Picadillo for Empanadas. Transfer the empanadas to the prepared baking sheet and brush them with the remaining egg wash. The picadillo is then used in empanadas or papa rellenos. Puerto Rican Picadillo: beef hash seasoned with sofrito.

Picadillo is a dish from Spain. It contains highly seasoned, slightly sweetened, ground fried meat. This makes more than enough picadillo to fill the empanadas. You can cook Picadillo for Empanadas using 12 ingredients and 5 steps. Here is how you achieve that.

Ingredients of Picadillo for Empanadas

1. Prepare 1 pound of ground beef (80/20 or 70/30 is fine - I wouldn't go much leaner than that).
2. Prepare 1/2 cup of finely chopped onion (the fine chop is important because you don't want large pieces tearing your pastry).
3. You need 1/2 cup of finely chopped bell pepper (you can use any color, but I like the red or orange because they're sweeter and look prettier in the filling).
4. Prepare 2 Tablespoons of minced garlic (3 to 4 medium cloves).
5. It's 1/4 cup of raisins.
6. It's 8 of green pitted olives, cut in thirds.
7. Prepare 3 oz. of tomato paste (basically half of one of those small cans).
8. You need 1 teaspoon of salt.
9. You need 1 teaspoon of cumin.
10. It's 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper.
11. Prepare 1 of bay leaf (or 1/2 teaspoon crushed bay).
12. It's of neutral oil.

The leftovers can be used for making Papas Rellenas, served over. This sweet and sour picadillo filling is a classic. The take 'em out of the freezer, stuff 'em and bake 'em, empanadas don't get any easier than this kind. Our smoky South American empanadas are a fun finger food that will make watching the Rio Olympics festive & delicious.

Picadillo for Empanadas step by step

1. In a 10 or 12 inch pot or pan, sweat the onions, peppers and garlic in 1 Tablespoon of oil over medium low heat until the onions are translucent. This should take 3 to 4 minutes. (Sweating them requires a lower heat than saute, but this results in sweeter and softer vegetables which will also yield better to the dough. Plus the garlic won't burn even if you throw it in at the same time as the onions and peppers.).
2. Push the refrito to the side of the pan and add 1 Tablespoon of oil to the center. Give the oil about 10 seconds to heat up and then add your tomato paste right on top of it (this will caramelize the tomato and give it sweetness and depth), along with the cumin, black pepper, bay leaf and salt..
3. Stir to incorporate all the ingredients in the pan, and add the ground beef, spreading it evenly over the surface area of the pan. Because you're simmering the beef at a lower heat, you'll find that you don't have to constantly break up the beef as usually needed when cooking at high heat. Other than a light sizzle right when the meat hits the pan, it shouldn't be sizzling and/or actively bubbling. If it is, turn the heat down a touch..
4. Simmer the ground beef for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then stir in raisins and simmer another 1 or 2 minutes. (I like to add the raisins toward the end so they can retain their shape and texture. Also, if olives are your thing, this is where you'd add them.).
5. At the end, you'll see your picadillo swimming in a little puddle of fat. I drain the fat by pushing all the picadillo over to one side of the pan and resting that side on the burner so the fat can drain to the lower part of the pan. In about 10 minutes, most of the fat should be drained, and you haven't dirtied another dish in the process..

This Cuban Picadillo recipe is my family's favorite! This is a dish I grew up eating as a kid, and I always loved when my Mom was making it. Finely chopped pecans take the place of beef in these picadillo empanadas seasoned with spices, raisins and olives. Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Lightly coat tops of empanadas with cooking spray.