"Dirty" Rice

Okay, not really, because authentic dirty rice is made with organ meat, and we don't use those, and also, its just something I threw together once when I was running out of supplies in my pantry so maybe other things are off too.  So this is a quick easy version inspired by the flavors of Dirty Rice that my family loves to eat, and I like to throw together when I need a quick weekday meal. 

2 C rice
3 C water
1 TBSP Penzey's chicken soup base

1TBSP bacon grease or other oil to sauté veggies
2 bell peppers diced (any color you wish)
1 large or 2 medium carrots diced
1 small onion diced
1 clove garlic minced
1" fresh ginger grated
1 1/2 - 2 lb ground beef
2 tsp -1 Tbsp Cajin seasonings (start with less and add more if you want to after tasting) (I like Penzeys, but any will do)

Start the rice.  I add 3 cups water and 1 TBSP broth base to a pan and stir to make it broth, and then add the rice and cook as normal (Bring water to boil, cover and remove from heat and let sit for 20-ish minutes)

While rice is cooking melt the bacon grease or warm your oil in a cast iron skillet.  Dice your carrots and add to the pan.  Dice the onions and peppers and add those as well. Stir in the grated garlic and ginger.

Once the veggies are getting softer add in your ground beef and brown it.  Stir in Cajin seasonings.  By this time your rice should be done cooking, so go ahead and dump it into your skillet with everything else and give it a good through mixing.

Serve and enjoy.  Let me know if you try it and what your family thinks. I think I've made this 4 times in the past 2 months and I'm still getting rave reviews.