Bistek : Filipino Style Beef Steak

Oh my! I can't believe I just cooked my first beef recipe, BISTEK!

Bistek is actually the Filipino version of beef steak. What's good with this recipe is that it is very easy to cook and the taste varies from person to person. So even if you mess up, you can always adjust by altering the main ingredients. Also, I think, as long as the meat is tender enough, the dish will always be good. Bistek is a definitely hit and sure love to everyone but it is somewhat pricey to be served in a typical family's table all the time. 

I've tasted different version of this good beef dish and I could say that my mom's version would always be the best. Hers is not the usual bistek recipe because she doesn't use ground pepper and garlic and also doesn't practice marinating. But for me, hers still tastes best and is way better than the ones in carinderias. Many of the people that have tasted her recipe asked for her secret and generous as I am, I'm sharing my mother's precious recipe.

So yeah, happy cooking and gorging!

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 kilo of beef (round, sirloin or tenderloin), sliced 1/4-inch thick
• juice of 1/2 kilo of kalamansi (native lemon)
• 1/2 cup of soy sauce
• 3 large sized white onions, cut into rings
• 2 tbsp. of cooking oil
• 3 tsp. vetsin (Monosodium Glutamate)
• water

PROCEDURE:

• In a skillet, boil the beef until tender. Approximately 30 mins-1 hr.
• Add the soy sauce then the kalamansi juice and vetsin. Taste it, if it's too sour, add soy sauce; if it's too salty, add more juice. You can also add water. Balance out the flavors to suit your taste.
• Cook in medium heat. Increase heat for a minute or two to brown steaks.
• Remove the beef with the sauce from the skillet and place in a different container.
• In the same skillet, heat one tablespoon of oil. Pan-fry the beef working in batches, remove after browning on both sides. When all the beef has been browned, remove from skillet and set aside.
• In the same skillet again with the remaining cooking oil, stir fry the onion rings until translucent and a tiny bit brown on the edges but still with a bit of a crunch.
• Add the beef, pour the sauce into the skillet and bring to a slow boil and simmer for a few minutes or until cooked through.
• Slide the beef slices onto a serving plate, arrange the onion rings (not cooked, depends) on top.
• Best served with hot plain rice.

TOTAL TIME: 1 - 1 1/2 hr

SERVINGS: 10-12 persons

NOTES:

• When buying the beef, have your butcher slice the meat no thicker than 1/4 of an inch.
• If you're the one to slice it, stick it in the freezer for 15-20 minutes first so that it is easier to slice thinly. 
• Use a meat tenderizer for the meat before boiling. It cooks pretty fast if you have tenderized steak.
• If you don't have kalamansi (native lemon), you can try using lemons.
• You can also add fried potatoes cut like thick chips and use that to top the dish or mix with it.