microwave or you can reheat it over the stovetop with a splash of water. Cover it and heat until warmed through and cheese is re-melted.