Tapsilog (Filipino Beef Tapa Breakfast Plate)

About This Recipe

Tapsilog is a portmanteau of its three components — tapa (cured beef), sinangag (garlic fried rice) and itlog (egg) — a combination so beloved that similar 'silog' meals with different proteins have become a whole genre of Filipino breakfast. The beef is marinated for hours in soy sauce, garlic, sugar and a bit of vinegar, a mixture that both flavors and slightly cures the meat, before being pan-fried until the edges caramelize. Served alongside rice fried with plenty of garlic until fragrant and a fried egg with a still-runny yolk, tapsilog exemplifies the Filipino breakfast tradition of pairing savory, substantial proteins with rice rather than sweeter Western breakfast foods.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 500 gbeef sirloin(thinly sliced)
• 1/3 cupsoy sauce(for marinade)
• 3 clovesgarlic(minced, for marinade)
• 2 tbspsugar(for marinade)
• 1 tbspvinegar(for marinade)
• 1/2 tspblack pepper(for marinade)
• 3 tbspvegetable oil(divided)
• 6 clovesgarlic(minced, for fried rice)
• 4 cupscooked white rice(day-old)
• 1 tspsalt(for fried rice)
• 4eggs(for serving)

Instructions

1. 1

   Marinate the beef

   Toss beef strips with soy sauce, garlic, sugar, vinegar and pepper; marinate at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.

2. 2

   Cook the beef

   Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a skillet and cook the marinated beef strips until caramelized at the edges and cooked through, about 6-8 minutes.

3. 3

   Make the garlic rice

   Heat remaining oil in a separate pan and fry the minced garlic until golden and crisp, then add the day-old rice, tossing to coat and heat through, about 5 minutes.

   Fry the garlic until deeply golden but not burnt — this is the whole point of sinangag, so take your time and watch it closely.

4. 4

   Season the rice

   Season the fried rice with salt.

5. 5

   Fry the eggs

   Fry the eggs sunny-side up, keeping the yolks runny.

6. 6

   Serve

   Plate the beef, garlic rice and a fried egg together on each plate.

Variations

• •

  Tocino (sweet cured pork) or longganisa (Filipino sausage) can replace the beef for tocilog or longsilog, other popular 'silog' variations.

• •

  A spicier version adds a bit of chopped chile to the marinade.

• •

  Serving with a side of pickled papaya (atchara) is a traditional accompaniment.

Storage

Refrigerate cooked beef and rice separately up to 3 days; reheat each separately and fry a fresh egg to serve, since fried eggs don't reheat well.

Frequently Asked Questions