Picadillo Tacos

History & Origin

Picadillo is one of the most democratic and everyday stews in Mexican cuisine, present in practically every household across the country with regional variations that reflect Mexico's culinary diversity. The term 'picadillo' comes from the Spanish 'picar', meaning to cut into small pieces, and the recipe has roots in the Iberian cooking brought by the Spanish colonisers in the sixteenth century, which was adapted with native American ingredients such as tomatoes, chillies, corn and potatoes. In the central Mexican kitchen, beef picadillo with potato and carrot is the standard, whilst in the north it is prepared with dried beef or machaca, in Oaxaca pasilla chillies are added, and in Veracruz it is cooked with olives and capers in a more Mediterranean style. Picadillo was the quintessential leftovers dish in colonial New Spanish kitchens, used to make good use of less noble cuts of beef. Over time it became a dish with its own identity, a favourite in fondas, canteens and kitchens across the country. Its versatility is enormous: it fills tacos, gorditas, chillies, potatoes and turnovers, and every cook makes it slightly differently, adding capers, raisins, olives or chipotle according to family tradition.