Picadillo and Black Beans

I can still smell the fragrant spices in this dish. It's a kind of hash that, if you make it Cuban style, includes cinnamon, cumin, oregano, and clove. I've read that it's a very popular dish not only in Cuba but in Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, and the Philippines as well.

Although traditionally made with ground beef, I used half beef and half pork. There are also onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, olives, and raisins in the mix, and you serve it over rice. I found a great site called 3 Guys from Miami, and I used the Guys' recipe. I followed it as written, except for the substitution of pork for part of the beef called for. The Guys mentioned that this hash is wonderful served with fried plantains and black beans. I made their black beans, which were tasty; next time I must try doing the plantains, too. (You can find plantains at Chang's in Royal Plaza, by the way.)

Here are links to the recipes:

Picadillo Recipe at the 3 Guys from Miami site

Frijoles Negros (black beans) recipe

The picadillo could also be used to fill tacos or empanadas. Which brings to mind the San Telmo Carne empanadas that Manolo's (on campus) serves. The filling in those is similar, although I don't think it has olives and raisins in it. Very delicious.

On her site Simply Recipes, Elise Bauer has a recipe for picadillo (using only pork and including mangoes) that sounds fabulous and that I'd also like to try sometime. Her recipe includes the same spices as the 3 Guys version, with the addition of thyme and coriander, and it calls for a garnish of chopped almonds and chopped cilantro.

Pork Mango Picadillo recipe at the Simply Recipes site.

Make picadillo, beans, and rice, put on some music—maybe an old album by the band that Gloria Estefan used to be in—mix up a mojito, and you can live it up, Cuban style, right here in Champaign.