Dominican steak is one of the most popular ways to prepare beef in Dominican cooking, right next to carne guisada. It’s incredibly tender and cooked with so much sabor.
And just like other guisados, like camarones guisados and pollo guisado, the ingredients you’ll need to prepare this bistec guisado are super simple and minimal! Let me show you how to make Dominican steak at home!
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You’ll need beef round cubed
This beef is pounded and has a tenderized texture to it. This tenderizing is done to break down muscle fibers and make the beef super tender! You can even go a step further and tenderize the beef if you’d like.
Step by step instructions
- Tenderize the beef by using a mallet to get the meat thin and slice the beef into pieces.
- In a bowl, add the beef, garlic, sofrito, soy sauce, adobo, oregano, sazon, and lime juice. Mix until the beef is well coated with the seasonings.
- Heat oil in a pot over medium heat. Add sugar to the hot oil and let it caramelize.
- Add the beef to the pot and cook, covered, for 8 minutes. Turn the beef pieces and continue cooking, covered, for another 8 minutes or until all juices are absorbed.
- Add 1 cup of water to the pot and let the beef to cook for 20 minutes, covered, or until most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Repeat this process two more times, adding 1 cup of water each time and allowing the beef to cook for about 20 minutes each time, or until the liquid is absorbed.
- Add the sliced onion and bell peppers to the pot along with the last cup of water and cook for an additional 10 minutes covered, or until the sauce thickens and the vegetables are tender. Buen provecho!
Recipe tips and tricks
Make sure the sugar caramelizes just right before adding the meat. Watch for that rich, dark brown color, but be careful not to burn it. Let all of the juices release from the meat and get fully absorbed before adding water to the pot.
Keep the meat juicy! If you notice it drying out, add 1/2 cup of water to the stew to maintain the right consistency.
Bistec guisado and carne guisada aren’t the same
Bistec guisado and carne guisada are prepared very similarly with almost the same ingredients, but the main difference between two is cut of beef that’s used. For bistec guisado, you use beef round cubed and for carne guisada you use beef round chunks.
Dominican Steak (Bistec Guisado)
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- In a bowl, add the beef, garlic, sofrito, soy sauce, adobo, oregano, sazon, and lime juice. Mix until the beef is well coated with the seasonings.
- Heat oil in a pot over medium heat. Add sugar to the hot oil and let it caramelize.
- Add the beef to the pot and cook, covered, for 5-8 minutes. Turn the beef pieces and continue cooking, covered, for another 5-8 minutes or until all juices are absorbed.
- Add 1 cup of water to the pot and let the beef cook for 15-20 minutes, covered, or until most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Repeat this process two more times, adding 1 cup of water each time and allowing the beef to cook for 15-20 minutes each time, or until most of the liquid is absorbed.
- Add the sliced onion and bell peppers to the pot along with the last cup of water and cook for a 10-15 minutes covered, or untilhalf of the liquid evaporates and the vegetables are tender. Buen provecho!
