Authentic Tocino Recipe Philippines, Asia

Thin slices of pork belly or pork shoulder, marinated for a few days in a mix of salt, sugar and a touch of salitre — that, in short, is tacino, a sweet, fall-apart tender, cured pork, typically served for breakfast with garlic rice and sunny-side-up eggs. The preparation starts with marinating the meat in the mixture of salt, sugar, and salitre, although most commonly recipes nowadays will opt for food coloring instead. The marinade can also include extra ingredients such as pineapple juice for tanginess, anise wine, annatto powder which is used as a healthier alternative to salitre, soy sauce, garlic, and even Sprite, or Pepsi. The meat is marinated anywhere from overnight to up to a week, and then traditionally first braised in water until the water evaporates, and then fried until the fat has rendered and the meat has caramelized. The alternative to this is that the meat can also be only fried in oil or only cooked.