Healthy Picadillo

[cjm]

Kendra, I'm hoping to make Healthy Picadillo this weekend (if time permits). What is the prep. time like? Thanks for your input. I'm also wondering about cooking it and freezing for use for weeknight dinner. What do you think?

[This message has been edited by cjm (edited 09-29-2000).]

[kendra]

I made this dish from the October issue and it was very tasty. My husband loved it.

[Ralph]

Another very enthusiastic thumbs up!
CJM, were you able to make it? I just made it tonight - prep time is pretty short. You just have to slice a large onion & 2 peppers, & chop a few carrots. Total stove-top time is probably about 20 minutes.

[jillr]

I just made the Health Picadillo and although I liked it, it seemed like something was missing. The flavors weren't as "deep" as I expected. Somehow I want to add cinnamon or more garlic. Any others in agreement? Or any other suggestions?

[BethH]

Just bring this back up because I made this Tuesday night. We liked it but were both surprised at how sweet it is--not spicy at all. I don't think I would make it again with ground beef (just because of my aversion) and I would definitely add some more spices.

But, I would like to freeze the leftovers and was wondering if there were any thoughts on this.

ps...I can't believe I actually made this because I never, ever cook ground beef! I always substitute mushrooms or just don't make it. My grocery was out of ground turkey so I had to go with lean ground beef! Eeew!

[This message has been edited by BethH (edited 01-12-2001).]

[bossy]

Have to agree with Kendra - this one was a big winner at our house. And it gets better the second day as the flavors "marry". This is the dish I bring to potluck dinners all the time!

[mb]

we made this a while ago and thought it was tasty. i don't remember it being overly sweet, though. i really liked the addition of the olives.

[BethR]

I've made this two or three times so far. We really like this one! We didn't think it was overly sweet either (my husband doesn't care for sweet stuff and he loved it!). Of course my husband spiced it up with hot sauce, as he does with many dishes. I've served it with rice and with flour tortillas and we've liked it with both.

jillr -- I think extra garlic would be a nice addition to this. I personally would go for a little cinnamon too, but I don't think my husband would. If you do try it with cinnamon, please post your results.

Beth

[cjm]

BethH - since my first post I've made this several times and I always freezen a couple of portions (just cooking for DH & me now). It freezes very well and makes it extra easy for weeknight meal.

[BethH]

Thanks for the advice, cjm! I'm so glad to hear it as I stuck four servings in the freezer last night and crossed my fingers. I'm happy to know it will be yummy later too.

Also, I love the idea about wrapping the filling in tortillas--dear SO was very enthused to try that next time. Thanks for the tip!

I think I discovered the 'sweetness' problem--too many golden raisins. I added too many which would explain why we thought it was so sweet. I think next time I would add more garlic and experiment with some additional spices.

[Vanessa]

BethH
Under picadillo hints (1/11) I posted some ideas of why this dish might be sweet (carrots, golden raisins, wine etc). I make this often but somewhat differently (please see post for specifics) I use it in potato pies to stuff bell peppers and yes turkey.

[laden]

I really love this dish and have eaten the leftovers after being in the freezer and it's even better.

It does have a hint of sweetness but it's a nice mingling of flavors. I like it with a baked sweet potato.

[Natasha]

Originally posted by BethH:
ps...I can't believe I actually made this because I never, ever cook ground beef! I always substitute mushrooms or just don't make it. My grocery was out of ground turkey so I had to go with lean ground beef! Eeew!

[This message has been edited by BethH (edited 01-12-2001).]

Hi Beth,
You can also substitute Vege Crumbles or TVP mince (sold in bulk or packages) for the ground beef.