Picadillo was a staple dinner when I was growing up. This sweet and savory ground beef dinner hits all the right spots, especially when served alongside amarillos and white rice. It’s an underdog meal, simple and humble, perfect for any day of the week. You can also use Puerto Rican picadillo as a filling for other dishes like pastelitos or empanadas and papas rellenas.
When I called my nana Tata for the recipe, she gave it in her typical fashion – a bit of this and a bit of that. No measurements, rough times. When I called my father, who has gotten into cooking in retirement, he shared a slightly different variation. The recipe below combines both recipes into a delicious version of Puerto Rican picadillo, which overlaps a lot with the Cuban version. In fact, I developed this recipe with input from someone Cuban (Tata) and Puerto Rican (my dad)!
Puerto Rican Picadillo Recipe
Jump to Recipe
The recipe starts with creating a sofrito. This sofrito uses bell peppers and cilantro, ingredients easily found in grocery stores in the United States. Versions of sofrito on the island typically use aji dulce or cubanelle peppers instead of bell peppers and culantro in addition to cilantro. By all means, if you want to get fancy, head to your Latin grocery store to find those items. I’m always in favor of exploring your local ethnic food stores! Whatever you decide, you’ll create a delicious base for your cooking.
After creating the sofrito, add tomatoes and spices and brown the ground beef. Add potatoes. Once those are tender, stir in chopped olives and raisins. That’s it! It’s really that simple.
Buen provecho!
Recipe Notes
- In this recipe, I use a homemade adobo recipe that has no salt. If you use a store-bought adobo, it likely already has salt in it. Reduce the amount of salt by half or wait until the picadillo is done to taste and season as desired.
- Chopping the raisins is optional. Traditionally, raisins are left whole, but I like chopping them to spread out the sweetness and include a little bit in each bite.
Puerto Rican Picadillo
Equipment
- Measuring cups
- Measuring spoons
- Large, heavy pan such as a dutch oven or cast iron plan
Ingredients
Sofrito
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ⅓ red bell pepper diced (approximately ½ cup)
- ½ medium yellow onion diced (approximately ½ cup)
- ⅓ green bell pepper diced (approximately ½ cup)
- 2 garlic cloves minced
- 4-5 sprigs cilantro chopped
Picadillo
- 1 small tomato chopped (approximately ½ cup)
- 1 pound lean ground beef
- 1 tablespoon adobo
- 1 teaspoon salt* (based on a salt-free adobo)
- 2 small potatoes chopped in ½ inch cubes (optional)
- ¼ cup green olives stuffed with pimento chopped
- ¼ cup raisins chopped (chopping is optional)
Instructions
Make Sofrito
- In a large pan, heat olive oil at medium heat. Add onions and green and red bell pepper and sauté for approximately 5 minutes, until onions begin to become translucent and vegetables begin to soften. Add garlic and cilantro and stir until just fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Complete Picadillo
- Turn heat up to medium-high. Add tomato and sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add ground beef, adobo, and salt, and cook beef until it browns.
- Add potatoes and ½ cup water. Turn heat to low. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes to allow potatoes to cook. Test potatoes to make sure they are tender when poked with a fork. If water cooks down before potatoes are cooked, add an additional ½ cup of water.
- Uncover and test potatoes with a fork to make sure they are tender. If they need additional cooking time, simmer covered for an additional 5 minutes. Add green olives and raisins, stirring to incorporate and simmering until excess moisture evaporates. Taste and add salt as desired.