Turkey Picadillo
on May 19, 2024, Updated Oct 21, 2024
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A lighter version of a wonderful Latin American dish, turkey picadillo is an easy and delicious recipe.
Picadillo is a flavorful Latin American dish, somewhat similar to hash. It translates to “all chopped up,” which makes sense! This Cuban-inspired ground turkey picadillo recipe is so full of flavor, and honestly hard to stop eating. It’s lightened up with ground turkey instead of the more common ground beef. It starts with a sofrito (sauce) made with onions, peppers, carrots, and a handful of pantry seasonings. And there is a bit of red pepper flakes, for a little kick of heat.
For a twist, try topping this with Perfect Scrambled Eggs and Spicy Salsa Verde on top to make a wow-inducing brunch dish. Or, make a protein-packed dinner by serving this alongside Vegetarian Black Beans and Rice. You could even use it as a different filling for Ground Turkey Tacos. And I would think this would be great with chopped leftover turkey from your Thanksgiving bird.
Table of Contents
Turkey Picadillo: A lighter version of a wonderful Latin American dish, immensely aromatic and flavorful.
What is Picadillo?
Picadillo is a dish popular in various versions in Cuba, the Philippines, Costa Rico, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. Picar means “to mince” which is what happens to all of the ingredients. It contains ground meat of some sort (usually beef, but here ground turkey) and tomatoes, and after that (like all national and multi-national dishes), there is a medley of ways to keep going: peppers, different members of the onion family, various spices, potatoes, raisins, olives, and on and on. No one definition fits all.
Turkey Picadillo Ingredients
- Ground turkey – I use turkey here and prefer the 85/15% darker meat, which gives the dish a richness more similar to the traditional ground beef.
- Chopped onion – Onion is often referred to as an “aromatic,” which means that it is cooked in oil to caramelize and release its flavors before adding the main proteins and vegetables. This lends a deeper flavor to the entire dish.
- Minced garlic – Garlic is an aromatic, too!
- Bell pepper – This vitamin-C-rich veggie adds beautiful color. Use your favorite color.
- Carrots
- Ground cumin – Cumin adds a deep, nutty, and warming flavor to the dish.
- Ground coriander – Citrusy and bright.
- Red pepper flakes – Adds a nice little pop of heat; add more if you like!
- Tomato paste – I like to add this for a concentrated tomato flavor.
- Diced tomatoes in juice
- Baking potatoes – Diced pan-crisped potatoes bulk up this dish a bit and give it a more interesting texture.
- Raisins – These add a juicy burst of sweetness, but they are optional.
- Small green pimento stuffed olives – Also optional, but I think it is integral to the dish. My family loves the salty, briny flavor that green olives bring.
- Flour or corn tortillas – This turkey picadillo is perfect to serve up in soft tortillas like little tacos.
Variations
You can sub in ground chicken, pork, or beef or the ground turkey; just make sure to drain off any fat from the browned meat.
How to Make Easy Turkey Picadillo
- Brown the turkey: Drain in a colander.
- Cook the vegetables: Sauté the onion, garlic, pepper, and carrots over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender.
- Make the base: Add the cumin, coriander, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and red pepper and stir, then add the tomato paste and the diced tomatoes with their juice. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, return the browned turkey to the pan, and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
- Sauté the potatoes: Meanwhile, heat another large skillet over medium-high heat (preferably nonstick), add the remaining tablespoon of oil, then sauté the potatoes until lightly browned and tender, about 10 minutes.
- Mix it all together and serve: Stir the potatoes into the turkey mixture, and add the raisins (if using) and olives. Serve hot, with tortillas if desired.
FAQ
You have several options for the best ways to warm flour or corn tortillas, and one of the best methods is in a pan on the stove. Simply heat a skillet without any oil (or with the thinnest coating of oil) over medium-high heat. Place the tortillas in the pan, one at a time, allowing them to warm thoroughly on each side. Let the tortillas brown a bit in spots. Stack them as they finish cooking and keep them covered with a towel to keep them warm.
You can re-warm them in the microwave, but if you have time, cook them in a pan on the stovetop first to bring out their best flavor. It takes only a few minutes, and it makes a big difference.
The name picadillo derives from the Spanish verb “picar,” which means to mince or to chop. This is a well-suited descriptor for the texture of this chopped-up dish!
One of my favorite parts about this dish is that it can be served at any time of day. You can pair it with scrambled eggs and a hot cup of coffee in the morning or refried beans and a Pisco Sour for dinner. You can’t go wrong.
Kitchen Smarts
You may need to sauté the potatoes in batches; don’t crowd the pan, or they will cook but not brown. Add a bit of salt and toss and stir frequently.
Storage and Leftovers
Turkey Picadillo will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days, packed tightly in an air-tight container. Reheat it on the stove until it is warmed all the way through. In fact, some may say the flavors will have melded together even more the day after it’s been cooked, so I highly recommend keeping this around if you have extra!
What to Serve With Turkey Picadillo
More Ground Turkey Recipes
Let’s hear it for ground turkey!
- Buffalo Turkey Burger Sliders
- Greek Turkey Meatloaf
- Turkey Chili
- Chipotle Barbecue Turkey Burgers
- Turkey Meatballs Two Ways
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Turkey Picadillo
Ingredients
- 2 pounds ground turkey
- 2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil (divided)
- 1 ½ cup chopped onion
- 1 tablespoon minced garlic
- 1 bell pepper (any color; seeded and diced)
- 2 carrots (peeled and chopped)
- 4 teaspoons ground cumin
- 2 teaspoons ground coriander
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt (plus more to taste)
- ½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon tomato paste
- 1 (28-ounce) can diced tomatoes (in their juice)
- 4 large baking potatoes (peeled and diced)
- ½ cup raisins (optional)
- 1 cup halved small green pimento stuffed olives
- Small warmed flour or corn tortillas (to serve)
Instructions
- Spray a large nonstick pan with nonstick cooking spray or coat it lightly with oil and brown the turkey over medium-high heat, stirring often and breaking it up with a spatula. When browned, after about 5 minutes, drain in a colander.
- In the same skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat. Add the onion, garlic, pepper, and carrots and sauté over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Add the cumin, coriander, 1 teaspoon salt, pepper, and red pepper and stir, then add the tomato paste and the diced tomatoes with their juice. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, return the browned turkey to the pan, and simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat another large skillet over medium-high heat (preferably nonstick), add the remaining tablespoon of oil, then sauté the potatoes until lightly browned and tender, about 10 minutes. You may need to do this in batches; don’t crowd the pan. Add a bit of salt and toss and stir frequently.
- Stir the potatoes into the turkey mixture, and add the raisins (if using) and the olives. Serve hot, with tortillas if desired.
Notes
- You can sub in ground chicken, pork, or beef; just make sure to drain off any fat from the browned meat.
- You may need to sauté the potatoes in batches; don’t crowd the pan, or they will cook but not brown. Add a bit of salt and toss and stir frequently.
- Turkey Picadillo will keep well in the fridge for up to 3 days, packed tightly in an air-tight container. Reheat it on the stove until it is warmed all the way through. In fact, some may say the flavors will have melded together even more the day after it’s been cooked, so I highly recommend keeping this around if you have extra!
This is one of my go to recipes! Very flavorful and delicious. If you can get fresh ripe tomatoes I recommend using them. I have substituted toasted pine nuts for potatoes (and like it better that way). Overall just excellent recipe.
YUM! Your lightened up version was just as big on flavour as the original. I’m always happy to substitute ground turkey for beef especially in a dish as tasty as this one.
Mmmm! Now I’m craving picadillo. We always eat it with rice but I think my mom also put potatoes in from time to time. Happy to see raisins in yours!
This is so good on tortillas! Another option four our taco Tuesdays!
This is a great way to use ground turkey! Perfect for my family!
This turkey picadillo turned out perfectly! My family devoured it! Thanks!
I love that this starts with ground turkey for a healthy twist. The meat was full of flavor, I used it to make tacos and now I’m using the leftover to serve with my eggs! Thanks for such a versatile recipe!
My husband makes picadillo from a recipe that uses pork and beef. My son said he likes this version better! Thank you for sharing.
I give it 5 stars but I changed some things based on what I had. Though I assume it would be even better as written. I only had 1 lb of turkey so I basically halved the entire recipe except ALL the spices because I wanted it to be super flavorful, and I’m glad I left those the same because it’s absolutely delicious. I didn’t have any bell peppers or olives so I just ditched them. I had fresh tomatoes instead of canned so I diced them up and cooked them with the onions as if they were bell peppers. Worked just fine! Added some water with the tomato paste just to make sure I didn’t dry it up with the omission of the canned tomatoes. My husband loved these tacos and I’ll definitely make them again. Love the potatoes. Super easy and so good.