This Picadillo recipe is part of a collection I developed while creating a list of ground beef recipes that aren’t burgers or meatballs.
Picadillo is a dependable, versatile dish you can make repeatedly and serve in many ways:
Use it as a taco filling, serve it over rice with a fried egg, stuff it into empanadas, spoon it over tostones, pile it on a taco salad, or tuck it into lettuce boats with avocado. The sweet-and-savory combination—thanks to raisins and warm spices—gives this dish broad appeal (unless you, like my husband, really dislike raisins).
Here are a few other ground beef recipes you might enjoy:
Korean Beef Lettuce Cups
Curried Beef with Apricots & Almonds
Sloppy Joes
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Picadillo
5 from 2 reviews
Ground beef doesn’t have to be just burgers. Turn it into this flavorful, flexible Picadillo that’s great for weeknight meals and meal prep.
- Author: Simone Miller
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: South American
Ingredients
- 1 teaspoon lard, tallow, or avocado oil
- 1 small onion, finely diced
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 pound ground beef
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
- Pinch of cloves
- 1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 cup golden raisins
- 1/2 cup pimento-stuffed olives
Instructions
- Heat the fat in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and ground beef and cook, stirring occasionally, until the beef is browned, about 3–4 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic, cinnamon, cumin, cloves and salt and cook for another minute until fragrant.
- Add the diced tomatoes, apple cider vinegar, raisins and olives along with 1/2 cup water. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer for 15–20 minutes to meld the flavors.
- Serve warm over rice or cauliflower rice, in plantain tortillas, or with tostones.
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