Picadillo for Tamale Filling

Another time I will discuss this recipe in terms of dinner - it varies only slightly with the addition of potatoes - but in this case I made picadillo as a filling for the tamale making event we have on Mother's Day.

In a large, deep-sided pan heat a 1/4 cup of olive oil, turn the heat to medium or medium high and when the oil is hot add about 1.5-2 pounds of ground beef. Stir the beef around until evenly browned. This step can take about 5-7 minutes so as you periodically stir and check it take the time to dice half a medium onion, mince 1-2 cloves of garlic and 1 jalapeno chili (optional). When the meat is browned, add the onion, garlic and jalapeno; you want to cook it a bit to get the vegetables a bit translucent (2-3 minutes). Pour in one bottle or can of beer and let boil away a bit which will evaporate all the alcohol in the beer. The addition of beer serves to tenderize the beef and give the dish a richer flavor.

After about five minutes, add a 15 ounce can of tomato sauce to the whole mixture and move to a back burner on a low setting. Cover the pan and let cook for at least 30 minutes. When it comes time to use this as a tamal filling we will actually drain the sauce so that the filling isn't so runny.