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Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 (427g) Recipe makes 4 servings The following items or measurements are not included below: 1/3 cup pimento stuffed olives cooked quinoa
Calories 317
Calories from Fat 137		(43%)
Amount Per Serving		%DV
	Total Fat 15.3g	23%
	Saturated Fat 5.2g	25%
	Monounsaturated Fat 7.5g
	Polyunsaturated Fat 0.9g
	Trans Fat 0.7g
Cholesterol 73mg		24%
Sodium 1296mg		54%
Potassium 797mg		22%
Total Carbohydrate 21.4g		7%
	Dietary Fiber 2.0g	8%
	Sugars 8.0g
Protein 25.4g		50%
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Quinoa Beef Picadillo

Recipe #256268 | 35 min | 10 min prep | add private note

⁽¹²⁾ RATE IT NOW Print Recipe

By: Engrossed
Sep 29, 2007

From: "Whole Grains Every Day, Every Way" by Lorna Sass. "Picadillo, a zesty ground beef stew of Spanish orgin, was welcomed enthusiastically into the kitchens of many Caribbean and Latin American cooks during the Colonial period. Variations abound, but I favor the ones that achieve a balance of sweet and salty by including raisins and pimento-stuffed olives. Though picadillo is traditionally served over rice, by mixing high-protein quinoa right into the stew, you can go easy on the meat and still have a very satisfying meal."

SERVES 4 -6 (change servings and units)

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1 large green bell pepper, seeded and diced
2 teaspoons garlic, minced
1 teaspoon cumin seed
1 lb lean ground beef or ground turkey or ground pork
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes and green chilies, with liquid
1/3 cup pimento stuffed olive, cut in thirds crosswise
1/4 cup raisins
2 tablespoons capers, drained
3 cups cooked quinoa or cooked pearl barley or cooked brown rice
fresh ground pepper, to taste
lime wedge, to serve

Directions

1
Heat the olive oil over high heat in a large, deep skillet.
2
Add the onion and green bell pepper and cook, stirring frequently, until the onion is translucent, about 3 minutes.
3
Stir in the garlic and cumin seeds and cook 1 minute more.
4
Add the beef and salt. Break the meat up into bits. Continue cooking until the beef is brown and crumbly, 3 or 4 minutes. Pour off any rendered fat.
5
Stir in the oregano, chili powder, cinnamon, tomatoes, olives, raisins, and capers. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, cover and simmer the mixture until the flavors have mingled, about 15 minutes.
6
Stir in the quinoa and adjust the seasonings, adding pepper to taste. Cook until the mixture is hot, about 1 minute more.
7
Serve in large, shallow bowls.
8
Accompany with a bowl of lime wedges.
9
A dry grenache-based rose wine from Spain or southern France is a recommended to drink with this dish.

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Featured Reviews for This Recipe

From: MarraMamba

On Jul 4, 2009

wowza's! this is one of the best picadilo. I used pearl barley and jalapeno peppers. I put a little dollop of sour cream on the side for the heat, and totally enjoyed this.

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From: Fran6

On Jun 22, 2009

Glad I found this here so I don't have to type it in myself! We liked it a lot. I'm always looking for quinoa recipes. I used 3 10-oz. cans Rotel tomatoes and left out the raisins. Next time I'm going to add some cubed sweet potatoes or butternut squash. I'll also make it spicier and use ground turkey as others suggested.

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From: Engineer in the Kitchen

On Jul 31, 2008

I liked this one better than other picadillos I had at restaurants, however, I would make it a bit less spicy next time but sub 1 small diced tomatoes and 1 small diced tomatoes with chillies. I also thought that the quinoa was too much and would probably use only half next time. Also, note that I sub ground lean turkey for the beef to make it more healthy.

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From: justcallmetoni

On Jul 22, 2008

I've just had the last of the leftovers for lunch and realized I neglected to post my review. As someone who really enjoys bold combinations of sweet and spicy (often with tangy and/or salty) in my main courses, picadillo has been a longtime favorite. Add quinoa, one of my favorite grains, and I'm a pretty happy diner. To make this suit my diet I used an combination of 90% lean beef and replaced about 1/4 of the meat with finely diced mushrooms, something well suited for highly seasoned dishes such as this. The flavors were sharp, bright and bold. and I thought the balance between the raisins and olives were just right. My half batch made 3 generous servings.

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