Dominican-Style Bistec Encebollado
Steak with Rice & Beans plus a Tomato Salad
The food of the Dominican Republic reflects its history as a Caribbean crossroads. HelloFresh team member Melissa A. says of the island: “Dominican cuisine is a mix of African, Taino, and Spanish influences. It's simple, but full of so much flavor.” Our spin on sautéed steak and onions is no different—a flavorful, easy classic. The steak is marinated in oregano, garlic, vinegar, and lime juice, seared, and tossed with sliced caramelized onion and a tangy, oniony pan sauce. On the side are red beans simmered with tomato paste, onions, and peppers, and fluffy seasoned rice. A simple tomato salad—a traditional side in the DR—provides fresh, bright contrast.
Ingredients
1 unit
Lime
1 unit
Yellow Onion
1 unit
Long Green Pepper
2 unit
Tomato
¼ ounce
Cilantro
10 ounce
Bavette Steak
1 teaspoon
Dried Oregano
1 teaspoon
Garlic Powder
5 teaspoon
White Wine Vinegar
½ cup
Jasmine Rice
1 unit
Kidney Beans
2 unit
Chicken Stock Concentrate
1 tablespoon
Fry Seasoning
1 unit
Tomato Paste
Not included in your delivery
Salt
Pepper
2 tablespoon
Cooking Oil
¼ teaspoon
Sugar
1 tablespoon
Olive Oil
Nutrition Values
Utensils
Cooking Steps
• Wash and dry produce. • Halve lime. Halve, peel, and thinly slice onion; mince a few slices until you have 2 TBSP (4 TBSP for 4 servings). Core and dice green pepper into ¼-inch pieces. Cut tomatoes into ½-inch wedges. Roughly chop cilantro.
• Pat steak* dry with paper towels; place between two large pieces of plastic wrap. Pound with a mallet or rolling pin until steak is about ½ inch thick. • In a large bowl, combine oregano, garlic powder, 1 tsp vinegar, ½ tsp salt, a large drizzle of oil, juice from lime, and pepper (2 tsp vinegar and 1 tsp salt for 4 servings). Add steak and turn until completely coated. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to marinate.
• Heat a large drizzle of oil in a small pot (use a medium pot for 4 servings) over medium-high heat. Add rice, minced onion, green pepper, a big pinch of salt, and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until rice is toasted and onion is slightly tender, 3-4 minutes. • Drain and rinse beans. • Carefully add beans, stock concentrates, Fry Seasoning, half the tomato paste (all for 4), and ¾ cup water (1½ cups for 4) to pot. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce to a low simmer. Cook until rice is tender, 15-18 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine tomatoes, cilantro, 1 TBSP olive oil, 1 tsp vinegar, and ¼ tsp sugar (2 TBSP olive oil, 2 tsp vinegar, and ½ tsp sugar for 4 servings). Taste and season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to serve.
• Heat a drizzle of oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add sliced onion and a big pinch of salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and slightly tender, 4-6 minutes. (TIP: If onion is browning too quickly, lower the heat and cover with a lid.) Turn off heat; transfer to a plate. Wash out pan.
• Heat another drizzle of oil in pan used for onion over medium-high heat. Add steak, reserving marinade (let excess marinade drip back into bowl before adding steak to pan); cook to desired doneness, 3-5 minutes per side. • In the last 1-2 minutes of cooking, add cooked onion and reserved marinade to pan. Cook until sauce thickens, 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat.
• Fluff rice and beans with a fork; taste and season with salt and pepper if desired. • Divide rice and beans, steak, and tomato salad between plates. Top steak with tangy onion sauce and serve.
Steak is fully cooked when internal temperature reaches 145°.
Customer reviews
Review summary
Updated on Dec 2025- Flavor: Many loved the authentic Dominican flavors, especially in the rice and beans. Some found it needed more seasoning.
- Ease of prep: Several noted it was time-consuming to prepare, with multiple steps and pans required.
- Suggestions: Consider marinating the steak longer for tenderness. Add extra herbs or spices to boost the rice's flavor.
- Portions: Rice and beans were plentiful, but some wanted more steak or a larger tomato salad.
- Texture: A few found the steak tough; others suggested cutting it horizontally for better reheating.
Reviews from our home cooks
We're Filipino so we know Bistek- I was surprised how similar Dominican Bistec was despite the differences in ingredients! Absolutely delicious, and super filling with the rice & beans AND tomato salad
I was worried about the portion sizes to start but whoaaaa did I have plenty of left over rice and beans. The steak was to die for with that marinade.
Very tasty, generous portions. Everything was good but I added some Jollof Rice seasoning and the some of the extra vinegar to the rice and beans for extra flavor. The vinegar definitely helped the rice and beans.
Loved that this called to marinate the meat. I feel like this is an opportunity in a lot of other meals. It was so incredibly tender. I also loved the tomatoes with dressing. I would have loved an extra tomato per person....or maybe make it a salsa. I wanted more!
Too many competing flavors - salad tasted of nothing but cilantro because the hot house tomatoes had no flavor. Also the rice had so many things in it that half of it didn't cook - I had crunchy rice. Not sure if that was a recipe issue or a me issue. The steak and onions were the best part.
Large portions. The flavors came together so well. The rice was so flavorful. I ate the Maspanadas with it and they complimented each other so well.
Delicious flavors. Steak cut was veiny, had it been a different cut of meat it would have been 4 stars but very flavorful and worth it
Directions should have called for membrane to be removed from meat first then marinate for much longer. Great taste. Salad nice addition. Way TOO much rice and beans!
This was amazing!!! Rice was 10/10. Coming from a Dominican here :)
It all tasted great, but the meat to rice ratio was WAY off. Soooooo much rice (and tomato) with maybe 4 bites of steak
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