Flavorful and easy-to-make lettuce wraps made with Cuban-style turkey picadillo (seasoned ground turkey) and roasted butternut squash with bacon.
If you were to ask me what was the recipe I cook the most often every week, the answer would be turkey picadillo. What’s picadillo? I’m glad you asked!
Picadillo [pee-ca-dee-yo] is a classic Cuban dish made with ground beef, tomato sauce, raisins, olives, and lots of spices. This dish is usually served over white rice. It’s a great weeknight meal. We had it all the time in my house growing up. It’s even better as leftovers the next day.
Since I’m not the biggest fan of ground beef, I find myself making picadillo now with ground turkey instead of beef. Ground turkey seems to always be in my freezer. I like ground chicken too.
When it comes to Cuban-style seasoned ground meat however, my go-to is usually ground turkey. Think of this recipe as a Cuban bolognese, if you will. To spice things up, I spooned turkey picadillo onto lettuce wraps with roasted butternut squash! LOVE this combo so much!
How To Make Roasted Butternut Squash + Turkey Picadillo Lettuce Wraps
First things first, let’s make turkey picadillo. This is a one-pan meal. My fave. In a skillet, you cook onions with olive oil over medium-high heat. Next, you add the garlic and then add the ground turkey. Brown the turkey for about 5 minutes, until no longer pink. Lastly, turn the heat down, add the spices and tomato sauce then simmer for 15 minutes. That’s pretty much it, fam. How easy was that!
The last time I made turkey picadillo, I added a side of roasted butternut squash with bacon. And I gotta say, it was a pretty genius combination. The sweet, nutty flavor of the butternut squash. The savory, salty bacon pieces. Plus the tomato-based, seasoned ground turkey. I mean, MATCH MADE IN FREAKING HEAVEN.
You can always serve the turkey picadillo by itself on the lettuce wraps. You can even simply enjoy the turkey picadillo mixed with the butternut squash without the lettuce wraps. It’s up to you!
My picky Cuban family really enjoyed this recipe. They had the butternut squash and turkey picadillo with white rice. Let’s face it, rice always wins in my fam and you can totally opt for that too! I chose the lettuce wraps and was very happy.
Can’t wait for you guys to try this recipe!
Roasted Butternut Squash + Turkey Picadillo Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients
- Roasted Butternut Squash with Bacon
- Cuban Turkey Picadillo
- 1 head Boston / Bibb lettuce
Instructions
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Make the butternut squash according the recipe instructions. Set aside.
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While the butternut squash is in the oven, make the turkey picadillo according to the recipe instructions.
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To serve, spoon the turkey picadillo and bacon butternut squash evenly into the lettuce leaves. Save any leftovers in an airtight container for the next day. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Originally posted in February 2017. Updated photos + recipe in January 2019.
Joyce says
I love wraps! and such an easy filling with FLAVOUR! I definitely need to keep more olives around! Damn, I can probably snack on these ALL DAY haha!
Jamie Silva says
YES! They’re super yummy!
Riva says
Mmm, love that green olive touch in there! These look so good and healthy. Yum!
Jamie Silva says
Thanks Riva!
Karly says
Maybe the low carb life isn’t so bad, after all! These look sooooo good. So good that I might actually be able to convince my hubby to eat a lettuce wrap for once. And that’s really good!
Jamie Silva says
YAY! I bet your hubby will love these!
romain | glebekitchen says
I guess you can call me weird as well. I’m a ground turkey fan but I don’t much care for rice so this totally fixes it for me. I’m going all in with the “optional” toppings too. Great thinking!
Jamie Silva says
Thanks Romain! The toppings are what make it better, in my opinion. ;)
Alison @ The Sunday Glutton says
I loooove picadillo – it’s such an easy, quick dish that packs a lot of flavor with nice spices and brine from the olives. Yum! I’ve always had it in tortillas or over rice, but this is a great way to lighten it up. Can’t wait to try it!
Jamie Silva says
Awesome! Hope you enjoy it!
Alyssa @ A Bite of Inspiration says
This recipe looks so good, Jamie!! I love a good picadillo! Great idea to lighten up this dish by using turkey and lettuce wraps. Can’t wait to try it!
Jamie Silva says
Thanks so much, Alyssa! :)