Bistec a la Criolla is a traditional and popular dish in Colombia. This beef recipe is very easy to make and full of flavor.
What is Bistec a la Criolla?
It's a beef dish cook with Colombian style creole sauce or hogao is full of flavor and wonderful served over white rice with fried ripe plantain and avocado on the side.
This is one of those recipes that many Colombians and I grew up eating at least once a week. Bistec a la Criolla is one of my favorites because I love rich creole sauces over white rice.
Ingredients You'll Need
This dish has a list of simple ingredients. You will find the complete printable recipe card below.
Steak: I like to use skirt steak, but sirloin tips or filet will work too.
Oil: I recommend using a neutral oil like vegetable or canola.
Vegetables: Garlic cloves to marinade the meat, onions and tomatoes.
Spices and Condiments: Yellow mustard, cumin, salt and black pepper. I use mustard to marinade the steak, but you can omit it.
Herbs: Fresh cilantro or parsley.
How to Make Bistec a la Criolla
- Place the steaks between sheets of wax paper, then pound until each steak is about ½ inch thick.
- Place the pounded steaks in a zip lock plastic bag. Add the mustard, cumin, 3 garlic cloves, cilantro, salt and pepper.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight. Be sure the steaks are evenly covered.
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sliced onions and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the steaks into the skillet and cook for 3 minutes per side. Add the tomatoes, cover and cook for 7 minutes more.
I’ve talked a lot about Sunday dinners at my grandmother's house on this blog, it was always a table with arroz con pollo, sancocho, mondongo, albóndigon and many traditional Colombian dishes for the whole family to enjoy. However, on my twenties I would often eat lunch at my mamita's house during the week, as well. One of my favorite meals she made was this simple bistec a la criolla served over white rice. It's comfort on a plate!
This Bistec a la Criolla recipe is simple and quick to make, you'll will have dinner on the table in 30 minutes. It's perfect for a weeknight meal or lunch. This is my son’s most requested Colombian meal. I make this dish at least twice a month.
Tips to Make this Dish
*I highly recommend to marinade the steak at least one hour, but I prefer to leave it in the fridge over night.
*You can store this dish in the fridge in a sealed container up to 3 days.
Bistec a la Criolla Recipe (Colombian -Style Creole Steak)
Ingredients
- 2 pounds sirloin or skirt steak trimmed and cut into 4 equal portions
- 3 garlic cloves minced
- ½ tablespoon yellow mustard
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
- Salt and black pepper to your taste
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro or parsley chopped
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 cup onion sliced
- 2 tomatoes diced
Instructions
- Place the steaks between sheets of wax paper, then pound until each steak is about ½ inch thick.
- Place the pounded steaks in a zip lock plastic bag. Add the mustard, cumin, 3 garlic cloves, cilantro, salt and pepper.
- Refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight. Be sure the steaks are evenly covered.
- In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the sliced onions and cook for about 3 minutes. Add the steaks into the skillet and cook for 3 minutes per side. Add the tomatoes, cover and cook for 7 minutes more.
Anne
Looks like it will become a favorite in my house. I have never used skirt steak and have been wanting to.
Bo
Looks really delicious!
Sarah Naveen
oh Wow!! looks super yummy!!
KennyT
Do Colombians eat lots of beef?
Erica
Kenny- We love meat 😉 Beef, Pork, Chicken and Fish.
Kira
mmm love this dish!
Kim
The looks delicious with the sauce and served over rice. Another great photo too:D
rebecca subbiah
oh wow looks divine
Kristie
Looks so yummy!! This is the dish I get whenever my Colombian husband takes the kids and me to the local Colombian restaurant. He and the kids get Bandeja Paisas while I chow down on this meal. Perfect with a glass of Colombiana on the side!
Baking is my Zen
I've had this before (without cumin) and it is delicious. Now it's my turn to make it. Can't wait to.
Erica
Thank you all for the comments!
Sophie
MMMMM,...lovely food!!!
Sandra g
This looks soooooooo good , can't wait to try it!
Chris
Oh my goodness, this looks supremely great, Erica! And thanks for linking to hogao because I would have had to google it.
Erica
Thank you guys!
maria
que delicia. definitivamente lo mejor gracias .
danielle
This sounds fantastic! Now I'll have to look up hogao to see with it is 🙂
Oysterculture
Yum - looks amazing! Perfect for superbowl Sunday
Erica
Thank you!
la mas linda
This one looks amazing!!! Im on my way to the super market now!!! 🙂
Maria Elena
How many cups of hogao? 1 1/2 or a 1/2?
Erica
Maria Elena- 1 1/2 cups.
Maria Elena
I was always so afraid of introducing the kids to Colombian food, since they are so used to what their Italian grad-ma cooks for them. But they loved it. Can't wait to try more recipes. I was born and raised in Colombia but my mother never allowed me in the kitchen, so my Colombian food cooking skills have been always very poor. Then I married an Italian and all I learned to cook was Italian food. Now I cannot wait to try your recipes...Thanks for posting all this awesome recipes.
Erica
Maria Elena- Thank you!
Jim S
Do you put the steaks in the oil while their still in the bag or not?
Lachlan
This was amazing. I live in Australia, and I wanted to try something different. I came across this recipe and tried it, and the family loved it. Thanks for posting.
Lachlan
This was amazing. I live in Australia, and I wanted to try something different. I came across this recipe and tried it, and the family loved
Caroll Buitrago-Long
Hola Erica,
Me imagino que aun estas con barriguita o si ya tuviste el bebe, Felicidades.
I was just thinking about you while cooking this, because I had to make a variation.
My husband and I are trying not to eat too much red meat, so I used deer meat that was frozen since last hunting season.
I am Colombian and this is MY FAVORITE dish ever, with patacones, of course. ANyways, I did it with the deer meat and still was delicious and even juicier. So whenever you feel like trying it with lean meat this is a good option,
Muchas gracias y a comer se dijo!
Jonathan
There used to be a small Columbian restaurant in Cleveland, Tennessee. My wife had this dish there a couple of times and it was good. Even better, in my opinion, was the beef tongue in Creole sauce that they also served. A couple of times, we made the roughly 45 minute drive from home to that restaurant just so I could have the beef tongue. I am not Columbian but that quickly became one of my favorite dishes and the man and wife who owned the restaurant were very nice, friendly and welcoming. Unfortunately, the restaurant closed. In fact, the reason I came across this recipe is that I was searching for a recipe for Columbian Creole sauce so I can maybe attempt to make the beef tongue dish at home.
Jonathan
Sorry, I mis-spelled Colombian.
Anna
I just returned from a New Years holiday in Cartagena, and I consumed some of the best "tipica" meals I've had in a while. Longing to recreate the flavors from my trip I made this last night and it transported me right back! Rico rico rico! Keep the recipes coming. Feliz ano!
Evelyne@cheapethniceatz
Amazing looking steak, love anything creole.
grace
this is a fantastic way to bring out the best in skirt steak!!
Chris
This is great. I love how quick skirt steak cooks.
Henry
Thank you for the great recipes. Have a wonderful holiday.
Liz
i seen onions in the picture but not in the recipes with the meat. How much did you use?
Kathleen
My first attempt at Colombian food was a huge success thanks to this recipe and the rice recipe as well as the simple Colombian side salad recipe on this site as well. I was inspired because my daughter just met a young Colombian woman and I searched for Colombian food and found this site...very authentic was the comment my pictures received from my daughter's new friend. I will be trying more from here next time around. This recipe was so simple and so flavorful!
Kathleen
So simple and delicious! Authentic was the comment I received for the photos I took for my daughter to show her new Colombian friend. I will be back to try more recipes from this site!
Pablo V
I am a big fan of your recipes. Living in the US for about 22 years (half of my life), I am the home cook for my wife and four kids and love to be; a few years ago I had an increasing desire to cook more traditional Colombian foods and that landed me on your site, and I am stuck here for the authenticity of your recipes. I even bought your contributed authorship book on Amazon.
On this everyday Colombian dish, I used Sirloin and just added two spoonfuls of pickle juice to the marinade and it came out fantastic, I've used pickle juice on homemade brisket before. The marinade tenderized the meat nicely, and of course, I paired it with sweet plantains, white rice, and a lettuce-cucumber-lemon salad. Your hogao recipe is bulletproof. I have cooked many international recipes over the years, but when it comes to Colombian food I recognize the veracity of your inherited recipes.
Millie
Es muy delicioso!!!