Puerto Rican Picadillo is one of my favorite Puerto Rican dishes I've learned from my in-laws. We eat food from my husband's culture often, but this is one dish he always makes the best. This recipe is handed down from his abuela, and it's my favorite version of picadillo.
My top favorite recipe from my family are potato pancakes, and I've made a Gluten Free Potato Pancake recipe based on it! I could eat them every day!
I love serving this with tostones! They're so yummy, and fun to scoop it up with!
🔍 Quick Look: Puerto Rican Picadillo
- ⏱️ Prep Time: minutes
- 🍳 Cook Time: minutes
- 🕒 Total Time: minutes
- 👥 Servings: 4
- 📊 Calories: ~600 kcal per serving (based on nutrition panel)
- 🔥 Cook Method: Stove-top based
- 👩🍳 Main Ingredients: Tomatoes, broth
- ⭐ Difficulty: Medium Difficulty
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Why You'll Love This Picadillo
- The flavor is UNREAL-seriously, I've tried various Hispanic picadillo, and none of them compare to Puerto Rican picadillo. Once you make this version, it's the ONLY one you'll be making!
- It's so versatile! There's so many ways to eat this, just see below.
- It's naturally clean and paleo! No dairy or grains, and here I'm using only clean, anti-inflammatory ingredients.
Ingredients Needed
- Ground Beef-Use whichever percentage of fat you'd like! I usually use one with a higher fat percentage since it's more flavorful.
- Sofrito-If you have the resources to make this from scratch I highly recommend it! You also can sometimes find it sold locally on Facebook marketplace or in a small bodega in Hispanic communities. I love using it to make my Sofrito Meatballs!
- Sazon-I prefer to get one without food dyes!
Swaps and Variations
There's not too many swaps I recommend here, but for variety here's a few:
- Oil: I love using coconut oil, but you can use your preferred oil! Beef tallow and olive oil work well, but avocado oil has the best taste for another option.
- Sofrito: While sofrito is pretty easy to find, you can use recaito as well in a pinch.
- Annatto: The annatto seeds add a beautiful, vibrant color, but you can skip that step if you'd rather.
How to Make Puerto Rican Picadillo
- Step 1: First, in a large skillet over medium heat, add the ground beef and break it up while it cooks. Halfway through add the sofrito and mix it in thoroughly as the meat continues to cook.
- Step 2: Next, add in the sazon and adobo seasonings and mix completely
- Step 3: Drain the jar of olives and add it to the meat mixture as it continues to cook.
- Step 4: Prep the cilantro. Chop off any dirty ends. Add it little by little for the rest of the recipe. Break the pieces with your hands and drop them in, but be sure to stir the mixture to let them wilt before adding more.
- Step 5: Next, add in the tomato sauce. Mix thoroughly. Continue to keep adding in cilantro.
- Step 6: Add in the annatto oil then the water and stir. Let everything simmer on low for about another 5-10 minutes, to let the flavors completely mix. You can continue to break down the meat and olives and finish adding the cilantro. Enjoy!
If you need to make annatto oil, here are the steps:
- Step 1: In a small or medium saucepan, heat the coconut oil over medium-low heat and add the annatto seeds.
- Step 2: Almost immediately, the seeds will start to color the oil to a yellow color. Keep heating the mixture, stirring occasionally, until an orange-reddish color is reached.
- Step 3: When the deeper color is reached, strain the oil, and you're ready to add it into this recipe!
Puerto Rican Picadillo FAQ's
What to serve with Puerto Rican Picadillo?
Rice is an easy option to serve this with. I also love to serve it with yuca! I also love making a thicker version and using it for empanada filling.
What is the difference between Puerto Rican Picadillo and Cuban Picadillo?
Typically Cuban Picadillo has some raisins or slightly different ingredients. It's important to note however, that not only does picadillo vary by country, it also varies by families. You won't find any two alike, although they may be very similar.
What to Serve with Puerto Rican Picadillo
There are SO many ways to serve this!
- Typically, we serve it over white rice. The rice is perfect for soaking up the sauce and absorbing the flavors!
- My favorite way to keep this recipe grain free is serve it on top of yucca. Boil the frozen yucca according to package instructions, remove the woody stems, and serve.
So yummy! It's one of my favorite Paleo meals, and quite filling! - Picadillo can also be stuffed inside of foods such as empanadas, papas rellenas, or arepas. If you're using this recipe to stuff something, reduce the amount of liquid used. Specifically, reduce the tomato sauce, water, and oil. That way your mixture isn't soaking the empanada dough or whatever you're stuffing.
- As mentioned above, these are great with with homemade tostones! They are also clean and healthy, and the perfect way to scoop that picadillo straight to your mouth!
Suggested Serving Options
If you tried this Puerto Rican Picadillo or any other recipe on my blog, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below!
Puerto Rican Picadillo Recipe
Puerto Rican Picadillo is bursting with flavor in every bite! This version made with clean ingredients with step by step instructions. You won't want to miss out!
Equipment
- 1 Knife
- 1 Cutting Board
- 1 Large Skillet or Dutch Oven
- 1 wooden spoon
Ingredients
- 1.5 lb ground beef
- ¼ cup sofrito
- 2 teaspoon sazon
- 2 teaspoon adobo
- 2.5 oz jar of spanish olives
- ½ to ¾ bunch cilantro
- 8 oz. can tomato sauce
- 4 tablespoon coconut oil
- ½ tbsp. annatto seeds
- ½ cup water
Instructions
- Heat a skillet on medium heat. Add ground beef and break up while it cooks.
- When the beef is halfway cooked, add the sofrito and mix in, then add the sazon and adobo and mix in.
- Drain the olives and add to the beef, and as it all continues to cook, break up the olives along with the beef.
- Chop off any dirty ends of the cilantro, and break into half pieces with your hands. Throughout the remainder of cooking, add pieces of the cilantro in and mix, letting them mix in and wilt before adding more.
- Add the tomato sauce in and mix, adding more cilantro.
- Mix in the annatto oil and water.
- Let everything simmer for about 5-10 minutes, continuing to break up beef and olives, and adding more cilantro. Serve!
Notes
- Crowd friendly: This is a good meal for a crowd, double or triple it and serve it with rice.
- Cookware: My preferred cookware for this is a large cast iron skillet so it holds the heat and cooks nicely.
Nutrition
Calories: 600kcalCarbohydrates: 5gProtein: 30gFat: 52gSaturated Fat: 25gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 18gTrans Fat: 2gCholesterol: 121mgSodium: 1305mgPotassium: 645mgFiber: 1gSugar: 2gVitamin A: 388IUVitamin C: 4mgCalcium: 53mgIron: 4mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
Amie says
I love that this meal freezes well too! Delicious and convenient!
Rachel Rivera says
Yes, I love that it's freezer friendly! Perfect for meal prepping!
Melissa says
I added sautéed onions, green peppers and garlic, along with a bit of coriander. Those additions made this recipe perfection.
Thanks for posting it!
Rachel Rivera says
So glad you tried and enjoyed it, and even experimented with it a bit! Sounds delicious!
Melissa says
I added sautéed onions, green peppers and garlic, along with a bit or coriander. Those additions made this recipe perfection.
Thanks for posting it!
Lauren says
You need a 'jump to recipe' link.
Jeanine says
Wow what a great recipe, I can't wait to try this out... thank you so much
Rachel Rivera says
My pleasure, it's really such delicious picadillo! I hope you enjoy it!
Monika says
Oooh this looks (and sounds 😉) delicious! I love cooking and trying new things, this recipe is definitely going on my to do list. Thank you!
Rachel Rivera says
Awesome, thank you so much! I hope you enjoy it! I love making this for movie snacks or get togethers!
Shoshana says
Can you please clarify the ingredients? You have sofrito listed twice, but the link goes to sazon, not sofrito. Just want to be sure I get what I need; I have a TON of frozen yuca (purchased to make New Year's sancocho) and would love to try this recipe with Beyond Beef.
Thank you!
Rachel Rivera says
Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention! I've updated the post and the recipe. You do want both sofrito and sazon. Any questions let me know! 🙂 Enjoy!
Rachel Rivera says
Also, I LOVE sancocho! That was the first Puerto Rican meal I ever had, made my my husband's abuela when I first met her. So yummy!
Tamara says
I need to try this!
thecleanhappylife says
Sure do! Hope you enjoy it!
Mike Worley says
Me gusta picadillo tan mucho. Gracias por todo.
thecleanhappylife says
De nada mi amigo, yo tambien!
Laia says
This looks SO good, I can’t wait to try it!!! I am always looking for new exciting recipes and this one is getting printed right this very second. Thanks for sharing!!
thecleanhappylife says
Aww that makes me happy, thank you soooo much!! Enjoy 🥰
Annie says
Looks delicious! Could you make this with other than beef or would that be an abomination to the recipe?
thecleanhappylife says
😂😂 haha I won't tell if you don't! Lol jk I believe it is traditionally made with beef, however I know some vegans will make it with plant based "meat", so try whatever you'd like and see how it comes out!
The Hollapinos says
That looks so delicious! Now I’m hungry! Thank you!
thecleanhappylife says
It's so delicious, you'll have to try it!!
Naia says
This looks amazing! I’ve been trying to find new recipes to try and this looks amazing! Do you think it’s possible to do some vegetarian twist on this recipe? Thank you so much!
thecleanhappylife says
Thank you!! I'm personally not sure how that would work since I've never tried it, but I would try that meat substitute Beyond Meat. I know I've seen it at Target and my local grocery store! It looks just like regular ground beef, so worth a shot!
Naia says
Haha, okay, great! Thank you so much!