Recipe Details

Abuela's Picadillo

This recipe for picadillo, a ground beef hash with butternut squash, olives, and fragrant seasonings, comes straight from a Cuban abuela.

Makes:8 servings

Ingredients

2 pounds lean ground beef
¼ cup olive oil
½ onion, chopped
½ green bell pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons minced garlic
2 (8 ounce) cans tomato sauce
2 cups water
½ cup red cooking wine
3 tablespoons hot sauce (such as Louisiana®)
1 (1.41 ounce) package sazon seasoning (such as Badia® Tropical®)
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
½ teaspoon garlic powder
½ teaspoon onion powder
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon ground bay leaf
3 ounces Spanish-style olives
1 small butternut squash, peeled and cut into cubes
1 teaspoon salt, or to taste

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Directions

Prep:15 mCook:70 mReady:1 h 25 m

Cook and stir ground beef in a large stockpot over medium-high heat until crumbly and browned, 5 to 10 minutes. Drain grease.
Heat olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic to hot oil; cook and stir until fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add to beef in the stockpot.
Pour tomato sauce, water, wine, and hot sauce into the stockpot. Stir in sazón seasoning, parsley, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, pepper, and bay leaf. Bring to a boil; reduce heat to low and simmer picadillo, uncovered, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes.
Split olives in half with your fingers and stir into picadillo. Add squash. Simmer until squash is tender and liquid reduces but picadillo is not dry, 45 to 60 minutes. Season with salt.