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Holiday Cooking & Baking Recipes: Cajun Rice Dressing Recipe | Ground Beef Side Dishes
Dec 21, 2025
Cajun Rice Dressing Recipe | Ground Beef Side Dishes - Joseph is sharing a version of Cajun dirty rice with ground beef. Serve this rice dressing from scratch for the perfect Christmas Side Dish!
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Cajun Rice Dressing: https://www.pauladeen.com/recipe/cajun-rice-dressing-dirty-rice/
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0:00
- Hey, y'all.
0:01
We were lucky enough to get Joseph to come back
0:05
in the kitchen with.
0:08
Yeah. - Yeah.
0:09
- I didn't mess up did I?
0:10
- No, you didn't. (both laugh)
0:13
- We were lucky enough to have him come back
0:15
and do a Christmas recipe with us.
0:17
- Yeah. - And I can't wait.
0:20
Now what do you call this?
0:21
- This is called a Cajun rice dressing.
0:24
- Okay. - Which it's like dirty rice,
0:25
but if you're Creole, you make dirty rice.
0:28
- Yeah. - If you're Cajun,
0:30
you make rice dressing.
0:31
- Okay.
0:32
I didn't know that. - Yeah?
0:33
- But I do love that kind of cooking.
0:35
- Oh, me too. - Oh, and like dirty rice
0:38
has chicken livers in it.
0:39
- That's right.
0:40
This does not. - But this has
0:41
got ground beef. - This has ground beef in it.
0:43
So same elements of dirty rice,
0:46
but just no organ meat. - So this is...
0:51
- Cajun - Cajun.
0:52
- Yes, Ma'am. - Okay.
0:53
- Yes.
0:53
'Cause in Louisiana,
0:54
you have Creole. - Yes.
0:56
- And then you have the true Cajuns,
0:58
which are the original natives of Louisiana.
1:01
- Yes, yes, yes. - Yeah so...
1:02
- So this would be the Cajun- - The Cajun version.
1:06
Yes yes. - The version.
1:07
- My best friend Heather taught me
1:09
how to make this. - Okay, good.
1:10
- And we make this every Christmas.
1:12
- Every Christmas? - So as we can see,
1:13
it's Christmas. - And what do you
1:14
serve with it?
1:15
- I normally serve...
1:17
I mean, I pair it with either nice pork roast
1:20
or I'll do it with turkey.
1:21
So now we're just going to take a little bit
1:23
of vegetable oil
1:26
and just put it in the bottom of the pan,
1:28
just a little bit more. - Okay.
1:30
- Fat equals flavor, so don't ever forget that.
1:33
- It does, it does. (Joseph laughs)
1:35
- Now what we're going
1:35
to do is just brown off our meat.
1:38
And this is ground chuck.
1:39
You can use ground chuck.
1:44
Just make sure it has fat.
1:45
- Yeah, I was gonna say,
1:47
actually, I like a 70-30 or- - Yeah.
1:49
Yeah, 80-20 is good. - 80-20.
1:51
- 80-20 is really, really good.
1:53
- Yeah. - In something like this.
1:54
- A lot of people at 90 10 and that's-
1:55
- No, no, it's too dry for this.
1:57
You want to make sure it has,
1:59
again, some fat, because that's what
2:01
it's known for. - Get that puppy
2:02
in there, honey,
2:03
' cause mama's home. - Yes, Ma'am.
2:04
Me too.
2:06
- [Paula] Mama's home. - So now we're just
2:07
gonna break it up and I don't break it up
2:09
until it's like super small.
2:11
I like chunks.
2:11
- I do too - In it, yeah.
2:12
- I do too.
2:13
- Yep, I like some texture. - I do too.
2:16
- In that.
2:17
And so we're just gonna add this in.
2:18
This is two pounds.
2:20
- [Paula] You and I are very similar
2:21
in our ways. - We are.
2:23
- Yes Ma'am. - [Paula] Our way
2:24
in the kitchen.
2:26
- And this is perfect again.
2:28
It's actually very economical, this dish,
2:31
because really the most expensive thing
2:32
is probably the ground beef.
2:34
- Yeah. - So, yeah we're just gonna
2:35
let this brown. - Okay.
2:36
And do you drain that when it's done?
2:40
- [Joseph] I don't, but you can.
2:43
- [Paula] I don't either.
2:47
My son Bobby, for his birthday,
2:49
every year I have
2:50
to make him goulash. - Still got some garlic.
2:51
- Yes. - Okay.
2:52
Ooh yeah.
2:53
- And...
2:54
- I love your goulash recipe.
2:56
- And he said, "Mama, I'm try to make a goulash."
3:00
He said, "Okay, so,
3:01
I brown my ground beef
3:04
and then I drain it." - Okay.
3:05
- I said, "No, you don't."
3:06
(chuckles)
3:08
No. - No you don't.
3:10
Don't. - You need that.
3:10
- You need the fat.
3:12
It's not the same. - He said,
3:13
"Well, that's what I've been doing wrong, Mama."
3:14
- Yep. It's true.
3:16
- But he is such a clean eater.
3:18
- Yes, yes. - He's very regimented.
3:21
- Yes he is. - But his goulash,
3:23
he does not... - You don't need to.
3:25
That's where all the flavor is.
3:27
Fat is flavor. - That's right.
3:29
- So don't ever forget that.
3:30
Okay.
3:31
- You need your spoon? - Yes.
3:32
What I'm gonna do is just let it kind
3:34
of form a little bit of a crust on the bottom.
3:36
And basically you're just browning this off.
3:38
We can go ahead and add in our seasoning.
3:41
- Okay. - Now this is where-
3:42
- I see a lot of seasoning. - I think it
3:43
separates your home cook from someone
3:47
if you're classically trained in the kitchen
3:50
or if you've gone to cooking school.
3:51
- Yes.
3:53
- Season according to your palette.
3:54
But if you want it to be good,
3:56
you have to use a lot of seasoning.
3:58
And so this does not have.
3:59
You can put salt in this,
4:01
but because I put salt in the rice,
4:04
I don't wanna make it too salty.
4:05
- Right, right. - And so this is just
4:07
normal Cajun seasoning.
4:09
- Okay. - And we're gonna-
4:11
- But it does contain a lot of salt.
4:12
- It does, it does.
4:13
And so you want to be careful with that.
4:15
Plus the cream of chicken
4:18
that we're gonna use has salt in it too as well.
4:20
So just be careful with that.
4:22
But I put a good amount of seasoning in this.
4:26
This is probably about two tablespoons here,
4:29
but I'm not gonna use all of that right now.
4:32
You season in layers.
4:33
I think we talked about
4:34
that the last time I was here.
4:36
And so we're just gonna brown this off.
4:38
We're gonna add
4:39
in our garlic powder too as well.
4:41
Okay so now our meat has been cooked down.
4:43
- Yes. - Till it's all-
4:45
- And there's not a whole bunch of fat in.
4:46
- No, no, this is good.
4:48
Yeah, so what we're gonna do now
4:50
is start adding in our vegetables.
4:52
- Okay. - I like a lot of onion.
4:54
- I do too. - I love a lot of onion.
4:57
- I do too. - And because we're cooking
4:58
this for dinner, I'm doing a little bit
5:00
more than what I would normally do.
5:02
And so we're gonna add in-
5:03
- I'll give you. - Thank you so much.
5:06
- I'll give you a little. - We're gonna add
5:07
in some green bell pepper
5:08
and then some red bell pepper.
5:11
- I love the red.
5:12
It's so sweet. - It is.
5:13
And it's beautiful.
5:14
Like in there, I like the contrast
5:16
of the red and the green.
5:17
- Yes. - And it works perfect
5:18
because it's Christmas.
5:21
- Perfect. - Yes, Ma'am.
5:22
- And I've always said,
5:25
"You eat first with your eyes."
5:27
- That's right.
5:27
You do.
5:28
- So you want it to be
5:31
appetizing cooking. - You definitely do.
5:33
Yep.
5:34
And so this looks like a lot,
5:35
but it's gonna cook down.
5:36
No, I want it up.
5:37
- Okay. - Up.
5:39
Yep, that's perfect.
5:41
And so right now we're just going
5:42
to basically sweat the vegetables,
5:44
cook them down a little bit in our ground beef.
5:48
And now we're going to go ahead
5:49
and add in our garlic powder
5:50
and our onion powder.
5:52
- Alright. - Don't do it all?
5:54
- [Joseph] Let's start with maybe half
5:55
of that first. - [Paula] Okay.
5:56
And this looks like it might be the garlic.
5:58
- [Joseph] Yep, garlic powder.
6:01
- [Paula] And this looks like
6:01
it might be the onion.
6:02
- [Joseph] And when you're cooking
6:03
with this amount of ingredients,
6:06
you wanna make sure that you're cooking
6:08
to your personal palate.
6:09
- [Paula] That's right. - Don't just do it
6:11
because we're doing it.
6:12
If your family doesn't like something,
6:14
you can substitute it
6:16
or just do less of something. - Absolutely.
6:19
You want do what's best. - You wanna please this.
6:21
- You do.
6:22
You do. - This right here.
6:23
- And that's the most important thing. (laughs)
6:26
- And your families. - It's true.
6:28
It's true.
6:29
I love dishes like this though,
6:31
because it's so easy.
6:32
- Yeah. - It's simple.
6:33
It's full of flavor and it's just good.
6:36
I think Cajun food is some of the best food
6:38
in the world. - Some of the best.
6:40
- I think so.
6:41
I love it.
6:42
I actually take the- - Are you waiting
6:43
for anything else?
6:44
- The cayenne pepper on the end.
6:46
This is another thing you wanna...
6:48
If you don't like spice,
6:49
like I don't particularly like
6:52
so much spice to where you're sweating
6:54
and you can't tolerate the heat.
6:58
But I do like it.
6:59
So it's present, you can taste it.
7:01
It's there. - [Paula] Yeah.
7:03
- So this is one thing,
7:05
if you do not like spice at all,
7:06
you can omit this, but I will say
7:09
that the cayenne actually really does
7:12
make this dish shine.
7:14
It's supposed to have just the slightest
7:15
little kick to it.
7:17
Or a big kick. - Ingredient.
7:18
Salt, red pepper, black pepper, chili powder.
7:23
- Oh, I didn't realize there's chili powder
7:24
in there. - Garlic powder.
7:25
- Okay. - Spices, salt,
7:28
dehydrated garlic,
7:32
silicon dioxide folks.
7:35
So it won't clump.
7:38
Now that's a Creole.
7:40
- Yes, that's a Creole.
7:41
Anybody in Louisiana's gonna use that brand.
7:44
- Yeah. - For sure that looks
7:45
like a lot, but it's not.
7:46
I literally just did it like this.
7:49
That's less than a teaspoon.
7:51
- It is? - It is, I promise
7:53
- It sure didn't make it ringing.
7:54
- It did, it did.
7:56
But when you taste it, you'll see it's not.
7:58
- Yeah. - But you might...
8:01
You know when you're cooking this too as well,
8:03
if you start coughing,
8:04
it's just 'cause the heat is coming up
8:06
against the pepper. - Yeah.
8:07
- So just, you know, you want
8:08
to be careful with that.
8:10
So yeah.
8:11
So basically we're just stewing this down
8:14
and we're gonna add a little bit of water in it.
8:16
- Okay.
8:18
- And then we're gonna start adding in our...
8:20
- All right, you just tell me-
8:22
- Yep. - When to stop.
8:23
- Probably about half of that.
8:27
That's good. - Okay.
8:28
- And then we can go ahead
8:30
and start adding in our soups.
8:33
- Okie-doke.
8:35
And you've got...
8:38
- It's almost like making spaghetti sauce.
8:41
- Both are- - Yes, I do.
8:43
Just for this amount I would do two.
8:45
- Okay. - The recipe calls
8:46
for only one. - Okay.
8:47
- But again, we're altering this
8:49
because we got guests tonight.
8:51
- Yeah. - And so,
8:54
yeah, we're just gonna put a can
8:57
of cream of chicken.
8:59
I would say don't use cream of mushroom
9:01
or cream of celery or anything.
9:05
Just use this.
9:06
- That's right. - Because then you'll know
9:07
it'll turn out good.
9:08
- You know, you ain't in the south
9:09
if you don't have a can of soup.
9:11
- It's true.
9:12
Absolutely. - Ain't that right?
9:13
- Absolutely.
9:16
Oh, pardon, excuse me. - No, you're fine.
9:17
But food snobs...
9:20
- They wouldn't dare have this in there.
9:22
- No. - No.
9:24
But you need it.
9:25
- Yes. - It needs it for sure.
9:28
And this is so simple.
9:29
Imagine doing this-
9:30
- It's so easy. - Again for-
9:32
- It's just like
9:33
making spaghetti sauce. - It is, it is.
9:36
- Only using chicken soup
9:39
instead of tomatoes. - Yep.
9:42
Yep. - [Paula] Whatever.
9:43
- Whoops.
9:44
Keep doing that.
9:46
And so basically what we're gonna do
9:47
is just let this stew down- - Do need a bigger pot?
9:49
- Nope.
9:50
Cause what we're gonna do is
9:51
it's literally like making spaghetti sauce,
9:54
we're going to take this
9:55
and then fold it into our rice.
9:57
This is just some cooked rice
9:58
that we've already cooked and steamed here.
10:02
(metal rattling)
10:05
We're just gonna keep letting this stew down.
10:07
And you want to stew it down
10:08
until the vegetables are soft.
10:11
Now what we're gonna do is just put
10:12
some rice in here and we're gonna break it up.
10:18
Okay.
10:20
And you wanna make sure you break it up
10:22
because you want your meat sauce
10:24
to really absorb into the rice.
10:26
- [Paula] I love rice. - [Joseph] I do too.
10:29
When I was younger, I would just sit,
10:31
my mom would make a pot of rice
10:32
and I would just sit and eat it with butter.
10:35
(laughs)
10:36
I love rice. - [Paula] The older I get,
10:38
the more I love rice and pastas.
10:42
- [Joseph] I crave rice probably
10:44
more than potatoes,
10:45
which I know potatoes is your favorite.
10:48
- [Paula] I do love a tater. - [Joseph] Yep.
10:50
- [Paula] Do you want all that rice in there?
10:52
- [Joseph] Yes, thank you.
10:54
(laughs)
10:55
I love it.
10:56
You're so efficient.
10:57
(both laugh)
11:00
So now what we're going to do is add in
11:02
all of our mix. - [Paula] Uh oh.
11:08
- Mm.
11:08
This smells so good.
11:10
- Yes. - Okay.
11:12
And so now- - That's a good spoon.
11:14
- It is.
11:15
It's excellent for this.
11:16
You definitely want something sturdy.
11:18
- Somebody made it for me years ago.
11:19
- [Joseph] Oh really? - [Paula] Yes.
11:22
- [Joseph] This smells so good.
11:23
And this bowl is perfect.
11:25
- [Paula] I know. - [Joseph] I love it.
11:27
- [Paula] Thank you.
11:28
I'm so glad you do.
11:29
I've used it.
11:30
- [Joseph] Okay, and so we're just gonna mix this
11:32
all together until the rice is well blended
11:40
- And it looks like dressing,
11:41
doesn't it? - It does look like dressing.
11:43
Maybe that's why they call it that.
11:44
- Maybe so. - Sometimes I know they stuff
11:47
it too as well.
11:48
They stuff their meat
11:49
with a dressing too as well. - Yeah.
11:51
- That's kind of similar, but yeah.
11:54
And so, yeah, we just wanna make sure
11:57
that all of the rice is coated.
12:00
See? - Oh yeah.
12:00
- There's some that's not coated.
12:03
Yep.
12:04
And then...
12:09
I've always heard, "You get back in there."
12:11
- Get back in there.
12:12
(both laugh)
12:14
- I can hear you saying that.
12:15
"Get back in there." - Get back in there.
12:18
You're not escaping me.
12:19
- Nope, okay.
12:20
And so now what we're going to do is,
12:24
this is where you want to make a judgment call,
12:25
like if it needs more salt or,
12:28
I think it's good on the cayenne for Ms. Paula.
12:31
We're not gonna add anymore. - Well that was
12:32
before the rice.
12:33
- Yes. - That was before the rice.
12:35
- And so, but we'll make a judgment call to see
12:37
what other seasonings we might want to add more.
12:39
Garlic powder, onion powder,
12:41
something like that. - Is this your fork?
12:42
- That was, but you're-
12:43
- Is that your tasting fork? - It was, yes, Ma'am.
12:45
- Okay this is my tasting spoon right here.
12:47
- And then also what we do,
12:49
I forgot, we're gonna add in
12:51
just some chopped green onions.
12:54
That adds a little bit of fresh vegetable.
12:57
- [Paula] That's right.
12:58
And it's pretty.
13:00
- [Joseph] Gotta have your green in it.
13:02
- [Paula] And this is pretty, - [Joseph] It is.
13:05
(greens chopping)
13:08
- Now when I tasted just the meat,
13:10
y'all, he had put that cayenne pepper in it.
13:13
- I did. - And it kind
13:14
of took my breath. - Uh oh.
13:15
- But it's gonna be different
13:16
than it was. - It is now.
13:17
Yes.
13:18
And again, you season that to your liking.
13:21
Whatever you're liking is.
13:23
It's too hot, too spicy? - Get outta my way, man.
13:28
(both laugh)
13:29
- Nevermind.
13:30
I don't think it is. - It ain't, it's delicious.
13:32
- Now with your palate,
13:34
is there anything that you feel it needs more?
13:36
Garlic powder or- - My mouth.
13:38
(Joseph laughs)
13:42
Mm.
13:43
I don't know.
13:44
You taste it.
13:45
- Okay. - Because you know
13:46
how now it does have some kick to it.
13:48
I'm not gonna lie about that.
13:50
But...
13:52
- Mm.
13:54
It tastes the way it's supposed to.
13:56
I'll add a little bit, probably more
13:59
garlic powder
14:00
and onion powder. - Yes. yes.
14:01
That never hurts. - No.
14:05
And you could add if you want it like fresh...
14:10
Oh, that's good.
14:11
So I get the heat now.
14:13
It's supposed to be subtle like that.
14:15
It just slips up on you.
14:16
It warms your tongue.
14:20
But when you pair it with meat,
14:21
like I'm gonna make this
14:22
with smothered pork chops tonight.
14:24
- Oh yay. - So that's gonna help cut
14:27
that down a little bit too as well.
14:29
- It's delicious. - I'm so glad you like it.
14:31
Thank you Heather for the recipe.
14:34
- Delicious, y'all. - Yay.
14:37
So that's it.
14:38
Cajun rice dressing.
14:39
It's perfect for Christmas.
14:40
- We just going find a pot to put that back in.
14:44
And what if you feel like it's drying out?
14:47
- If you feel like it's drying out,
14:49
I would probably add just a little bit of water.
14:52
- Okay. - Just to wake it
14:54
back up again. - Right.
14:55
- But what would you suggest doing?
14:56
- I was thinking the same thing.
14:57
- You were thinking the same.
14:58
You could do chicken stock,
14:59
but to me it doesn't need that.
15:02
- You could. - You could do that.
15:03
- You could, - If you already had,
15:05
if you're making turkey or something
15:06
for Thanksgiving- - I'm sorry
15:07
but I'm double eating. (Joseph laughs)
15:10
- It is good.
15:11
It is delicious. - [Paula] Mm.
15:16
- We can do it with a piece of fish.
15:19
That would go go great with fish.
15:21
Mm.
15:22
- [Paula] All right why-
15:23
- And definitely with the garlic powder
15:24
and onion powder.
15:25
- Yes, I mean it's divine.
15:27
Alright, so why don't we put enough
15:30
for our dinner. - Yeah.
15:32
Perfect. - Back in this pot.
15:33
- Yes, Ma'am. - We'll keep it warm.
15:35
- I love it.
15:35
- How about that? - Sounds great.
15:38
And this is the finished product.
15:40
- It's so good, y'all.
15:43
Now, if you let it get cold,
15:44
you could always put this in a casserole dish.
15:46
- You can, and heat it up in the oven.
15:48
- But it's just like you would.
15:49
- I keep doing that.
15:50
Please forgive me. - I know it.
15:51
I'm trying. - But that's for us.
15:52
(both laugh)
15:56
Oh God. - [Paula] I'm trying
15:56
to forgive you.
15:58
- Please forgive me.
16:00
Anyway.
16:01
Yeah, so please make this for Christmas.
16:03
Enjoy.
16:04
- Or Thanksgiving - Or Thanksgiving.
16:06
Any holiday, it would be good.
16:09
- Joseph and I send y'all love and best dishes.
16:11
- We do.
16:12
Merry Christmas, guys. - Merry Christmas.
16:15
Yum!
16:17
Hey, y'all, it's Paula Deen.
16:19
Now, if you enjoyed this video, be sure to like it
16:23
and click the subscribe button as well as the notification
16:27
and bell to be alerted when I post a video.
16:30
Love and Best Dishes Y'all.
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