Kat's Cuban Picadillo
2 lb extra lean ground beef
2 tbl dark soy sauce
1 1/2 cup onion chopped
1 tbl minced garlic
6 oz canned tomato paste
3/4 cup raisins
1 cup green bell pepper diced
3 tbl brown sugar
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup whole blanched almonds
3/4 cup green olives stuffed with pimientos
Method :
Before I was born, my mother took my brother on a trip to Cuba, via banana boat.
I have seen a picture of the two of them on the boat. My mother looked
oh-so-chic in her black cat's eye glasses, hair pulled back into a tight
ponytail with slender calves and ankles poking out of her tapered Capri pants.
My brother, who was only three at the time, wore a white short-sleeved shirt
buttoned to the collar and a pale blue cap, like the ones Huey, Dewey and Louie
(Donald Duck's nephews) wore.
Mom and Hank were connected by a long leash, attached to a harness around his
waist, a necessary device to prevent him from falling overboard, I am told.
Whatever the case, this is how my mother learned to make picadillo, Cuban-style.
I once served this to my Cuban friends, who all agreed it is absolutely
delicious, but it's certainly not the way their mothers make it. I'm sure that's
trueED their mothers probably never added soy sauce. Well, picadillo really
means hash, and there must be a million ways to cook hash in this wo rld, even
in Cuba. So as far as I'm concerned, this is my family's version of true
Cuban-style hash, and a recipe any Cubano should be proud of.
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
In a Dutch oven or flame-proof casserole set over high heat, brown the meat
until crumbly. (You may also brown the meat and veggies in a skillet and then
transer the ingredients to an oven-proof casserole.) Turn heat to medium and add
1 tablespoon of the soy sauce, the onions and garlic and cook until the onions
become translucent. Stir in the tomato paste, raisins, green pepper, brown
sugar, salt and pepper.
Cover the casserole and bake at least 1 hour or as long as 1-1/2 hours, stirring
in the remaining tablespoon of soy sauce after 45 minutes.
About 15 minutes before you are ready to serve, increase the temperature to 400
degrees F. Stir the olives and almonds into the casserole and bake another 15
minutes, uncovered. The picadillo should be lightly browned on top and moist
inside. This dish profits from long cooking under low heat, so if desired, you
may bake it in an even lower heated oven for a longer period, or even in a
crockpot. The key to finishing the dish, though, is to bake it under higher heat
at the end, with the almonds and green olives, so the top surface becomes brown
and caramelized.
Serving Suggestion: Black beans, white rice and a simple green salad make this a
perfect do-ahead party meal. As mentioned above, this dish tastes better the
longer the flavors are allowed to blend. You can even prepare it the day before,
baking it with the almonds and olives under high heat just before serving. You
will know it's done when the flavors have all melded together into one smooth
taste, but the olives and almonds (which should always be added near the end to
keep them from becoming too soft) are still distinctive and crunchy.