Pork Tocino Recipe

How To Cook Pork Tocino Recipe

Pork Tocino Recipe - Tocino is bacon in Spanish, typically made from the pork belly, which is also popular in the Philippines. In Caribbean countries, such as Puerto Rico and Cuba, tocino is made from pork fatback (equivalent to slab bacon cut) and neither cured nor smoked, but just fried until very crunchy and added to recipes, much like lardons in French cuisine Pork Tocino or simply tocino is a cured meat product native to the Philippines. It is made from pork and the preparation is quite similar to ham and bacon although beef and chicken can sometimes be used as alternatives. It is often reddish in color and has a sweet and savory taste. Pork Tocino was said to be named after the Spanish word “tocino”, which is used to describe cured meats.

Pork Tocino is usually eaten during breakfast along with warm rice. Tosilog is a popular meal comprised of garlic rice (or sinangag), fried pork tocino, and a piece of fried sunny side up egg. Pork tocino has been a famous Filipino “anytime” food because it is available almost in every grocery stores and can be consumed anytime of the day.
Pork Tocino got its reddish color artificially. A red food coloring is needed to make your own homemade tocino to make it look more appetizing. Of course, the food coloring is just optional because it does not affect the taste of the meat. I usually cure my tocino in the fridge for at least 3 days for best results. I also freeze my cured tocino for a week before cooking. I am not recommending you guys to do the same because 24 is just enough for curing — I think that I just want my homemade pork tocino to get cured longer.
One word of advice though, even how good cured meat tastes, moderate consumption is still recommended. Too much intake can still affect our health in the long run. It is best to have pork tocino at least once or twice per month. By the way, it tastes best when dipped in spicy vinegar.

Pork Tocino Recipe Ingredients:

• 4 Kilos of pork round or shoulder butt (pigue or kasim)
• 4 teaspoons of sodium phosphate
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup rock salt
• 2 teaspoons of curing salt
• 3 cups sugar
• 1/4 cup crushed garlic
• 1/2 cup anisado wine
• 1 cup pineapple juice
• red food color, optional
• 2 tablets ascorbic acid, crushed

Cooking Procedure:

1. Slice the pork across the grain, 1/4 inch thick pieces. Set aside in therefrigerator
2. Dissolve phosphate in water.
3. In a non-reactive bowl, combine rock salt, curing salt and phosphate solution. Mix well. Add sliced pork and toss to coat meat completely.
4. Add the remaining six ingredients and mix until well blended.
5. Cure at room temperature for 8 to 10 hours or in the refrigerator for 1-2 days
6. Pack in a polyethylene bags. Freeze until needed.

Additional Information About Pork Tocino

Philippines - The meat is sliced into thin strips, and Anise wine, annatto, water, sugar, and salt are combined in a container. Each strip is then sprinkled with the mixture and stacked in a separate container, which is covered and kept refrigerated for about three days to cure.

Tocino is traditionally boiled in water (just enough water to cover the meat) or fried in oil, or is cooked over medium heat until the fat is rendered. The original tocino is marinated only with salt, sugar, and salitre (saltpetre), although pineapple juice may be added for a slightly tart flavor. Kapampangans who make tocino mix it for four to six hours in order to achieve thickness and softness of the meat, then leave it overnight at room temperature before serving it as burong babi (ermented pork
Tocino is often served as the popular breakfast or lunchtime combination Tosilog, whose name is a portmanteau of tocino, sinangag (garlic rice) and itlog egg, which is cooked either sunny-side up or scrambled

Source Recipe: Pork Tocino

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Learn How To Cook Pork Tocino Recipe