TapSiRog!

There exists in our country a cult following for the type of dish called Tapsilog.  The name is derived from the combined syllables of the food found in a "plated" set:  TAP (Tapa-cured meat which tastes like somethng between ham and beef jerky)+ SI (Sinangag or garlic fried rice)+ LOG (Itlog-egg done to your liking)= TapSiLog.  I put the word plated in quotation marks because plating conjures up architectural pieces of edible art sitting quite smugly on fine, bone china.  Nope--this kind of food is definitely not that kind of thing.  It is (for the most part, unless you're having it in a 5-star hotel) cheap, quick and depending where you have it, can be very, very good.  

Sometimes, the meat component in this dish can come in overly sweetened concoctions one might mistake for dessert.  Though some people like it just like that, I don't.  I like it when I can nearly not tell where the salty ends and where the sweet begins.  I enjoy that kind of balance when flavors meld with each other that it is difficult to isolate each taste. That for me is what culinary nirvana looks or rather, tastes like--a perfect balance in the harmony of voices of flavors and aroma that you can hear it sing Handel's Hallelujah, a true multi-sensorial and out of the body experience in the same breath. 

Today's lunch is Tapsilog rendered in a Japanese way, hence Tapsirog--my version of a maximalist lunch with a minimalist budget.  My boy doesn't particularly like Tapsilog so I deviced a way to make him eat it.  I made my own tapa using ribeye sukiyaki cut (yes you know me, I'm crazy but you can use regular thinly sliced meat of your choice) which I seasoned with some Japanese Soy and a bit of honey, no preservatives of course.  For the sinangag portion, I toasted some Furikake and rice together and shaped them using triangle nigiri shapers which you can buy in Saizen.  For the itlog part, I made Japanese omelet without the mirin.   :-)

Today's Lunch Box:  Homemade Beef Tapa, Tamagoyaki with no Mirin, Fried Rice with toasted Furikake

Tapsirog Banzai!  :-)