Picadillo
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
- 1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
- 1 large green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and chopped
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 1 pound extra lean ground beef
- 1/4 cup tomato sauce
- 1/4 cup sliced, stuffed green olives
- 1/4 cup raisins
- 1 tablespoon capers
- 2 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1/4 teaspoon sugar
- 1/2 teaspooon freshly ground black pepper
- 6 ounce jar pimientos, drained and sliced
- 6 slices of french bread, fried in oil
Instructions
Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Saute the onion and green pepper until the onion is translucent. This is about 3 to 5 minutes. Add the garlic and saute for another 2 minutes more. Add the beef and break it up well- you want no lumps. Add the tomato sauce, olives, raisins, caper, vinegar, sugar and pepper. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer for at least 20 minutes. The consistency should be slightly liquid. Transfer the picadillo to a serving dish and garnish with the pimento slices. Arrange the slices of fried bread around the plate. Picadillo a la Criolla (Picadillo Creole Style): Omit the tomato sauce. After the picadillo has simmered for 20 minutes, stir in 4 or 5 beatne eggs and cook them until scrambled. Picadillo con Papitas Fritas (Picadillo with Fried Potatoes): While the picadillo simmers, fry 1 pound of peeled cubed potatoes in 1/4 cup of vegetable oil over medium heat until the potatoes are golden brown. This will take about 10 minutes. When the picadillo is done, toss the potatoes in and mix well. If you want to reduce the fat, add the potatoes raw to the picadillo and cook until done.