Good taste my husband and son liked it without adding salt or anything else. I will serve at a dinner for our drama group on Halloween.

this is a tasty recipe, very close to a dear cuban mother of a friend of mine, with a couple additions as another reviewer mentioned. do not leave out raisins and olives. i also add chopped tomatoes, cumin, a bay leaf, and a dash of red pepper flakes, and stock instead of water. one of the tastiest ground beef recipes up their with spaghetti sauce!

My kids and I really liked this recipe. I used stir fry beef instead of hamburger, chopping it up after it was browned like they do at Baja Fresh and other taco places. I served it with coconut rice - very good combination. To make coconut rice, cook 1/4 onion or 1/2 shallot in 1T butter til tender, add 1 cup jasmine rice, 3/4 cup coconut milk and 1 c water, bring to a boil, cover and simmer for 18 minutes. Stir in a dash of nutmeg if you like and serve either beside or under the picadillo.

A really interesting flavor - don't omit the raisins. Great for converting to vegetarian (with fake meat). I didn't find it saucy enough for the rice (probably b/c no hamburger fat).

This recipe is very close to what Cuban Picadillo should be, but it was missing a few steps. I was pleased to see that all the ingredients were included, some people can't see why olives and raisins should co-exist in the same dish... try it, delicious. What I saw was missing was the beginning step. Picadillo, and practically all Cuban bean dishes are cooked into a "sofrito". A sofrito consists of a can of tomato sauce, an equal amount of water, garlic, onions, salt, and whatever herbs you prefer (typical cuban food uses a lot of oregano and I like to add cumin and a laurel leaf to my picadillo). Simmer the sofrito so that the garlic and onions start to cook and reduce the liquid to about 75%. Then add the beef to brown in the sofrito. Add the olives and raisins in as well so that the flavors incorporate with the rest of the pot. Add everything else in until the picadillo is cooked and the sauce is in the consistency you desire. Serve with white rice or a side of Frijoles Negros, some Cuban bread, tostones, and a salad... and you'll be a HAPPY CUBAN FOODIE!

Great recipe! Very close to authenic!! Just made a few changes, added a little salt and used half if the green olives.