Filipino Beef Tapa Recipe (Sweet, Savory & Garlicky Beef)
Thinly sliced beef marinated in soy sauce, calamansi, garlic, vinegar, and brown sugar, then pan-fried until beautifully seared. Perfect with garlic rice and eggs.
Ingredients
- 400 g thinly sliced beef
- 3 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 1 tbsp calamansi juice
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 5 cloves garlic minced
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together the soy sauce, calamansi juice, vinegar, salt, garlic, and brown sugar to make the marinade.
- In a bowl, combine the thinly sliced beef and marinade. Massage the marinade into the beef, then cover and let it chill for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
- Before frying the beef, make sure to give it another quick mix to evenly redistribute the marinade.
- Put a pan over medium-high heat, then pour in about 2-3 tbsp of oil. Once the oil is hot, you can start frying the tapa.
- You’ll notice the liquid starting to release from the beef and bubble up - don’t touch it! Let it cook until the liquid has evaporated, then start flipping the beef once it begins to caramelize (which is called the Maillard reaction *refer above*).
- Serve with a plate of garlic rice and a sunny-side-up egg. Enjoy your delicious, hearty breakfast!
I used to put all my ingredients straight into the bowl with the beef, but I realized it made it really hard to adjust the flavours. So now, I make it a habit to mix the marinade in a small bowl first, give it a taste, and adjust if needed.
This will help the beef absorb the marinade more evenly before frying, giving it even more flavour!
Try to move the beef around the pan occasionally. Sometimes the heat isn’t distributed evenly, so some pieces may cook faster than others.
I like my tapa with a good sear on the outside, so I tend to flip it repeatedly. You can stop once it has developed a nice caramelization on the outside. It really just depends on your preference!