Filipinos love Tapsilog ! They would go to restaurants and if they cant make up their mind of what to Worder, the go to meal is Tapsilog. Some even travel to Don Galo, Parañaque, south of Manila just to taste the best Tapsilog in town. The word Tapsilog is an acronym that stands for Tapa Sinangag at Itlog. These are the three components of the meal. Tapa refers to beef tapa. This are fried marinated beef slices.
Sinangag, on the other hand, is a word used to refer to garlic fried rice. The last three letters of the word tapsilog is derived from the filipino translation for egg, which is itlog. A piece of egg is fried and forms part of the meal.
Since Tapsilog is composed of three components, each has to be prepared and cooked individually.
The beef needs to be marinated in a mixture of crushed garlic, pineapple juice, Knorr Liquid Seasoning, sugar, and pepper. The marinade provides flavor to the meat when absorbed completely. It is best to marinate overnight or longer for best results.
Cooking beef tapa involves two methods for this recipe. The first method is boiling. Beef is boiled in its marinade with the addition of water in order to make it tender. Cooking oil is added in the process. Once the liquid completely evaporates, the beef gets fried in the remaining oil. Frying using the remaining oil completes the beef tapa.
How to prepare Tapsilog :
Prepare the tapa by placing the beef in a large bowl. Combine with all the tapa marinade ingredients. Mix well and cover the bowl. Place inside the fridge and marinate overnight.
Cook the garlic fried rice (sinangag na kanin) by heating 3 tablespoons cooking oil in a pan. Add crushed garlic. Cook until garlic turns light brown. Add the leftover rice. Stir-fry for 3 minutes.
Season with salt. Continue to stir-fry for 3 to 5 minutes. Set aside.
Start to cook the tapa. Heat a pan and pour the marinated beef into it, including the marinade. Add ¾ cups water. Let the mixture boil. Cover the pan and continue to cook until the liquid reduces to half. Add 3 tablespoons cooking oil into the mixture. Continue to cook until the liquid completely evaporates. Fry the beef tapa in remaining oil until medium brown. Set aside.
Fry the egg by pouring 1 tablespoon oil on a pan. Crack a piece of egg and sprinkle enough salt on top. Cook for 30 seconds. Pour 2 tablespoons water on the side of the pan. Cover and let the water boil. Continue to cook until the egg yolks gets completely cooked by the steam.
Arrange the beef tapa, sinangag, and fried egg on a large plate to form Tapsilog. Serve with vinegar as dipping sauce for tapa.
