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Cuba, Americas · Picadillo

Picadillo Smash Tacos

Olive-and-raisin picadillo pressed thin onto tortillas and seared crisp, topped with melted cheese, pink pickled onion and lime crema: the viral taco format with Cuban flavours.

ServingsServes 2
Total cooking time35 min
DifficultyEasy
About servingsMinced meat must be cooked all the way through. If you see any pink, give it another 30 seconds.

Method

  1. Slice the red onion paper-thin, toss with the vinegar, sugar and a little of the salt and leave for to turn into a pink quick pickle.

    Add in this stepRed onion ½White vinegar 3 tbspSugar 1 tspSalt ⅛ tsp

  2. Stir the lime zest and juice into the sour cream to make the lime crema.

    Add in this stepSour cream 80 gLime ½

  3. Finely chop the olives and raisins and mince the garlic. In a bowl, mix the beef with the olives, raisins, tomato paste, cumin, oregano, garlic and the rest of the salt until evenly combined. Wash your hands and tools straight after handling raw meat.

    Add in this stepMinced beef (15 to 20% fat) 240 gPitted green olives 8Raisins 20 gTomato paste 2 tspGround cumin ½ tspDried oregano ½ tspGarlic cloves 2Salt 0.6 tsp

  4. Divide the meat into as many portions as you have tortillas and press each one in a thin 3 mm layer right to the edge of one side of a tortilla. Thin is what lets it cook through quickly.

    Add in this stepSmall flour tortillas (15 cm) 6

  5. Heat a large frying pan over medium-high heat, brush it lightly with oil and cook the tortillas meat-side down in 2 batch(es). Press firmly with a spatula and cook for , until the meat is deep brown and crisp with no pink left at the edges. Flip, scatter the cheese over the meat and cook for more until the cheese melts and the tortilla is golden.

    Add in this stepVegetable oil 2 tspGrated Monterey Jack or mozzarella 60 g

    medium-high heat

  6. Fold in half, top with the pickled onion, lime crema and coriander and serve straight away.

    Add in this stepCoriander (cilantro) 5 g

Cook's tip

Spread the meat too thick and the outside burns before the middle cooks, so stick to 3 mm. Beef with 15 to 20% fat gets crispier and stays juicier. Spring onions can replace the coriander.

Cooking it at camp

Mix the meat and make the pickle and crema at home, and keep them below 4 °C in the cooler. At camp you only need a griddle or cast-iron pan, and they disappear fast.