A Filipino breakfast recipe veganized in the most delicious way! Vegan Tocino is a sweet, salty, and a sour type of breakfast dish that is made from vegetarian meat and all the delicious spices! It is perfect when eaten with steamed rice and a nice cup of hot coffee!
What is Tocino?
Tocino translated into English is bacon.
It’s called tocino because it’s marinated using cured pork meat which is the back of the pig. Filipino’s use that part of the meat because it has an equal amount of fats and meat.
Tocino has been a long-time breakfast favorite of most Filipinos because of its sweet and savory taste to it. In fact, it has become a staple in the Filipino breakfast table.
The sliced pork meat is usually cured using the pink salt, also known as the curing salt or prague powder. This powder is the ingredient to keep the microbes away from the meat while it is in the raw state.
A delicious Tocino has to be tender enough to chew and the flavors have to deeply seep in the meat. For this vegan version of the Tocino, I can say that it tastes awesome because the veggie meat lets a marinade seep through it while having a tender texture.
Tips on How to Make Vegan Tocino:
- To soak the tocino before frying, you can use coconut milk instead of water. Coconut milk gives a delicious flavor after frying the tocino.
- If you do not have coconut vinegar on hand, you can use calamansi juice of the same quantity as the coconut vinegar.
- If you love a richer breakfast, pair this Filipino Vegan Tocino with a delicious serving of garlic fried rice! It’s always a winner!
- Serve this Filipino Vegan Tocino with vegetables as side dishes like sliced fresh cucumbers, pickled radish, or steamed string beans.
- Make sure to soak the veggie meat in the marinade long enough to let the flavors seep in. At least 15 minutes would be good but 30 minutes to an hour would be great for all the flavors to marry.
How to Make Vegan Tocino:
These are the Vegan Tocino ingredients that you will need:
Marinade
- garlic, minced
- onion powder
- Allura red or Red Dye
- coconut vinegar
- soy sauce
- barbecue sauce
- brown sugar
- salt
Soaking Veggie Meat
- water
- veggie meat
For Cooking:
- oil
In a large bowl add water, dried veggie meat and soak for at least 15 minutes.
In another large bowl, add garlic, onion powder, Allura red, coconut vinegar, soy sauce, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, salt, and mix until well combined:
Once veggie meat is soft, drain the water and add to the veggie meat in the marinade and mix thoroughly until the veggie meat turns reddish. Allow it to marinate for about an hour:
Drain the liquid from the veggie meat:
In a frying pan over medium heat, preheat oil. Then add marinated veggie meat and cook/fry until the veggie meat turns dark reddish:
This Vegan Tocino is a tender, sweet and salty dish that is usually served at breakfast. You can add sliced fresh cucumbers as sides 🙂
Frequently Asked Questions for the Vegan Tocino Recipe:
Q: Why is Tocino red?
A: Tocino is usually red in color because of the food dye added to the marinade called Allura red.
Q. Where can I buy veggie meat?
A: At your local asian grocery market or on Amazon. This version is my favorite (affiliate link)
Q: How do you preserve Tocino?
A: After marinating, you can put it in the chiller or freeze it if you will keep it for a longer time.
Q: Can I use beetroot as a substitute to color the Tocino?
A: Yes you can. I have seen many using red beet powder to color their tocino.
Q: Did you use nitrates in this recipe of Vegan Tocino?
A: There were no nitrates used in this vegan version of Tocino. I used spices, sugar and salt to add flavor to the magic meat.
More delicious Filipino vegan recipes:
Perfect to pair with your Vegan Tocino:
PrintVegan Tocino
Vegan Tocino – a sweet, salty, and a bit sour type of breakfast dish that is made from magic meat and all the delicious spices!
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes
- Total Time: 2 minute
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Cuisine: Filipino
Ingredients
Marinade
- 5 cloves of garlic, minced
- 3 teaspoon onion powder
- 1/8 teaspoon allura red
- 1/2 cup coconut vinegar
- 3 teaspoon soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon barbecue sauce
- 1/2 cup of brown sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
Soaking Veggie Meat
- 3 cups water
- 100 grams of magic meat
For Cooking:
- 3 tablespoon of oil
Instructions
Marinating:
- In a large bowl add water, dried veggie meat and soak for at least 15 minutes.
- In another large bowl, add garlic, onion powder, allura red, coconut vinegar, soy sauce, barbecue sauce, brown sugar, salt, and mix until well combined.
Soaking Veggie Meat:
- Once veggie meat is soft, drain the water and add to the veggie meat in the marinade and mix thoroughly until the veggie meat turns reddish. Allow it to marinate for about an hour, then drain the liquid from the veggie meat.
Cooking:
- In a frying pan over medium heat, preheat oil.
- Then add marinated veggie meat and cook/fry until the veggie meat turns dark reddish.
- Best served with hot steamed rice.
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