Another famous Filipino dish, tocino, or in this case, vegan tocino! One of the Philippines' best breakfast staples to choose from, next to tapa and logganisa. Always paired with garlic fried rice, fresh tomatoes, and spiced vinegar. A hearty but delicious breakfast treat.
What is tocino?
Tocino, a Spanish term for "bacon", and was introduced to the Philippines during the Spanish Colonization. However, it's not the kind of bacon you would normally expect. What makes Filipino tocino different from western bacon is its red hue and sweet marinade. Different regions in the Philippines are known for their specialty dishes, and Kapampangans are best known for their tocino, tapa, and logganisa!
Pampanga is the province that my dad is from, and before heading back to Manila, my dad would always make a stop at the stores to buy tons of these meats to take with us. Then we would eat our fill in tocino, tapa, and even logganisa. No other breakfast can top a Filipino breakfast, trust me, I would choose those over any American breakfasts. Before going vegan, I would eat this with salted egg and tomatoes. Don't ask me why, I just know that it paired well with the tocino. I don't do that now, however, I still eat it with tomatoes. It just freshens up the dish, as tocino can get so greasy and sticky. I've been missing my parents a lot, and making the food that I grew up with helps me feel a bit better. Especially knowing that I can make it vegan!
How does tocino get its red hue?
Now we know that tocino is a cured meat, but how does it get its red color? Well, it's caused by a type of food preservative called saltpeter or potassium nitrate. This helps the meat stay red as it cures for a long period. Also, this supposedly helps it to be more "appetizing". For this recipe, I used a bit of annatto powder for this, you can also use red food dye, but this is optional. I only did it because I wanted that classic tocino look!
Tips for making vegan Filipino tocino:
- Marinade for 1-2 days. By doing this, it will help develop the flavor a lot. And since soy meat doesn't exactly have a flavor, we want that flavor to come through!
- Use annatto powder for color. You can use a bit of annatto powder for that classic red hue, but I wouldn't add too much, as it affects the flavor. A little goes a long way! If you don't have annatto powder, you can use a bit of red food coloring.
- Save the marinade! To get that classic sticky glaze on the tocino, you will need to add a bit of the marinade as you cook!
- Eat it with garlic fried rice. If you want the full experience, you'll want to eat this with garlic fried rice. It's the pièce de résistance!
Marinade ingredients for vegan tocino:
- rice vinegar
- soy sauce
- pineapple juice
- brown sugar
- broth paste
- hot water
- garlic cloves
- salt and pepper
So, if you tried this recipe, let me know what you think in the comments below! You can also share it with me on Instagram, just tag @flouredframe. I would love to see your recreations! Happy cooking!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Filipino Tocino
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups soy meat fillets (or any soy meat you prefer )
- 3-4 cups hot water
- 3 tablespoons rice vinegar
- 2 tablespoon soy sauce
- 4 tablespoons pineapple juice
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon annatto powder (optional (see notes))
- ½ teaspoon Better than Bouillon vegetable broth paste
- 2 tablespoons hot water (to dissolve the vegetable broth)
- 2 garlic cloves (peeled and smashed)
- salt and pepper
- 3 tablespoons oil (for frying)
- Garlic fried rice
- Fresh sliced tomatoes
Instructions
- In a large bowl, rehydrate the soy meat in the hot water. Rehydrate as package directs, mine took 45 minutes.
- Meanwhile, add the rice vinegar, soy sauce, pineapple juice, brown sugar, vegetable broth paste, annatto powder, and hot water in a small mixing bowl. Mix to combine. Make sure that the broth paste has fully dissolved.
- To the marinade, add in the smashed garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper.
- When your soy meat is ready, drain and squeeze out any excess water from the soy meat.
- In a large airtight container, pour in the marinade, and add in the soy meat. Close the container and shake it up so that each piece of soy meat is covered in the marinade. Place it in the fridge to marinate for at least 1 hour, but for optimal flavor 1-2 days.
- When your tocino is ready, drain it from the marinade, but save the sauce! We will use it later.
- Heat the oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Add the tocino, along with 3-4 tablespoons of the marinade. Allow the tocino to cook on one side until it starts to caramelize and the sauce has thickened. Flip to cook the other side. It will look burnt, but it's just the sugar browning, that's normal.
- Once both sides have been cooked, and it's covered in a glaze, it's done. Serve with some garlic fried rice and some fresh tomatoes! Enjoy!
Notes
- Using annatto powder is optional, it's just to add to the color. You can also use a bit of red food coloring. However, you can omit this as it doesn't add too much flavor to the end product.
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