Giniling Guisado/Ginisa – Basic Recipe (Filipino Picadillo)

My family’s tried-and-tested formula recipe for a basic and versatile ground meat dish that’s perfectly seasoned and tasty – Ginisa or Giniling Guisado (Filipino-style Picadillo). Add your favorite vegetables to the mix for a complete meal, or add extra tomato sauce to make it a yummy stew!

In the Philippines, or at least in our household, this is the foundation of a lot of dishes, especially when combined with a lot of vegetables.

I always loved coming home to the aroma of this dish cooking on the stovetop, as I knew it would be either made with my favorite vegetable – squash or some green beans, among others.

Giniling is the Tagalog term for ground meat, referring explicitly to the process of grinding it.   Ginisa means to sauté or cook in oil with garlic, onions, or tomatoes, which is what this dish is all about. Guisado is a Spanish term that refers to braising or stewing meat with tomatoes, garlic, onions, and soy sauce – the Asian guisado, anyway.

Which is which? Well, whether you call this ginisa or guisado… It’s down-home good, especially when you combine it with vegetables, add extra tomato sauce, or simply use it for omelets.

WHAT INGREDIENTS TO USE FOR Filipino-style Picadillo (GINILING GUISADO)?

• Olive or Vegetable oil
• Garlic cloves, chopped (I love garlic, so I always use a lot!)
• Onion, chopped
• Ground Pork or Beef (whichever you prefer)
• Roma or Plum tomatoes, diced and seeded (if desired)
• Soy sauce (adjust it to the level of saltiness you prefer) – other liquid seasoning you can use are fish sauce and oyster sauce.
• Water
• Salt and pepper
• Patis / Fish sauce (optional)
• Optional add-ons: vegetables like diced carrots and potatoes and tomato sauce

HOW DO I MAKE Filipino Picadillo (GINILING GUISADO or Basic Sauteed Ground Beef)?

Heat oil to medium in a deep pan. Sauté the garlic and onions for about 1-2 minutes or until aromatic.

Add the ground meat and cook until it changes color.

Crumble the meat with a fork to prevent clumping as it browns. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.

Add the diced tomatoes and cook for another 3 minutes. Pour in the soy sauce (or preferred liquid seasoning) and water.

Bring to a boil. Cover, then simmer on low heat for at least half an hour to allow the meat to absorb the flavor of the liquid. To make this more substantial, you can add vegetables (such as diced potatoes and carrots – approximately 1.5 cups each) at this point. Adding either tomato paste or sauce at the end of cooking could also make the flavor more robust. Taste and correct the seasoning if necessary. You can sprinkle a little bit of sugar to enhance the flavor, too. I add this instead of MSG. Serve with rice.

How can we use this basic recipe for other dishes?

The possibilities are endless.

Add your favorite vegetables and cook until tender  – from cabbage, squash, green or Asian long beans, chayote, etc….

Add to baked beans so it becomes  “true” Pork and Beans.

This is also a great stuffing for cabbage or even for Bell Peppers.

Definitely, indispensable for eggplant omelette (Tortang Talong) and Spanish/Potato omelette.

Note: If you intend to use this as a stuffing, let the water evaporate as you cook it. But if you wish to add veggies to the stew, then retain the liquid so you have enough to pour over the rice.

Make this ahead, freeze it, and use it as needed!

Last updated on September 24th, 2025 at 07:12 pm