Cuban Picadillo

Ingredients

• 700 g ground beef (80/20)
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 1 green bell pepper, finely diced
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 2 bay leaves
• 120 ml dry white wine
• 1 x 400 g tin tomato sauce or passata
• 2 tbsp tomato paste
• 100 g pimiento-stuffed green olives, halved
• 2 tbsp capers, drained
• 60 g raisins
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• Steamed white rice and fried sweet plantains, to serve

Before you cook

• Finely dice the onion and green bell pepper.
• Mince the garlic.
• Halve the olives and drain the capers.

Steps

1. Heat the olive oil in a wide, deep frying pan over medium heat.
2. Add the onion and bell pepper and cook for 6 minutes until soft and glossy.
3. Stir in the garlic, cumin and oregano and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
4. Raise the heat and add the ground beef, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon.
5. Cook for 8 minutes until the beef has lost all its pink and some of it has caught and browned.
6. Pour in the wine and scrape the base of the pan clean.
7. Let the wine bubble for 2 minutes until it has mostly cooked away.
8. Stir in the tomato sauce, tomato paste and bay leaves.
9. Add the olives, capers and raisins, then season with the salt and pepper.
10. Turn the heat down and simmer uncovered for 20 minutes, stirring now and then, until thick and saucy rather than watery.
11. Fish out the bay leaves and taste for salt.
12. Spoon the picadillo over white rice with fried sweet plantains alongside.