Bistek, derived from the Spanish word bistec meaning beef steak, is a Filipino dish my mom typically made on the weekends. She would thinly slice a lean piece of beef and then marinate overnight with a mixture of soy sauce, garlic, black pepper and calamansi, a citrus fruit indigenous to the Philippines. Since calamansi is hard to come by, I used the juice from a few kumquats I had left over from my kumquat pomegranate cocktail. The sour fruit acts as a meat tenderizer along with adding a hint of citrus flavor.
I actually got the idea to make this dish on a recent visit to my friend Diana’s apartment where she made us a similar beef recipe for her upcoming cookbook. The major difference in my recipe is the addition of citrus juice and the long marinade. If you don’t have kumquats, any kind of sour citrus fruit like lemon or lime would work fine. And taste the marinade to make sure it’s not too sour for you. For the beef, I used NY strip but flank, sirloin and other cuts work too.
Click for recipe…
Prepare your kumquat juice and slice the onion and set aside.
Marinate the beef strips with soy sauce, kumquat juice, garlic and black pepper.
Cook beef until medium-rare, or desired temperature, and set aside.
Cook onions until almost caramelized, then add the marinade. Cook sauce for about 5 minutes.
Serve beef strips, onions and sauce over steamed rice.
Filipino Bistek Recipe
Add sliced beef to a bowl and marinate soy sauce, kumquat juice, garlic and black pepper for about 3 hours. Most recipes marinate for longer or overnight for an even tender texture.
Heat a large pan on high with olive oil. Add beef strips and cook for a few seconds on each side, until medium rare, or until desired cooking temperature. Remove beef from pan and set aside on a plate. Lower heat to medium-high and add onion slices to the pan drippings. Cook onions until almost caramelized, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes. Add the beef marinade back into the pan with the onions and simmer for about 4-5 minutes. Serve beef strips, onions and sauce over steamed rice.
Total Time: 15-20 minutes (plus 3 hours for marinade)
Yield: makes 4 servings
[if you enjoyed this post, please sign up for my newsletter to get the latest recipes]