The sweet, bold flavors of ground turkey simmered with raisins, olives and fragrant spices creates the foundation for these mouthwatering picadillo sandwiches. Typically made with beef, picadillo is widely celebrated throughout Latin America and preparation varies based on region.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 53 min |
| Prep: | 20 min |
| Cook: | 33 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 8 cloves garlic, chopped
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1 1/4 pounds ground turkey
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 6-ounce can tomato paste
- 1/3 cup golden raisins
- 1/2 cup chopped pimento-stuffed olives, plus 2 tablespoons olive juice
- 4 soft sesame buns or Portuguese rolls, split
- Sliced avocado, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until slightly soft, about 2 minutes. Add the bay leaves, cumin, chili powder and allspice; toast 1 to 2 minutes. Add the turkey, 1 teaspoon salt, and pepper to taste. Cook about 5 minutes, breaking up the meat.
- Add the tomato paste and stir until brick red, 3 to 4 minutes. Add 2 cups water, the raisins, olives and olive juice. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook over medium heat until thickened, about 15 minutes. Uncover and cook, stirring, 3 more minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
- Drizzle the cut sides of the rolls with olive oil, place on a baking sheet and warm in the oven, about 5 minutes. Fill the rolls with the turkey mixture. Garnish with avocado, if desired.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 484 |
| Total Fat | 16 grams |
| Saturated Fat | 2 grams |
| Cholesterol | 56 milligrams |
| Sodium | 944 milligrams |
| Carbohydrates | 47 grams |
| Dietary Fiber | 6 grams |
| Protein | 43 grams |
Reviews
I love this recipe and make it all the time. It’s like sloppy joes expect way better. I will never go back to manwich.
Our whole family enjoyed this recipe. I would add salt as the only modification.
This was basically sloppy joes. I thought it was good but the husband really loved it. I will be very honest and admit that I didn’t add the raisins since I absolutely hate them. I followed the rest of the recipe exactly. I will make it again, but next time I might try to talk myself into adding raisins, so I can see what difference they make in balancing the flavors. I served this with homemade baked beans and a brocolli pasta salad.
Very quick and easy recipe to put together. We added some heat with habanero powder. The avocado is a nice touch with the heat.
This was a great recipe. I left off the raisins and avocado and added green pepper. I served it over pasta instead of on buns. My husband loved it. Very tasty.
This recipe was super easy and super delicious! The combination of flavors was yummy…I loved the saltiness of the olives with the sweetness of the raisins…and then the added kick of the chili powder. The allspice added a nice flavor as well. I found we had a decent amount of stuffing leftover after making four large sandwiches, so we all had some extra yumminess to munch on sans roll. I will keep this recipe for sure. :
I liked it, my wife loved it. She says I’m crazy for not giving it 5 stars. I do have to say that the combination of the olives and the raisins was very unique.
Excellent! I’ll be making this again. I think next time I’ll add some cayenne to give it a kick.
Very tasty! Great alternative to “sloppy joe’s”.
So very Yummy and easy to make! Lots of flavor! I agree with one of the other reviews about not adding any extra salt because the olives make it perfectly salty enough! My kids loved it too because they love raisins!