Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt
Quick weeknight Levantine: cinnamon-warmed beef over fluffy rice, cool yogurt to finish.
Ingredients
- 400 g Ground beef
- 250 g Rice
- 1 Onion
- 3 cloves Garlic
- 1½ tsp Ground cumin
- 1 Cinnamon stick
- 1 tsp Ground coriander
- 2 tbsp Extra-virgin olive oil
- 500 ml Chicken stock
- 1 tsp Salt
- ½ tsp Black pepper
- 200 g Yogurt
- ½ Lemon (optional)
- 2 tbsp Parsley (optional)
Method
- Bring the stock and rice to a boil in a covered pot, then reduce to low and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Rest covered for 5 minutes.
- While the rice cooks, finely dice the onion and mince the garlic.
- Heat the olive oil in a wide pan over medium-high. Sweat the onion until soft, about 5 minutes, then add the garlic and stir for 30 seconds.
- Add the beef and break it up, browning it hard until well coloured, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the cumin, cinnamon stick, coriander, salt, and pepper and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
- Whisk the yogurt with the lemon juice and a pinch of salt. (optional)
- Spoon the rice into bowls, top with the spiced beef and a generous dollop of yogurt, and scatter the parsley over.
Tap “Start cooking” for live timers that flag what to get ahead on while something simmers.
About Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt
Spiced beef and rice with yogurt is a streamlined Levantine weeknight main, drawing on the same cinnamon-warmed beef tradition that underpins dishes like hashweh but stripped down for speed. Ground beef is browned hard and seasoned with cumin, cinnamon and coriander, then spooned over fluffy rice and finished with a cool, lemony yogurt that pulls the whole plate together. The contrast is the appeal: warm, savory, gently sweet-spiced meat against the tang and coolness of the yogurt, with parsley for freshness.
What makes this version practical is its parallel workflow — the rice cooks covered and undisturbed while the onion, garlic and beef come together in a wide pan, so the whole dish lands in about thirty minutes without feeling rushed. Whisking the yogurt with lemon juice turns it from a plain dollop into a proper sauce that cuts the richness of the beef. It's the kind of unfussy, comforting dinner that needs no side beyond maybe a simple salad, giving you the flavors of a longer Middle Eastern braise on a schedule that fits a busy evening.
Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt: frequently asked questions
How many calories are in Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt?
A serving has about 620 calories — 29.4g protein, 63.7g carbs, 26.8g fat, 2.9g fiber. Figures are estimated from the ingredient amounts and will shift with your portions and brands.
Is it high in protein?
Each serving has about 29.4g of protein, roughly 19% of its calories.
Is Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt gluten-free?
Based on its ingredients, Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt has no gluten-containing components, so it's naturally gluten-free — as always, check that any packaged ingredients you use are certified gluten-free to be safe.
Is Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt dairy-free?
Not as written — it uses Yogurt. Swapping it for a plant-based alternative makes it dairy-free.
How long does Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt take to make?
About 30 minutes start to finish, but only around 18 of those are hands-on — the rest is largely unattended cooking time you can step away from. In the Homecooked app the timers and parallel steps are sequenced for you so the hands-on part feels even shorter.
Do I need every ingredient to make Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt?
The core ingredients are essential, but you can leave out lemon, parsley — they're optional and mainly there for extra flavor or finish.
How many servings does Spiced Beef & Rice with Yogurt make?
This recipe makes 4 servings. In the app you can scale it up or down and the ingredient amounts adjust automatically.