Puerto Rican Picadillo with Plantain “Rice” (Paleo, Whole30, AIP-friendly, Low FODMAP-friendly)
This Puerto Rican Hash is filled with delicious spices, sweet raisins and salty and briny olives making for a mega-flavorful dish! It's traditionally served over white rice, but I was in the mood for plantains... so this dish has PLANTAIN RICE instead.
Ingredients
Picadillo:
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1 medium yellow onion, finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 lb ground meat (beef, bison, or ostrich work great)
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp cumin (sub with cinnamon for AIP)
- 3-4 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro (plus more for garnish)
- 2-3 Tbsp tomato paste (omit or sub with Beet “ketchup” for AIP*)
- 1/4 cup broth (bone broth or otherwise)
- 1/3 cup green pitted olives, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup raisins (omit for low FODMAP)
- sea salt and pepper to taste (omit pepper for AIP)
Plantain Rice:
- 2 medium plantains (green-yellow in color)
- 1 Tbsp coconut oil
- 2 Tbsp broth or water
- sea salt to taste
Instructions
Plantain Rice:
- If you have a spiralizer, you want to find as straight of a green plantain as you can find, or just cut off the curved edges to make it easier on the machine. Either way, you’ll need to cut the tips off and lightly slice lengthwise into the skin only so you can peel it off. Spiralize the plantain as you would a zucchini or any other veggie and then toss the “noodles” into a food processor, pulse until rice forms. (it looks most like long-grain rice doing it this way)
- Alternatively, if you don’t have a spiralizer. Remove the skin and slice plantain in half lengthwise. With a spoon, scoop out just the center slightly and discard. Then roughly chop the plantain and toss that into the food processor and pulse until the rice forms. (it will look a little more like couscous or short-grain rice like this, but equally delicious so whatever is easier!)
- Next, in a nonstick skillet that has a lid, heat the coconut oil over medium-high heat.
- Add your rice and stir it around so it doesn’t stick too much. Let it get golden brown for 4-5 minutes and then add in the broth or water, reduce heat to low and cover. Let it steam/simmer for 10 minutes and fluff up with a fork and set aside when finished, you can start the Picadillo in the meantime.
Picadillo:
- Over medium heat, sauté the chopped onion until soft and translucent in the olive oil for approx. 8-10 minutes.
- Add the minced garlic and stir with a wooden spoon for 30 seconds and add the ground meat over top, breaking up with the wooden spoon. Season with sea salt and pepper if using. Add your additional seasonings, the oregano, cumin (or cinnamon), and fresh cilantro.
- Keep breaking up the meat with your wooden spoon for a few minutes, as the meat cooks and most of the pink is gone, and then stir in the tomato paste if using (or beet “ketchup”) and your broth, mix very well so the paste doesn’t get clumpy.
- Let simmer for 10 minutes, checking in and stirring occasionally. Then, add in your olives and raisins. Let it all simmer for 10 more minutes and taste to adjust any seasonings as you’d like! Turn off the heat, sprinkle with some fresh cilantro and serve over plantain “rice”.