Growing up in the Philippines, I would have garlic rice or ‘sinangag’, as we call it, with ‘ulam’ or viand for breakfast. This usually pairs well with some fried or scrambled egg, that was one of my staples growing up. Tapsilog is a very famous Filipino dish. Tapa (‘tap’), usually cured meat, is served with sinangag (‘si’) or garlic rice and an egg (‘itlog’ = log).
This is a Vegan Mushroom Tapsilog made with oyster mushrooms cooked down in a savoury, sweet, and tangy sauce, that’s also easily adjustable depending on your taste!
WHAT IS “TAPA” & “TAPSILOG”?
Tapa is cured meat in Filipino cuisine. Beef is traditionally used to cook tapa. Tapsilog is bascically tapa (‘tap’) is served with sinangag (‘si’) or fried garlic rice and an egg (‘itlog’ = log). There is also Tocilog–that’s tocino (‘to’) and the rest being sinangag (‘si’) or fried garlic rice and an egg (‘itlog’ = log).
MUSHROOMS FOR THIS RECIPE
I love oyster mushrooms for their texture! These are also the mushrooms I used for my tocino recipe.
MARINADE
- sugar adjust according to desired sweetness
- soy sauce adjust to taste
- dark soy sauce optional for colour
- calamansi juice or lemon juice, adjust to desired acidity
- garlic, minced
- Dash of black pepper
Full recipe is below!
While the mushrooms marinate, you can cook the rest of the other parts of Tapsilog–such as the sinangang (fried garlic rice) and the “egg” (itlog, “log”).
You can get my sinangag or fried garlic rice recipe here.
COOKING THE MUSHROOM TAPA
I basically used the same pan to cook down the mushroom tapa.
In the same pan over medium high heat, place the mushrooms and the remaining liquid. Cook over medium heat for 10-12 minutes until the liquid has been absorbed or has evaporated and mushrooms are cooked.
ASSEMBLING YOUR BOWLS TO MAKE SOME TAPSILOG!
ENJOY WITH: SLICED TOMATOES AND VINEGAR
For the vinegar, I simply mixed some chopped red onions and a bit of sugar (to balance out acidity) with my cane vinegar.
OTHER FILIPINO RECIPES YOU MIGHT LOVE:
- Adobo
- Tokwa’t Baboy
- Filipino Kaldereta or ‘Meat’ Stew
- Mushroom Tocino
- Filipino Fried Garlic Rice
- Filipino Lumpiang Gulay or Fried Vegetable Spring Rolls
- Filipino “Pork” Barbecue
- Crispy Tofu Sisig
- Tofu and Mushroom Salpicao
Vegan Mushroom Tapsilog (Filipino Mushroom Tapa)
Ingredients
Mushroom Tapa (“Tap”)
- 1/2 lb fresh oyster mushrooms , see notes
Mushroom Marinade
- 2-3 tbsp sugar adjust according to desired sweetness
- 1-3 tbsp soy sauce adjust to taste (see notes)
- 1.5 tsp dark soy sauce optional for colour
- 2-3 tbsp calamansi juice or lemon juice, adjust to desired acidity
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- Dash of black pepper
Sinangang or Fried Garlic Rice (“Si”)
- You can get my fried garlic rice recipe here
Tofu Scramble (“Log”)
- 9 oz extra firm tofu (tokwa) pressed and drained
- 1 tbsp neutral oil
- 1 tbsp onion diced
- 1 1/2 tsp nutritional yeast optional
- 1/2 tsp black salt or sub for regular (adjust to taste)
- 1/2 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp cumin powder
- Dash of black pepper
- Sprinkle of liquid aminos or soy sauce to taste
To Serve
- Cane vinegar or distilled vinegar with chopped red onions and sugar, to taste
- Rice or Fried Garlic Rice , sinangag or fried garlic rice recipe here
- Chopped fresh tomatoes
- Tofu scramble
Instructions
- Marinate the mushrooms: In a bowl, mix the marinade ingredients together until the sugar is diluted in the liquid. Add in the mushrooms and mix until well coated in the marinade. You can leave this to marinate for 10-15 minutes or even overnight (make sure to refrigerate it!).
- While the mushrooms are marinating, heat a large pan over medium high heat. Add in some oil. At this point, you can cook the sinangag or garlic fried rice first. Afterwards, you can then cook the tofu scramble.
- To cook the tofu scramble: Sauté the onions in the pan with some oil until tender. Add in tofu and crumble using a fork. Mix in the spices and coat the tofu. Season with some liquid aminos or soy sauce. Sauté for 3-5 minutes until cooked. Set aside so you can use the same pan for the tapa.
- To cook the mushroom tapa: In the same pan over medium high heat, place the mushrooms and the remaining liquid. Cook over medium heat for 10-12 minutes until the liquid has been absorbed or has evaporated and mushrooms are cooked.
- To serve: You can slice some tomatoes. Serve your tapa with the fried garlic rice, tofu scramble, and tomatoes (if using) You can also just have your mushroom tapa with plain rice!For the vinegar, I simply mixed some chopped red onions and a bit of sugar (to balance out acidity) with my cane vinegar.
Notes
SOY SAUCE
- Filipino Tapa is traditionally made by curing beef with salt and letting it dry (like beef jerky) so it’s traditionally salty.
- I used 3 tbsp soy sauce to start for mine because I like mine salty enjoyed with the vinegar for dipping, and rice.
- If you want to eat this as-is without rice or have it mixed in with wraps or even salads, I recommend to start with 1.5 tbsp soy sauce first for the marinade. Then you can taste it after cooking and once the mushrooms have absorbed the flavours to see how you like it.
- You can always season the mushrooms with more soy sauce if needed.
OYSTER MUSHROOMS & OTHER SUB
- I find that oyster mushrooms have the best texture for this recipe. If you don’t have access to fresh oyster mushrooms, feel free to use other mushrooms of choice.
- If using other mushrooms, you can slice or break them apart into smaller pieces.
NUTRITIONAL INFO
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This Post Has 4 Comments
This was absolutely delicious! I’m putting it into my dinner meal rotation.
Glad you liked it! Thank you Adrienne 🙂
Loved this! The mushrooms were so good and it was easy to make.
Thank you Kara! ◡̈