A Cuban creation, picadillo is one of the world's great ground meat dishes. I went with beef, but you can add some pork and/or chorizo. Serve it with rice.
This is the genuine article. I was once married to a Cuban whose Grandmother made Picadillo a couple times a month and Chef John's recipe is very close. Abuelita did not include the olives which are a nice touch. She did, however put a small pile of fried potatoes in the center of each serving which added a nice crunch. Since she was not concerned with photographing her picadillo she served on top of a bed of rice and the fried potatoes provided the garnish. Another essential feature of her Picadillo was a side of tostones or fried plantains. Unfortunately, plantains can be hard to find in the Pacific North West. Her tostones were not sliced plantain chips but were inch long chunks that were fried twice. After the first frying they were cooled in iced salt water and then smashed, by hand, between two layers of paper towels before being fried the second time.
Read MoreAdded 6 oz. cubed chorizo beef sausage. Easy to make but this particular combination of flavors wasn’t really my thing I guess.
Read MoreThis is the genuine article. I was once married to a Cuban whose Grandmother made Picadillo a couple times a month and Chef John's recipe is very close. Abuelita did not include the olives which are a nice touch. She did, however put a small pile of fried potatoes in the center of each serving which added a nice crunch. Since she was not concerned with photographing her picadillo she served on top of a bed of rice and the fried potatoes provided the garnish. Another essential feature of her Picadillo was a side of tostones or fried plantains. Unfortunately, plantains can be hard to find in the Pacific North West. Her tostones were not sliced plantain chips but were inch long chunks that were fried twice. After the first frying they were cooled in iced salt water and then smashed, by hand, between two layers of paper towels before being fried the second time.
Wonderful!! As a devotee of Chef John, and living 1 mile out of San Francisco, I am happy to be the first to review! Between my cupboard, refrigerator and spice rack I had all I needed. My kitchen smelled like a 5 star restaurant as Peccadillo simmered away. Served with brown rice and garnished with Cilantro. Husband kept saying Yumm! and wants more!!
This was different, but in a very good way! I didn't have red wine vinegar or pimento olives---so I used a little mix of red wine and balsamic vinegar and just regular black olives. I also used raisins instead of currants. I really liked the combination of spices, and that little bit of sweet you get when you bite into a raisin. I've never had Picadillo before, so I can't comment on this tasting "authentic" or whatever, but I do know that this tastes good! It is also very easy and fast to make for a weeknight dinner. Thanks Chef John!
The 1st time we had Picadillo at a Cuban restaurant, my husband and I loved it. I looked up a recipe for Picadillo on AR website and have been using the same recipe for years. But when I found this recipe by Chef John, whose recipes almost never disappoint, I wanted to give it a try. I liked the texture of this recipe better, but it just has too much tomato sauce for my taste! I will make it again with just 2/3 or even half the amount of tomatoes.
This is a great ground beef dish with a wonderful blend of spices and flavors. We loved it
So delicious, wasn’t sure about olives but my kids r pretty adventurous and they loved it. Added diced potatoes to it and I know it’s not the original recipe but it was so delicious with it.
I've done all the cooking at my house for over 40 years. This is the first dish with olives that my wife actually liked. Chef John ROCKS!
I have a binder in the kitchen with recipes that I've printed. We call it "the book of john....chef john". Every so often we have a Cuban brunch. Cuban coffee (super strong and super sweet ), tropical fruit salad, mojitos (extra rum please) and chef johns picadillo... Or Cuban sandwiches, those too. Sometimes both and the congri rice. We live in California. What do we know about how it's supposed to taste? Thank you chef john. Come over to Oakland for our next Cuban brunch.
Flavorful and easy! This is a "keeper" recipe. I served it over spaghetti squash. (Trying to be healthier.) The spiciness of the meat was a nice contrast to the sweet nuttiness of the squash.
Loved it!!! I made this to serve when we had friends over to see our photos from a recent Cuba cruise. I got many compliments and a request to bring it next time we go to a pot luck. Great served over rice, leftovers are good, so this could be made ahead and reheated with no problem. The combination of flavors is unusual, but truly worked. BTW, we didn't eat this in Cuba, but wish we had since it was so much better than our meal there. I'm thinking of trying the recipe with deli chicken for a change, but I wouldn't mind eating this every week. Thanks for a great recipe!
I'm a big fan of Chef John, but made a couple of minor tweaks using ideas from other picadillo recipes. I added a single diced jalapeno, a 1/4 cup of chopped green bell peppers, a small can of green chilies and two packets of Goya sazon seasoning. I skipped the olives (personal preference), but my wife topped her portion with them. Not that Chef John's recipe was lacking, but I thought these additions added to the great flavor. I will make this again.
This is great! I also added a (pound) ham slice I chopped coarsely. Great flavor and texture.
Never had any picadillo before so I don’t know how it’s supposed to taste. My husband really liked it, but I thought the red wine vinegar was way too strong. I loved the olives though. I followed the recipe exactly, unless you count raisins as a substitution. I will try it again with less red wine vinegar.
As with all Chef John recipes I’ve tried, it’s a definite 5 star unaltered!! Growing up in a large Puerto Rican and Cuban area on West coast FL, this is comfort food at its best and Chef John nailed it (AGAIN!). as is at least the first time then see what else my palate may prefer more or less of but every one of
Update - The leftovers are amazing, would possible use as filling in a lettuce wrap. Use the raisins/currants.
-Unique flavor. I don't care for raisins but I did use the raisins, as recipe intends. I will be making again with the raisins and extra, extra green olives.
Interesting flavors but in a delicious way. This was even better the next day!
https://www.domesticgourmet.com/quick-and-easy-puerto-rican-picadillo/
Added 6 oz. cubed chorizo beef sausage. Easy to make but this particular combination of flavors wasn’t really my thing I guess.
Fabuloso! This reminds me of the picadillo I used to get when I lived in Miami.
This was easily six servings rather than four, so the calories and cost were very good. It's made from things I had on hand at the end of the week. I made this, tasted and then put in the fridge for 24 hours. It was better after the refrigeration. We really enjoyed it the first meal. The second meal was fine, but I threw away the leftovers rather than eat it a third time. I wouldn't count it as one of the great ground meat recipes. Give me a cabbage roll, meatball, or stuffed pepper.
While this is probably personal taste I didn’t like the taste. My wife liked it but not enough to make again.
Added full bunch of cilantro and one finely chopped carrot and we are absolutely thrilled with all the ways we can use this dish. I also highly recommend watching the video to start off with a sense of humor!
My husband brought two fellows home from work, who live in a hotel 3 nights a week, for a home cooked meal. Although I served them Chef John’s gazpacho plus another appetizer first, they had two helpings of this Picadillo. All Gone! I didn’t change a thing in the recipe. Another keeper for me from Chef John!
This stuff is fantastic! I used only beef. I didn't have red wine vinegar, so I used 2 parts red wine to 1 part white wine vinegar. Also, I added a couple of tablespoons of tomato paste since I had to use diced tomatoes instead of crushed. The second time I made it, I used whole olives, which I think are better in this dish.
Made it exactly as the recipe calls for and it was so yummy!! I had reservations about the olives but decided to go with them. Very glad I did. I don’t like green olives but these seem to take on a different flavor. Absolutely will make this again. Big thumbs up Chef John!
My husband eats this often at our local Cuban restaurant, so I decided to try this at home. He loved it!
The flavor was fabulous. Up there with La Teresita and Columbia restaraunt. I used ground turkey so it wasn’t really greasy enough ?? but that’s not the recipe’s fault :)
Quite greasy... recipe didn't say to drain the fat after browning the meat, but I think I should have. Admittedly I didn't have fine ground beef, it was coarse ground. Shockingly needed a bit MORE cayenne! It was easy and OK but if I were to make again I think I'd try a different version. Felt like it needed to be simmered for much longer to develop flavor.
Thanks again Chef John! This is such a fantastic recipe! All I can say is...delish!
Absolutely delicious. I think the addition of cinnamon really makes the dish. Easy, weeknight meal. Served without rice and plantains. Chef John never disappoints!
