This filipino bistek recipe is a classic dish from my childhood table! The marinated steak with the onions is so flavorful and is the perfect companion for Jasmine white rice. Steak and onions just got taken to another level.
This filipino bistek recipe is one I grew up with from my mom’s roots. It’s traditional, easy, and a favorite in the family.
The beauty with cooking is you can make any dish your own. So as I started cooking for myself and my husband, this was one of the first dishes I introduced him to from my childhood. I have even added potatoes into this recipe as this is a favorite of ours with the rice.
Anyone can make this easy filipino bistek recipe and will be a hit for anyone wanting to try something new!
This post will go over everything you need to know to create this filipino bistek recipe.
Recipe difficulty: Totally beginner level for anyone wanting to learn!
Super easy! This is an extremely flavorful dish with little prep and minimal cooking skills required. I have also included some tips below on how to make this recipe fairly quickly and even easier than what it already is.
Also, if you’re interested in Filipino cooking, but don’t know where to start, check out the top five Filipino ingredients I always recommend you have AND where to find it! (don’t worry—they are all crazy cheap) at the bottom of this post!
Sam’s Pro Tips for this Filipino Bistek Recipe
Marinate the Steak
- Marinate the steak before cooking. Seriously this step adds all the flavor to your meat! The beef bistek will have already soaked in all the flavor from the soy sauce, lemon, pepper, and bay leaves. Try to do this 30 minutes before at a minimum or you can do it quickly the night before. Quick side note on the marinade, traditionally calamansi is used in place of the lemon. This can be hard to find unless you’re going to the Asian market. It resembles a small orange, green fruit similar to a lime. If you have access to calamansi, you can use about 3-4 calamansis in place of the lemon. I marinated my meat in an 8×11 pan and I used one lemon.
How to Save Time
- Buy the meat already thinly sliced. This is also another time save. I don’t chop the meat as part of my prep. I buy the thinly sliced rounded steak cut for my beef bistek and dump it into my marinating pan. It’s so quick to cook!
How to Get the Best Flavor
- What kind of soy sauce should I use? So I’m not a stickler on this, but note different soy sauces will affect how this bistek recipe will taste. I have used either the UFC soy sauce or the soy sauce from Datu Puti (it just depends what’s on sale). My mom uses the Knorr Liquid Seasoning Soy Sauce. For this recipe, I used the UFC soy sauce and about a half cup of water. Adding the water will depend on personal preference. I prefer my bistek more saucy and not as salty, so I added about a half cup of water.
- Measurements in this recipe is easy to remember. You know how sometimes you go to the store and you forget your list, or you want to make this recipe and you don’t have this recipe accessible? I always remember the quantity of ones. One pound meat, one onion, and one lemon. This is pretty much the staple ingredients. We can discuss the seasoning and soy sauce later, but this trick is how I usually remember this recipe anywhere. I hope it helps you!
- Optional – Cook the potatoes separate: This is not a required step, but I love my filipino bistek recipe with potatoes. I cook the potatoes separately or otherwise the potatoes will absorb some of my liquid in the pan when I cook the meat and I don’t want that! With the potatoes, this is one of the perfect beef steak recipes for dinner.
Key Ingredients – Filipino Bistek Recipe
Below are some key and optional ingredients for this recipe:
Meat
- Thinly sliced beef sirloin or round top cut: As I have said in the Pro Tips section above, I buy my meat already thinly sliced so I don’t need to add anymore prep work. You can get either thinly sliced beef sirloin or beef round top steak thinly sliced. After the marinating process, it goes straight into the pan!
Sauce
- Soy sauce: In filipino cooking, nothing gets wasted! The soy sauce will serve as the marinade and the sauce when the meat cooks. I used the UFC soy sauce, which is considered more of a darker soy sauce. We love the flavor combination with the meat and seasoning.
- Lemon: One of the key ingredients in this recipe, which is also used in the marinade! There is usually about 3 tablespoons of juice in a lemon. This is what gives this filipino bistek recipe its tangy flavor. So good with rice! Of course, if you have access to calamansi, please feel free to use instead. For this recipe, I just used a lemon.
Vegetables
- Onion: That’s it! Traditionally, the onion is chopped into ring slices for this dish. For myself, I actually simmer the onion, meat, and the marinade together so that the onions absorb some of the marinade. As a garnish, you can put some of the cooked onion rings on top right before plating. Simply reserve a few slices after the onion has cooked and it will look beautiful when served.
- Garlic: Of course, there will be garlic in here! I used 5 cloves in this recipe as I love the flavor when it cooks with the onions and the marinade. You can use less, but why would you want to do that? This gets you the ultimate flavor combination.
- Optional – Red ruby potatoes: I love this recipe with potatoes! So I use about 5 red ruby potatoes sliced into wedges with this dish. I cook the potatoes separately so that it doesn’t absorb my sauce. I have tried this dish with other potatoes and I find that red ruby potatoes yield the best combination and holds its shape with the sauce.
More Variations to this Recipe
There are a few ways you can variate this filipino bistek recipe. Here’s how:
- Variate the ingredients: You definitely do not need to include the potatoes in this recipe. I have also seen other bistek recipes add a little sugar into the sauce or change the meat such as pork. If you have done any of these options, let me know in the comments below!
- What can I pair with this dish? The perfect side dish for this recipe, is of course, white rice. A serving of jasmine white rice is so good with the sauce and the meat. As mentioned above, you can reserve some of the cooked onion rings to use as a garnish when plating.
To make sure you’re always prepared for these recipes download our Top 5 Crazy-Cheap Ingredients You Need for Filipino Cooking and Where to Find It from my free resource library! (Get the password to the library in the form at the bottom of this post).
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Frequently Asked Questions
How to cook filipino bistek?
First, the meat will marinate for 30 minutes at a minimum. Later the marinade will cook with the meat, onion, and garlic.
How long does bistek last in the refrigerator?
Usually, bistek will last up to three days in the refrigerator.
Where can I find calamansi or UFC soy sauce?
Calamansi and UFC soy sauce can typically be found in the Asian market.
How much juice can you get from one lemon?
Usually, 1 lemon can yield 3 tablespoons of juice depending on the size of the lemon.
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