Cuban Picadillo
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This easy Cuban picadillo recipe is saucy, savory, and packed with flavor, with briny olives and a touch of sweetness from raisins. Serve it over rice for an easy weeknight dinner.
Cuban picadillo is one of those easy, flavor-packed dinners that’s perfect for a busy weeknight. Ground beef simmers in a savory tomato sauce with onions, peppers, warm spices, briny green olives, and raisins, which add little pops of sweetness (trust me on this one!).
My Cuban picadillo recipe uses a method that’s a little different from most: I treat the beef with a touch of baking soda before cooking. It’s a quick extra step, but it makes a big difference in keeping the meat tender and juicy. The result is saucy and deeply flavorful, and the whole thing comes together in one skillet. Spoon it over rice and dinner’s done.
“Fantastic and easy. A keeper!!”
What You’ll Need To Make Cuban Picadillo
- Ground beef: I use 85% lean ground beef, which has enough fat to keep the picadillo tender and flavorful.
- Baking soda & water: A little baking soda mixed with water tenderizes the beef and helps it stay juicy as it simmers in the sauce.
- Olive oil: Used to sauté the vegetables and build the flavor base.
- Onion, green bell pepper & garlic: The aromatic base of the picadillo, adding sweetness and savory depth.
- Spanish-style tomato sauce & beef broth: Tomato sauce forms the base of the sauce, while beef broth thins it to the right consistency and adds savory depth. I use Goya Spanish-style tomato sauce.
- Sazón & cumin: These give the picadillo its warm, savory seasoning. I use Goya Sazón with Coriander and Annatto, but Sazón con Azafrán works too.
- Raisins & green olives: This sweet-and-briny combination is classic in Cuban picadillo. The raisins add little pops of sweetness, while pimento-stuffed green olives provide a salty, briny counterpoint.
- Brown sugar, red wine vinegar & salt: Brown sugar balances the acidity of the tomatoes, vinegar brightens the finished sauce, and salt brings all the flavors together.
- Jump to the printable recipe for precise measurements
How To Make Cuban Picadillo
Tenderize the beef: Mix the beef with the baking soda and water and let it rest while you prep the remaining ingredients. The baking soda raises the pH of the meat, which helps it retain moisture and stay tender and juicy as it cooks.
Cook the aromatics: Sauté the onion and bell pepper until softened, then add the garlic and cook until frangrant. You want the vegetables tender and aromatic without letting the garlic brown, which can make it bitter.
Simmer the picadillo: Stir in the sauce ingredients, then add the beef in loose clumps rather than breaking it up too finely. This gives the picadillo a nice texture, with tender pieces of beef throughout the sauce. Let everything simmer together, then finish with the red wine vinegar to brighten and balance the savory-sweet flavors.
Serve: Spoon the picadillo over rice and serve hot. It’s even better with a few simple sides, like black beans or a roasted vegetable, to round out the meal.
Make-Ahead Tip: Picadillo is a great make-ahead dish—the flavors deepen as it sits, and it reheats beautifully. It also freezes well, making it handy to have on hand for busy nights.
More Easy Ground Beef Recipes
Cuban Picadillo
Ingredients
- 1¼ lbs 85% lean ground beef
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
- 1 small green bell pepper, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 (8-oz) can Spanish-style tomato sauce (such as Goya)
- ½ cup beef broth
- ½ cup raisins
- 2 packets Sazón seasoning (2 heaping teaspoons; see note)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1½ teaspoons light or dark brown sugar
- ¼ cup chopped pimento-stuffed green olives
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, baking soda, and water. Mix until evenly combined, then let sit for about 20 minutes—this step helps tenderize the beef.
- Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the onion and pepper and cook, stirring often, until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute more; do not brown.
- Add the tomato sauce, broth, raisins, sazon seasoning, salt, cumin, brown sugar, and olives. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium-low. Pinch off loose 1-in (2.5-cm) clumps of the beef and scatter them over the sauce. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally to break up the meat, until cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes.
- Stir in the vinegar, then taste and adjust seasoning if needed. Serve warm over rice.
Notes
- Sazón is a Latin seasoning blend that typically includes salt, garlic, cumin, coriander, and annatto, which gives dishes a warm yellow-orange color and savory depth. It’s widely available in most supermarkets—look for it in the international foods aisle, often near other Latin or Caribbean products. I use Goya Sazón with Coriander and Annatto, but Sazón con Azafran works too.
- Make-Ahead/Freezing Instructions: Picadillo can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator; reheat gently on the stovetop, adding a splash of water or broth if it thickens. It also freezes beautifully. To freeze, let it cool completely, then transfer to freezer-safe containers or zip-top bags and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight and warm on the stovetop before serving.
Nutrition Information
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
Gluten-Free Adaptable Note
To the best of my knowledge, all of the ingredients used in this recipe are gluten-free or widely available in gluten-free versions. There is hidden gluten in many foods; if you're following a gluten-free diet or cooking for someone with gluten allergies, always read the labels of your ingredients to verify that they are gluten-free.
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My wife and I made this tonight, and I wish we doubled it! It’s so delicious, flavorful, and easy to make! We think it’s great meal prep. Tonight, we served it over rice, but we also plan to use it in tacos later this week. 10 out of 10! We’ll remake for sure.
This was so delicious! I used just a pound of ground beef as that’s the size of most packages and sprinkled chopped cilantro on top. I will add more olives next time and this recipe will definitely be on repeat!
Hi Jenn, So eager to try the recipe. I’m not a fan of stuffed green olives. What can I substitute?
Hi Cindi, you have a couple of options: any other green olive, capers, or just omit them. It will still be delicious.
Made a double batch of this last night and glad I doubled it. Was very good and we are excited to have another night’s dinner ready to go in the freezer.
Hi Jenn,
I have a jar of Goya sofrito says it’s a tomato cooking base w/ peppers cilantro and garlic. Is that ok for the tomato sauce called for here?
Hi Anne, I’ve never tried it, but think it would be safest to stick with the Spanish-style tomato sauce.
You can add Sofrito to plain tomato sauce if you are unable to find Spanish style tomatoes.
Quick, easy and packed with flavor. Definitely one to add to the, “What am I going to make for dinner?” arsenal!
I don’t eat red meat so do you think ground turkey or chicken would work instead and also chicken broth? The recipe sounds delicious!
It won’t have quite as much flavor, but it should still be delicious – I would just avoid anything too lean. And you can skip the baking soda/tenderizing step. Please LMK how it turns out if you try it. 🙂
I can’t eat olives or raisins. If I leave out the raisins, I know it will affect the sweetness—would the recipe still work, or is there a good substitute?
Hi Leona, I would increase the brown sugar to 1 tablespoon. It will still be delicious.
How will this recipe work with ground turkey?
Hi Paula, It won’t have quite as much flavor with turkey, but it should still taste great – I’d just avoid anything too lean. And you can skip the baking soda/tenderizing step. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Jen! Can’t wait to try this recipe. Can you please tell me how many ounces of sazon to use? I have it in bulk and I can’t quite figure out how much a Goya packet weighs. Thanks!
Hi Christina, Great question – each packet contains about 5 grams or 1 heaping teaspoon, so you’d need 10 g or 2 heaping teaspoons total. I will update the recipe to include that info. Hope you enjoy!
Looking forward to making this with pantry items I have on hand. That baking soda step always gives a great result. What could I add to a can of regular tomato sauce to make it “Spanish” style?
Thanks, Jenn—love your recipes and cookbooks.
Hi Mary, You can use regular tomato sauce with no adjustments – there is enough other seasoning that you won’t miss it. Hope you enjoy!