Carne Picada Recipe (Slow Cooker)

Name: Carne Picada Recipe (Slow Cooker)
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 195 min
Ingredients: 2 pounds bottom round roast cut in ½-inch cubes; 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour; 1 tablespoon paprika; 1 teaspoon sea salt; ½ teaspoon pepper; ½ teaspoon garlic powder; 2-3 tablespoons olive oil; 2 cans fire roasted diced tomatoes (14.5 oz cans)

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My Carne Picada Recipe cooks low and slow for the most delicious beef to use in tacos, fajitas, rice bowls, and more! Richly flavorful and tender, this picada slow cooker recipe will quickly become one of your favorite weeknight meals. It's so easy to make and is completely hands-off!

Close up of carne picada in a white bowl with cilantro and rice

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Carne Picada Recipe Ingredients
How to Make Carne Picada in the Crockpot
Carne Picada Recipes Tips
Carne Picada Recipes FAQs
Carne Picada Recipes
Mexican Beef Recipes
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Carne Picada Recipe Ingredients

Bottom round roast or chuck roast cut into cubes or carne picada meat
All-purpose flour
Paprika
Sea salt and pepper
Garlic powder
Olive oil
Fire roasted diced tomatoes
Optional: cilantro for garnish

How to Make Carne Picada in the Crockpot

Cube bottom round roast. Dry the beef by patting it with paper towels. Combine flour, paprika, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in a bowl or on a plate, and set aside.
Heat olive oil in a heavy-bottom skillet. Sear cubed beef over medium-high heat in batches as necessary until it browns. Transfer beef to the slow cooker.
Stir in the flour and seasoning blend and add the fire roasted tomatoes.
Cook for 3 hours on high. Garnish with fresh cilantro if desired, and that's it! Enjoy making your recipes with carne picada!

Carne Picada Recipes Tips

Don't skip out on searing the beef. It adds a ton of flavor to carne picada meat!
Cook the beef for longer, if you have the time. Slow cook for 5 hours and you will have the most tender and delicious crockpot meal.
If you like a more mild flavor, use regular canned diced tomatoes instead of fire-roasted tomatoes.
Additionally, if you want more sauce, you can use two cans of diced tomatoes instead of one.

This is such an easy recipe. My family loves it. It is a toss-up between this recipe and taco soup at the top of our list of weekday meals.

Carne Picada Recipes FAQs

What is Carne picada?

Carne Picada literally translates to "minced meat" in Spanish, and can typically be found sold in packages as cubed, thinly sliced, or shaved beef. You can find it in packages literally labeled as carne picada meat. It's perfect for recipes like tacos, fajitas, burrito bowls, and even Mexican pizza! If you can't find packaged carne picada, you can also cube your own beef to use from chuck roast or bottom round roast.

What kind of meat is used for carne picada?

Most often it is cut from bottom round, chuck roast or chuck steak, which are both budget-friendly beef cuts that cook best slowly.

What is the difference between carne asada and carne picada?

There are two main differences between the two that make them completely separate recipes: the way the beef is cut, and the cooking method used to prepare each dish. Carne picada is minced beef that you braise (cook in a liquid), while carne asada is slices of steak typically cooked on a grill. Carne asada literally translates to "grilled meat". You may have also heard of steak picado, carne molida, carne moída, or carne guisada. All of these refer to the same thing: ground or minced meat, like carne picada!