Bistek Tagalog

Bistek Tagalog - made December 16, 2019 from Lola Kusinera

Growing up, bistek was one of my favorite Filipino dishes. Filipinos shortened "beef steak" to "bistek" but however you want to say it, it's slices of tender beef simmered in a lemon-soy sauce marinade with sliced onions. Or "really good" if you want to keep it simple.

This is a typical Filipino dish of something with a tasty sauce to help also flavor the rice. I can give up rice as long as I don't eat Filipino food because so many amazing Filipino dishes (except the ones with noodles) just beg for rice. And you can't eat bistek with soft, fluffy rice to further enjoy the sauce.

This was pretty good and very easy to make. You just want to make sure you get a good cut of beef, slice it thinly and simmer long enough to soften the beef. Add water during simmering if your sauce starts to dry out but you want to keep enough flavor and not water it down too much.

2 pounds beef chuck roast, sliced thin and pounded
3/4 cup Knorr Liquid Seasoning or 1/2 cup soy sauce
1/3 cup kalamansi juice or lemon juice
8-10 cloves garlic, peeled and minced.
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground pepper
salt as needed
1 large onion, sliced thin and round
1/3 cup cooking oil

1. In a large bowl, combine soy sauce, kalamansi or lemon juice, minced garlic, brown sugar and ground pepper. Add beef slices to the mixture and mix well. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
2. Remove meat from the marinade and reserve marinade.
3. Heat oil in wok or wide frying pan. Quick fry onion slices and set aside. Using the same wok or frying pan, adjust heat to high and quick fry beef by batches. Remove from pan and reserve.
4. Pour remaining marinade into frying pan. Simmer on low heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Add the fried marinated beef to the cooking pan. Stir and simmer for another 3 to 5 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Add the onions and stir. When meat is tender, remove from heat. Serve warm with rice.