Holiday Picadillo With Dried Fruit and Nuts
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Picadillo is a general term for ground meat dishes in Latin America. This festive holiday version is seasoned with sweet spices, including cinnamon, allspice and clove, and embellished with golden raisins, toasted almonds and minced candied orange. It tastes even better a day or two after it’s made so if you want to get a head start on your holiday meal, make this in advance and heat it up just before serving alongside your roasted turkey or chicken, or just for filling tortillas.
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes until it’s warm but not smoking. Add the onions, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of the salt, and cook until they’re soft, about 10 minutes, stirring often so they don’t brown. Add the garlic and cook for about 1 minute, until it’s soft and fragrant, stirring constantly so it doesn’t brown.
Add the pork, cinnamon, allspice, clove, bay leaf, thyme sprigs and the remaining tablespoon of salt. Cook, stirring and breaking up the pork as it cooks, until it’s no longer pink, 5 to 10 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, chicken broth and chipotle, increase the heat to high and bring the liquid to a boil. Reduce the heat so the liquid is simmering and cook for about 20 minutes, until about half of the liquid is absorbed.
Add the potatoes, stir to combine, and cook until they’re tender, about 20 minutes, adding more broth if the pan is dry.
Add the almonds, raisins, candied orange and thyme leaves and stir to combine. Turn off the heat. Remove and discard the bay leaf and the woody stems from the thyme sprigs. Add more salt to taste. If you make the picadillo in advance, reheat it over medium heat, stirring often and adding a splash of broth or turkey drippings as needed.
