Puerto Rican Corned Beef

The Puerto Rican Corned Beef is one if not the most delicious ways to cook canned corned beef. Popular in the Caribbean for taste but also convenience, especially during the hurricane season.

It became very popular on the island because it was an easy and quick dinner that was economical. It was often known as “poor people’s food”. But after the 2011 shortage, the price started to rise.

It is made with the classic flavors of Puerto Rican recipes like the sazon to season and green Puerto Rican sofrito. But we have 2 ways of making it. We either add french fries or fried sweet plantains like in this recipe.

In Puerto Rico, it is almost always served with a steamy bowl of white rice. We also use it to stuff many of our fritters like the Puerto Rican alcapurrias de yuca or the Puerto Rican potato balls. 

Recipe Ingredients

• Oil- I used vegetable oil to fry the ripe plantains and saute the vegetables. You can always use achiote oil instead and it will give your dish a deep flavor with a beautiful yellowish color.
• Ripe plantain- The plantain must be yellow and ripened. They are responsible for balancing the savory flavor with the sweetness in this dish.
• Veggies- I used onion and green pepper. 
• Sofrito- The sofrito is important as is one of the bases for this recipe. Depending on where you are it can be tricky to get. If that’s the case then use my sofrito substitute.
• Tomato sauce– I used tomato sauce but you can substitute for half of tomato paste.
• Sazón- I use sazon because it adds flavor and also adds color.
• Canned Corned Beef- I used the great-value brand. But I have used different brands like Libby’s, Goya, Iberia, and Hormels. The quality difference between brands is minimal because most corned beef comes from Brazil.
• Water- I like to add water 1 because it reduces the saltiness. 2 and most importantly so it can yield a little more.

How To Make Puerto Rican Corned Beef

• Photo 1: Peel the amarillos (sweet plantains). This will be easy to do when the plantain is very riped. You just cut the ends off, cut a line going down through the skin, and remove it. Cut the plantain in half and each half into about 4 long pieces. You may get more or less depending on how thick is the plantain.
• Photo 2: Fry the plantains for 1 minute on each side or until they have crispy borders and are golden brown. Let the amarillos cool down before handling them and cut them into small cubes.

• Photo 3: Roughly cut the onion and green pepper into strips. You can cut it however thin or thick you like, is merely a preference.
• Photo 4: Add oil, onion, pepper and saute for 2 minutes. If you cut the veggies bigger they’ll need 1 more minute to cook.

• Photo 5: Add sofrito, tomato sauce, and sazón and saute for 2 more minutes. This gives the dish more flavor. Add the sweet plantains and canned beef and break them apart into smaller pieces. 
• Photo 6: After there are no visible big lumps, add the water. This helps it to get a smoother consistency. Finish cooking for 6 minutes. Stir a couple of times to make sure it doesn’t stick at the bottom of your pan.