Picadillo

By Sam Sifton

Updated November 7, 2021

  • Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food stylist: Maggie Ruggiero. Prop stylist: Theo Vamvounakis.
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Total Time
1 hour
Rating
5(3,758)
Comments
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Picadillo is one of the great dishes of the Cuban diaspora: a soft, fragrant stew of ground beef and tomatoes, with raisins added for sweetness and olives for salt. Versions of it exist across the Caribbean and into Latin America. This one, based loosely on a recipe that Nitza Villapol published in her cookbook “Cocina Criolla,” in 1954, and helped immeasurably by the advice of the Cuban American food writer Betty Cortina, combines ground beef with intensely seasoned dried Spanish chorizo in a sofrito of onions, garlic and tomatoes, and scents it with red-wine vinegar, cinnamon and cumin, along with bay leaves and pinches of ground cloves and nutmeg. “Everyone who is of Cuban descent has a recipe for it,” Ms. Cortina said, “and each one of those is the most authentic. It’s a comfort food, probably the most consummate example of one in Cuban cuisine.”

Featured in: The Ultimate Cuban Comfort Food: Picadillo

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Ingredients

Yield:6 servings

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • 2 medium-size yellow onions, peeled and chopped

  • 2 ounces dried chorizo, diced

  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

  • 1 ½ pounds ground beef

  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

  • 4 ripe tomatoes, chopped, or one 28-ounce can whole tomatoes, drained and crushed

  • 2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar

  • 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

  • 2 teaspoons ground cumin

  • 2 bay leaves

  • Pinch of ground cloves

  • Pinch of nutmeg

  • ⅔ cup raisins

  • ⅔ cup pitted stuffed olives.

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

23 grams carbs; 86 milligrams cholesterol; 461 calories; 16 grams monosaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 10 grams saturated fat; 32 grams fat; 1 gram trans fat; 4 grams fiber; 659 milligrams sodium; 23 grams protein; 14 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Put the olive oil in a large, heavy pan set over a medium-high flame, and heat until it begins to shimmer. Add onions, chorizo and garlic, stir to combine and cook until the onions have started to soften, approximately 10 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Add the ground beef, and allow it to brown, crumbling the meat with a fork as it does. Season to taste with salt and black pepper.

  3. Step 3

    Add tomatoes, vinegar, cinnamon, cumin, bay leaves, cloves and nutmeg and stir to combine. Lower the heat, and let the stew simmer, covered, for approximately 30 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    Uncover the pan, and add the raisins and the olives. Allow the stew to cook for another 15 minutes or so, then serve, accompanied by white rice.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
3,758 user ratings
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Comments

Michael

I know I'm going to sound like a freak, but I executed the recipe exactly as directed. It was amazing. I'd like to say I added an extra teaspoon of this or that or subbed in something or another, but this chef owned this recipe and he didn't need any help from me!

Sheila

I served this over pureed roasted winter squash (instead of a starch). The sweetness in the squash is outstanding with this recipe with its raisins and warm spices.

Dannypanama

this serves as a great empanada filling. In a moment of inspiration I also made this into a caribbean style shepard's pie (which I believe is known as pastelon in puerto rico) -- make picadillo, put into deep dish pie plate, top with grated cheese (I used mozzarella), cover all that with 2-3 ripe plantains mashed with a little butter, bake until bubbling and top golden. Thanks Mr Sifton!

Diana

Very good. Can’t get Spanish chorizo here so I used Linguica and added some smoked paprika. Served with rice, Cuban black beans, with sides of cilantro and avocado.

Mady

This recipe is delightful - love the spices, raisins, etc. However, the two times I’ve made it, someone in my family pukes in the night. First my husband, then my 16-month old. I think it’s delicious and haven’t had issues. Anyone else have a similar experience? Just curious.

Dianes.

All the comments are from years ago so let me say I just made this in a small town in Mexico and it is great. I've made it before and don't care for any of the chorizo I've tasted so I left that out. didn't know that slivered almonds go on top of the Mexican version and I've never seen them here but it sounds fine. have to shop at different stores to get the different ingredients but that's part of the fun.

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