A wonderful meal for busy weeknights when you still want to put a healthy meal on the table. Includes ground beef, quinoa, spinach, onions, garlic and fresh herbs and comes together in under 30 minutes!
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Most of us don't have hours to spend creating beautifully elaborate meals in the kitchen, even if we'd like to!
I love when I come up with a recipe that checks all the boxes. After this one came to life, I've literally been putting it on my meal plan for years. It's so good, so easy and so healthy!
Reach for this recipe the next time you need a wholesome, quick meal for dinner! It's healthy, fast and very delicious. It may quickly become a family favorite!
Why you'll love this recipe
Flavorful - This dish is herby (is that a word? Haha you know what I mean), savory and comforting. So delicious!
Nutritious - Made from a variety of whole food ingredients, this recipe is absolutely packed with nutrients and is super high in protein. It will fill you up!
Easy to make - Very simple to throw together with minimal prep work. Made with very simple ingredients you can easily find in most grocery stores.
Great leftovers - I always make enough supper so we can have leftovers for lunch the next day. Cook once, eat twice! This easy weeknight meal makes great leftovers.
Ingredients
Ground beef - Grass-fed and grass-finished is best for nutrition and flavor. You can use regular or lean ground beef.
Quinoa - Contains many vitamins and minerals, including many essential amino acids, as well as fibre and protein. Makes a great base for this dish.
Beef broth - Helps to bring out the delicious beef flavor. Bone broth is best, but not required.
Onions - Adds fibre, vitamins and minerals and a sweet flavor.
Garlic - Great source of Vitamin B6, Vitamin C, selenium and manganese and gives a sweet, buttery flavor to the dish.
Spinach - A nutritious green vegetable added to make this a full meal.
Fresh herbs - Vibrant flavors from fresh herbs complete the dish.
FAQ
Ground beef and quinoa skillet makes an excellent freezer meal, so I usually make a double batch (or sometimes triple) and freeze what we don't eat for another time. Just use a larger skillet or even a dutch oven.
Yes! Allow to cool completely before packaging. Store in freezer-safe glass containers or disposable foil pans, or wrap custom sized servings in plastic wrap, then aluminum foil. Label with the name of the meal, date and reheating instructions.
Thaw in the fridge overnight or in warm water if you’re short on time. Reheat in
a pan over medium-low heat or in the oven, covered at 350°F for 15-20 minutes.
Tips for making ground beef and quinoa skillet
- It is optional to rinse and saute the quinoa, but I've found that it significantly reduces the bitterness. So I highly encourage it!
- If you forget to make the quinoa with beef broth (which I have done), stir 2 teaspoon of bouillon or "Better Than Bouillon Beef Base" (I get it at Costco and like it much more than bouillon) into the quinoa after it's cooked.
- Fresh garlic, onions and herbs are definitely the best, but you could also use dried herbs, garlic powder and onion powder
Variations for ground beef and quinoa skillet
- Ground turkey, ground chicken or ground pork instead of beef
- Brown rice, white rice or cauliflower rice instead of quinoa (although quinoa is much higher in protein than these options!)
- Chicken broth or vegetable broth instead of beef broth
- Kale instead of spinach
- Add a can of black beans or white beans for extra protein and nutrition
- Any combination of herbs will be delicious if you don't have sage or thyme
- Add a pinch of red pepper flakes for more of a kick
- Top with shredded cheese for even MORE protein and, of course, cheesy goodness
Tools you may need
Large cast-iron skillet o non-stick frying pan
How to make ground beef and quinoa skillet
Ingredients:
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 cup quinoa
- 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 white onions, diced
- 1 lb (454 g) ground beef
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced
- 8-10 sprigs of thyme (about 1 tbsp)
- 1 + ½ sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- 1½ cups fresh spinach, chopped
Instructions:
Rinse quinoa thoroughly (helps get rid of the bitter outer coating) and place in a small pot with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Heat over medium-high heat, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes.
Add in beef broth to rinsed quinoa and increase to high heat to bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low heat, so the quinoa is gently simmering, cover and let cook for 15-20 minutes, until all the broth is absorbed.
While quinoa cooks, heat a large skillet over medium heat and cook the remaining 2 tablespoon olive oil, diced onions and 1 teaspoon salt until the onions are softened, about 10 minutes (stirring occasionally). Add beef and garlic, cook until beef is no longer pink. Add in sage, thyme, pepper and remaining ½ teaspoon salt.
Turn off the heat, pour cooked quinoa and chopped spinach into the ground beef mixture. Stir to combine and wait for a minute while the spinach wilts. Taste and adjust seasonings with more salt, pepper and herbs if desired.
How to store leftover ground beef and quinoa
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop. This meal is delicious when cold as well, so it makes great leftovers and is a delicious meal idea for a to-go lunch!
Did you try this recipe and love it? If so, I would appreciate a 5-star review and your comments below!
More ground meat recipes
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- BEEF STROGANOFF WITHOUT SOUR CREAM
- HOW TO EAT A TOSTADA
More nourishing dinners
- PORK AND BEEF MEATLOAF
- CREAMY CHICKEN WITH SPINACH
- BEEF POT PIE WITH SPROUTED WHEAT CRUST
- OVEN BAKED BBQ BEEF SHORT RIBS
- CREAMY SALMON DILL SAUCE
📖 Recipe
Ground Beef and Quinoa Skillet
A wonderful meal for busy weeknights when you still want to put a healthy meal on the table. Includes ground beef, quinoa, spinach, onions, garlic and fresh herbs and comes together in under 30 minutes!
Ingredients
- 2 cups beef broth
- 1 cup quinoa
- 3 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- 2 white onions, diced
- 1 lb (454 g) ground beef
- 6 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh sage, minced
- 8-10 sprigs of thyme (about 1 tbsp)
- 1 + ½ sea salt
- ½ teaspoon ground pepper
- 1½ cups fresh spinach, chopped
Instructions
- Rinse quinoa thoroughly and place in a small pot with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Heat over medium-high heat, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes.
- Add in beef broth and increase to high heat to bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce heat to low heat, so the quinoa is gently simmering, cover and let cook for 15-20 minutes, until all the broth is absorbed.
- While quinoa cooks, heat a large skillet over medium heat and cook the remaining 2 tablespoon olive oil, diced onions and 1 teaspoon salt until the onions are softened, about 10 minutes (stirring occasionally). Add beef and garlic, cook until beef is no longer pink. Add in sage, thyme, pepper and remaining ½ teaspoon salt.
- Turn off the heat, pour cooked quinoa and chopped spinach into the ground beef mixture. Stir to combine and wait for a minute while the spinach wilts. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed
Notes
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days. Reheat in the microwave or on the stovetop. This meal is delicious when cold as well, so it makes great leftovers and is a great to-go lunch the day after!
Lisa
Disappointing... this wasn't good at all... 🙁 Tried to save by adding a little rotel, cumin, garlic powder all to no avail.
Errika
Oh, really? That's so strange, my family loves this dish! Was the issue lack of flavor? Were you using fresh herbs? I'll confess that I've never made it with dried herbs and fresh ones do make a huge difference. Also, be sure to rinse the quinoa really well, otherwise, there'll likely be a strong bitter taste. I'm sorry to hear it didn't turn out well for you!
Rachel Rowe
This is such a flavor packed nutrient dense meal. I absolutely loved it. I was scared to use so much onion and garlic, but it was sooooo good. Great comforting fall food.
Delaney P
My family and I loved it and will cook it again
Errika
Thanks for the feedback, Delaney! I'm so glad you enjoyed it.
Heather
Wow, this was so good! Didn't have fresh spinach on hand so I used frozen, and it still turned out great. Thank you for taking the time to share this recipe.
Errika
I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
Susan
delicious! I used frozen spinach and a combination of fresh anď dried thyme as I had recently harvested the fresh thyme to dehydrate. Don't skimp on the garlic. I doubled the recipe but fèlt the quinoa to meat ratio would be too high if I used it all, so kept some quinoa out. I will freeze it for a different time.
Julie
I made this today, grinding up the cooked meat, onions and herbs before adding quinoa. My husband is on a soft fod diet for several months. This is super flavorful! Definitely a keeper! Thank you for sharing.
Jess
Thank you for this tasty, high-protein dish! I was trying to hit my macros and just so happened to have all the ingredients on hand - except my spinach was frozen and herbs were dried, but it still came out great. I added some mushroom umami seasoning from Trader Joe’s to top it off and everyone was happy. I will def make this again!
Rachael
My husband and I loved this recipe! I did make a few simple changes and they turned out okay. I used mushroom bouillon instead of beef broth and also added broasted Brussels sprouts. Thanks for sharing 😊