Venison Bistec Encebollado

Bistec Encebollado is a classic Latin American and Caribbean dish featuring tender, thinly sliced beef simmered or pan-seared with a mountain of flavorful, savory onions. We make it with venison backstrap, so the classic translation of “beef steak with onions” might not fit exactly. Regardless, it just might be one of the tastiest venison dishes you have ever tried.

This Puerto Rican favorite is the perfect dish for your venison. Images by author

Start by slicing the backstrap into ¼ inch slices.

Slice the backstrap into 1/4 to 1/2 inch thick slices.

Place the backstrap pieces into a 1-gallon zip-top bag, a couple at a time.

Pound the cutlets flat.

Use a meat mallet to pound the backstrap down to about ⅛ of an inch. Season the flattened backstrap with salt and pepper.

Look for about 1/8 inch final thickness on your slices after pounding flat.

Place the pounded blackstrap in a large glass bowl. Slice the onions and add them to the bowl.

Slice yellow or white onions.

In a small food processor or mortar and pestle, add the garlic and oregano and pulse or grind into a paste. Add the vinegar and olive oil to the mix and whisk to emulsify.

Crush the garlic with the oregano to make the base for the marinade.

Pour the marinade over the onions and meat and gently turn everything to blend and coat with marinade. Cover tightly and refrigerate overnight or for 6-8 hours.

Pour the marinade over the onions and steak, blend, then cover and refrigerate 6 hours to overnight.

When you are ready to cook, add the beef tallow or lard to a large skillet over medium high heat. Gently separate the meat from the onions. Here’s a little tip when caramelizing onions: Microwave them first for 8-10 minutes. This bursts the cell walls, releasing moisture. It greatly shortens the time it takes to caramelize in a pan. Just take the meat out of the bowl, cover it, and pop it in the microwave while you cook the steak.

Sear the steak quickly on both sides in tallow or lard.

When the oil is hot enough to start to smoke, sear the thin slices for 30-60 seconds per side, getting good color on both sides. Don’t overcook, or the venison will be chewy. Do it in batches until all the venison is cooked. Plate the venison and cover with foil to rest. Reduce the heat to medium and pour in the microwaved onions. Cook, stirring frequently and scraping up any stuck on bits from the bottom of the pan. Cook until the onions are a deep caramel color and most of the moisture has evaporated.

After searing the steaks, caramelize the onions until they reach a rich mahogany color.

Return the steak to the pan. Pour in the beef stock and stir gently to blend.

Serve with rice and beans for traditional sides.

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