Crisp garlic fried rice studded with day-old rice and seared pork, finished with calamansi and scallions.
Sinangag is the garlic fried rice that shows up on almost every Filipino breakfast table, usually next to a fried egg and cured meat, but it works just as well as a fast weeknight dinner when you add pork. The trick is using rice that has sat in the fridge overnight so the grains have dried out slightly; fresh rice turns gummy the moment it hits hot oil, while day-old rice fries into separate, golden grains that soak up garlic without clumping. Here seared pork shoulder joins the garlic rice, giving it enough protein and richness to serve as a full dinner rather than a side. The pan needs to stay hot and the garlic needs to be fried until deep gold, almost but not quite burnt, because that toasted garlic flavor is what makes sinangag recognizable. A finish of calamansi or lime juice and sliced scallions cuts through the richness right before serving. This version keeps the technique Filipino home cooks actually use, garlic oil built first, protein seared hard, rice added last and tossed constantly, rather than treating it as a generic stir-fry.
Serves 4
Heat 2 tbsp oil in a wok over high heat. Sear pork shoulder slices until browned and cooked through, about 5 minutes. Remove and set aside.
Don't crowd the pan or the pork will steam instead of brown.
Add remaining oil to the wok and fry garlic over medium heat, stirring constantly, until deep golden, about 2 minutes. Remove half the garlic for garnish.
Raise heat to high, add cold rice, and break up clumps with a spatula. Toss constantly for 4-5 minutes until every grain is coated in garlic oil and lightly crisped.
Add soy sauce, fish sauce, black pepper and salt. Return the pork to the wok and toss until evenly distributed and heated through, about 2 minutes.
Off heat, stir in scallions and calamansi juice. Top with the reserved fried garlic and serve immediately while the rice is still crackling.
Use rice refrigerated overnight in an uncovered container; fresh warm rice will clump no matter how hot the pan is.
Fry the garlic in two batches so you always have crisp golden bits for the final garnish, not just cooked-into-the-rice garlic.
A carbon-steel wok over the highest burner setting gives the best char; nonstick pans won't get hot enough for proper frying.
Swap pork for leftover fried chicken (tocino-style) or diced Spam for a classic silog-plate approach.
Add a fried egg on top and call it tapsilog-style for breakfast-for-dinner.
Vegetarian version: use fried tofu cubes and add a spoon of toasted sesame oil for richness.
Refrigerate in an airtight container up to 3 days. Reheat in a hot wok or skillet with a teaspoon of oil to re-crisp; microwaving will make it soggy.
Sinangag developed as a practical way to use leftover rice in Filipino households, and it became a breakfast staple served alongside cured meats like tocino and longganisa. Adding a main protein like pork turns the same technique into a standalone dinner, a common adaptation in home kitchens.
You can, but spread it on a tray and refrigerate uncovered for at least an hour first to dry out the surface, otherwise it will clump and turn mushy in the wok.
Lime juice is the closest substitute and widely used outside the Philippines; a mix of lime and a tiny pinch of orange zest gets even closer to calamansi's flavor.
You likely added too much oil at once or didn't get the wok hot enough before adding rice, so the grains absorbed oil instead of frying quickly.
Per serving (340g / 12.0 oz) · 4 servings total
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