Pinto beans and rice are a good cheap eat, especially when you top them with chips, salsa, and some other goodies. They make a filling meal to help you save money and eat well.
Love rice? Be sure to try our Black Bean and Rice Salad for a fun lunch or dinner.
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Are you looking for an easy, affordable meal that doesn’t look or taste like fast food? There’s nothing so homey and down to earth than a bowl of beans and rice.
Beans and rice are welcomed the world over as hearty, home-cooked fare that won’t break the bank. Combined they make a complex carbohydrate that is filling and affordable.
While you might raise an eyebrow over the humble beans and rice, consider how much that fancy pants eatery charges for a “burrito bowl”!
Beans and rice are basically the same thing — only a whole lot cheaper.
Pinto Beans and Rice
We eat homemade pinto beans and rice at least once a week for dinner. Sometimes they are side dishes, but often they make the bulk of the meal.
Fun fact: This dish helped us get out of debt!
While I sometimes lean on canned beans, I save money when I cook my own pinto beans to serve alongside “from scratch” Mexican rice. No boxed rice mixes around here!
We’ve found that these homemade varieties taste better than the canned and boxed versions, and generally the homemade version is less expensive as well.
Do you have to use pinto beans?
No, you can really use whatever cooked bean you prefer, though I don’t recommend green beans.
Black and pinto beans are the most common used in burrito bowls. Leftover beans are good to use in my versatile Instant Pot Bean Soup.
What do you eat with rice and beans?
In fact, during very lean times, like when we were paying off a ton of debt, I served beans and rice three or four times a week! Sometimes we might have just beans and rice and perhaps a little cheese. But know that this humble meal can turn into something special when you “dude it up” with toppings.
I make my own fresh salsa because it’s very inexpensive. I buy the other toppings on sale whenever possible.
What meat do you eat with beans and rice?
While beans and rice make a perfect meatless meal, your people might enjoy a little meat atop their homemade burrito bowls. The great thing about this dish is that you can use up all kinds of leftover cooked meats from previous meals on these bean and rice bowls!
Consider adding:
- shredded chicken
- grilled and chopped chicken
- pulled pork
- shredded beef
- taco meat
What toppings are good on burrito bowls?
You can vary your toppings so much, it really never has to be the same meal twice. However, my people prefer cheese, salsa, sour cream, and chips at the very minimum.
Other toppings you might want to consider: guacamole, avocado, lettuce, chopped onions, fajita vegetables, chopped tomatoes, cilantro, and hot sauce.
Beans and Rice make a perfect Bowl Meal!
How much does rice and beans cost?
Check out the price breakdown:
- dried beans – $1 (or canned $2)
- Mexican rice – $1.50
- shredded cheese – $1.50
- shredded lettuce – $0.50
- homemade salsa – $1.25
- tomatoes – $0.25
- tortilla chips – $1
Total cost to feed a crowd: $8
That’s some good cheap eats, my friends!
How can I make this dish economically?
By their very nature, bean dishes are very budget-friendly. However, here are some of the strategies you can use to make this recipe even more economical:
- Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. When you see a good price on tomato sauce, beans, or your spices, buy a few extra to stash for later. You know you’ll use them. Stocking up can save you money.
- Cook dried beans. It’s a lot cheaper to cook dry beans than to buy canned. Recently I’ve started using my electric pressure cooker for beans and it has been a game changer.
- Make your own spice mixes. Spice mixes, like taco seasoning, are super simple to mix up in big batches and are so much cheaper than buying the packets at the store.
- Buy spices in bulk. I regularly buy larger containers of spices I use frequently, like pepper, sea salt, garlic powder, and chili powder. I store excess dried herbs and ground spices in the freezer if I know it will be awhile before I go through the large container.
Here’s our very forgiving recipe for beans and rice:
If you prepare this recipe, be sure to share a picture on social media and hashtag it #GOODCHEAPEATS. I can't wait to see what you cook up!
Pinto Beans and Rice
Ingredients
- 2 15-ounce cans pinto beans or 4 cups homemade
- 1 batch Mexican rice
- 8 oz cheddar cheese (shredded) (2 cups)
- 2 cups shredded lettuce
- 1 cup salsa
- 2 tomato chopped
- 1 9-ounce bag tortilla chips
- toppings for burrito bowls : sour cream, guacamole, sliced black olives, avocado, chopped green onion
Instructions
- Lay out bowls of each of the ingredients.
- Allow diners to layer beans, rice, and toppings in each bowl or dish, according to tastes.
Notes
- Stock up on ingredients when they are on sale. When you see a good price on tomato sauce, beans, or your spices, buy a few extra to stash for later. You know you’ll use them. Stocking up can save you money.
- Cook dried beans. It’s a lot cheaper to cook dry beans than to buy canned. Recently I’ve started using my electric pressure cooker for beans and it has been a game changer.
- Make your own spice mixes. Spice mixes, like taco seasoning, are super simple to mix up in big batches and are so much cheaper than buying the packets at the store.
- Buy spices in bulk. I regularly buy larger containers of spices I use frequently, like pepper, sea salt, garlic powder, and chili powder. I store excess dried herbs and ground spices in the freezer if I know it will be awhile before I go through the large container.
Nutrition
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Annette Heideman
So simple and so good!
Jessica Fisher
Thanks so much!
T Peterson
This was really good! I loved that it was super quick and easy. Thanks!
Vanessa
I can’t find your cilantro rice recipe but have your cookbook. I made a double batch and hoped to freeze one pan for after the baby is born later this week. Is it okay to freeze baked rice? Thanks!
Jessica Fisher
Most of the cookbook recipes aren’t online. Yes, you can freeze the rice, but the texture may change a bit. Be sure to chill it completely before packing and freezing.
Dena
I’m Seventh day Adventist. We call it haystacks and often eat it for lunch on Saturdays after church. The beauty of it is that everything can be done ahead of time so you just pull things out of the fridge and the beans can be sitting in the crock pot waiting so they’re already heated.
Jessica Fisher
Definitely a favorite around here!
C
I really enjoy many of your recipes:). It is a bit embarrassing to say but we are very poor, it’s so nice that you share your recipes for REAL food for people on tight budgets! Thanks again!
Melissa
I took your idea and it was terrific. I made Mexican Rice, put warmed pinto beans on top, that was delicious by itself. But, then we added lettuce, cheese and salsa. Definitely will be a regular around here. Thanks for the idea.
Jessica
@Melissa, that’s a go-to around here.
dawn
We have begun eating beans and rice every Sunday as part of our pantry challenge. Even though January is coming to an end we will continue to eat rice and beans on Sunday. I may have to start being a little more creative though so I look forward to searching your sight for ideas. By the way our pantry challenge was a huge success!
Jessica
@dawn, this is a great meal to add little bits of meat (maybe from other meals) or yummy toppings like salsa, guacamole, fajita vegetables, etc.
Christine
I have adopted your slow cooker pinto beans and Mexican rice as part of our weekly meal plan.Today I had to laugh because something came over me (an episode of America’s Test Kitchen) and I made the Cooks’ Illustrated version of Cuban rice and beans. This one pot meal has taken me, so far, three hours to make, with 30 minutes in the oven to go! Not counting the soaking of the beans overnight. My kids have had about four times their regular amount of Nick Jr. and PBS Kids – this better be good!
It made me thank God for you and your delicious – and easy to make with three little ones under foot – recipes.
Jessica
@Christine, ha! I remember those days of spending way too much time on new recipes. I imagine that those beans were awesome, but CI definitely is time intensive.
bob taylor
have you tried using a pressure cooker for rice and beans- the pressure cooker has been a great time saver for us, but i understand that having the time to use it depends on on your individual needs. just a suggestion.
Jessica
@bob taylor, I haven’t. I have a fear of the pressure cooker.
bob taylor
i encourage you to take a closer look at learning to use a pressure cooker– pressure cookers are very safe to use, and very safe to use- you would have to be doing a myth busters test to actually blow up a pressure cooker to over come all the safety features that are built into modern pressure cookers. here’s one link that we have found very informative: http://missvickie.com/workshop/stepbystep.html. pressure cookers can save you a lot of time, especially if you are already using a menu.
Lynne
For doing dry beans quickly, a pressure cooker is great.
It works nicely on meat too. A 2-lb round steak done in under 30 min.? Yep.
And she’s right, on newer models there are so many safety features you’re not going to hurt yourself with it.
On older models, pay attention to keeping the vent clean, don’t overload the cooker, and you’ll be fine.
I’ve managed to blow the pressure plug twice (2 different cookers), making quite a mess both times, but nobody was hurt and that’s out of nearly 30 years of using the thing (one of those happened when I was maybe 15).
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy1270
http://extension.usu.edu/utah/files/uploads/Pantry%20to%20Plate/MealsinMinutes.pdf
http://www.gopresto.com/downloads/instructions/01264.pdf
http://johnson.ca.uky.edu/sites/johnson.ca.uky.edu/files/FCS/2012_Cooking_Under_Pressure_Teaching_packet_revised.pdf
harmony
Hi! I have to say that I love this website! You have helped me tremendously this week. Before that, I had a nice meal plan for my family, but after so many weeks and months we were getting so tired of eating the same things. I have 4 children and they all have different wants when it comes to food, so it can be frustrating to cook for them. But, they have really liked all of your recipes and ideas that I have implemented. Especially the pizza night and sandwich bar. Those were a huge success for me and now I am going to begin the beans and rice your way. It sounds great to me, as I love mexican food, and they like it too! Thank you so much!
Tracy
Jessica,
I hope you see this message, since it is on an older post of yours. I am very intrigued by this “recipe.” I’m curious about a couple things: Do you know if brown rice would work as well in your mexican rice? It takes twice as long to cook of course, but surely it would still cook the same? Of course, it’s not authentic “mexican” but it is healthier anyway. 🙂 Also, do you season the pinto beans at all, or do you just throw them on top of, or mix them into, the rice? Thanks for any help you might have. I’ve been following your blog for a while now, really do enjoy reading your stuff!
Jessica
Yes, I get notifications on all comments. 🙂 I have been using brown rice in this for the past two years. My family doesn’t love it as much. It does take longer to cook, but it is still good. The texture is a little stickier, though.
As for beans, I season them the way they are in the recipe, but usually not more. With all the toppings, everybody makes his own like he likes it. And yes, it’s a non-recipe, isn’t it?