Susy's “PICADILLO HABANERO” = GROUND BEEF “HAVANA” STYLE (Gluten Free)

“PICADILLO HABANERO” = GROUND BEEF “HAVANA” STYLE (by Susy)

(All images are compliments of Susy)

This is a recipe contributed by our good friend Susy. So happy to share one of her recipes - she is a very good cook. And, this recipe is naturally gluten free. :-)

Cuban food is savory and flavorful because the base of most dishes is SOFRITO, a sautée of
fresh onions, garlic, and red/green bell peppers complimented with dry oregano, paprika, cumin and bay leaves. Picadillo is a tomato sauce based ground beef dish that uses SOFRITO as a base of flavors with raisins and green olives for added depth. Those two additional ingredients add a sweet and salty element that elevates the dish to another level and is typical of Caribbean Cuisine.

Alternatives/Substitutions:
* Mix ground turkey or chicken with the beef.
* If sensitive to tomatoes/sauce acidity, add the juice of 1 lemon instead. It will still taste delicious!
* Instead of white rice, serve with brown rice, pasta, vegetables, polenta, yucca, malanga, or plantains.

Ingredients:
2 lbs ground beef
1 tbsp olive oil

Dry Spices:
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp ground cumin
1 or 2 bay leaves (remove before serving)
1 tsp salt and pepper (to taste)

Sofrito:

1 large onion, chopped

½ red pepper, chopped (or jar sweet red bell
pepper)
5-8 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 tomato diced (or 1 can chopped tomatoes)
1 cup or 1 small can tomato sauce
¾ cup red or dry white cooking wine
1 cup water (to help cook the potatoes)
2 medium potatoes, peeled, and diced small
(about ½” square)
½ cup pimento stuffed Spanish Manzanilla olives
1 tbsp capers (optional)
½ cup raisins (optional)

Final garnish:
½ cup fresh chopped
parsley

DIRECTIONS:

1. First step in preparing Picadillo is to brown
the beef. I prefer to season the meat with
the dry spices during this step. Don’t wait
and season the sauce after everything is
done. Add salt, oregano, paprika, cumin
and bay leaves to the meat prior to
browning. After the meat is browned, drain
most of the rendered fat, but leave enough
(about 1-2 tbsp) to sautée the Sofrito fresh
ingredients.

2. Add the Sofrito ingredients to the browned
beef (onion, peppers, garlic, tomatoes,
tomato sauce and cooking wine.) Let
simmer for a few minutes to reduce and
mellow out the tomato sauce.

3. Then add the rest of the ingredients
(except the fresh parsley) to the beef
mixture (water, potatoes, raisins, and olives along with some brine). Simmer on low heat for about 20-25 minutes until the potatoes are cooked through and the sauce thickens.