“Simply Delicious Ground Beef Casserole”
Here is a little information about ground beef from Wikipedia: In many countries, food laws define specific categories of beef that is ground and what they can contain. For example, in the United States, beef fat may be added to hamburger but not to ground beef if the meat is ground and packaged at a USDA-inspected plant.In the U.S., a maximum of 30% fat by weight is allowed in either hamburger or ground beef. The allowable amount in France is 5 to 20% (15% being used by most food chains). In Germany, regular ground beef may contain up to 15% fat while the special “Tatar” for steak tartare may contain less than 5% fat. Both hamburger and beef that has been ground can have added seasoning, phosphate, extenders, or binders added; but no additional water is permitted. Beef that is ground is often marketed in a range of different fat contents to match the preferences of customers.
Ingredients
- Meat Filling
- 1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
- 1 small onion chopped
- 2 cloves garlic chopped
- 2 cups (16 oz's) enchilada sauce (red)
- 1 cup whole kernel corn (frozen works great)
- 1 can (small) sliced black olives, well drained
- 1 tps. salt
- 1/4 cup pickles jalapeno pepper ( if you want to put some heat in this dish)
- Crust
- 2 1/4 cups corn meal
- 2 cups of water
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 can diced green chilies
- 1 12 oz can evaporated milk
- 1/2 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese
Instructions
To make the Filling: Cook the ground beef with the onion, garlic in a good size skillet till the meat is well browned. drain the meat well.
Add the corn olives, salt and pour in the enchilada sauce and mix well.
The crust is made by: combining the corn meal, water and salt in a medium sized sauce pan.
Cook over medium heat for 5 to 7 minutes , stir frequently till the mixture thickens. It may not take the full amount of time mentioned depending on your stove top.
Stir in the green chilies
When done reserve 2 cups of the corn meal mixture for the top cover
In a greased baking dish (12 X 8 inch spread the remaining corn meal mixture on the bottom of the dish as well as up the sides to make a crust for the filling.
Bake the crust in the baking dish in a heated oven (425 degrees) for 10 minutes.
Cool the dish on a wire rack.
After the crust is cooled you can put the ground beef filling into the baking dish with the crust still in it. Use a spoon to spread it out evenly across the baking dish.
Spread the 2 cups of corn meal that you have in reserve across the top of your dish.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes
Sprinkle the cheese on top of the corn meal crust
Bake for 5 to 10 minutes, till the cheese has melted