Tocino is a cured meat product native to the Philippines. It is usually made out of pork and is similar to ham and bacon although beef is also used. It is often reddish in color and has a sweetish taste. Its name is derived from the Spanish word tocino, which is used to describe bacon or cured meat
Pork Tocino is usually eaten during breakfast along with warm rice. Tocilog is a popular meal comprised of garlic rice, tocino, and fried egg. This meal can also be eaten during lunchtime.
One word of advice though, even how good cured meat tastes, moderate consumption is still recommended. Too much intake can still affect our health in the long run. It is best to have pork tocino at least once or twice per month. By the way, it tastes best when dipped in spicy vinegar.
Try this Pork Tocino Recipe and let me know what you think.
Pork Tocino Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 lbs pork ham
- 1/4 tsp Prague powder #1
- 1 tsp sodium phosphate
- 2 tbsp coarse salt
- 7-10 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp Anisado wine (or ground star anise and/or anisette)
- 1/2 tablet ascorbic acid (250 mg) (optional)
Cooking Procedure
- Slice the pork ham to about ¼ inch thickness
- Except for the meat, combine all ingredients in a container and mix well
- Apply the combined mixture to the meat by rubbing. Make sure that the mixture is evenly distributed across the meat
- Place the mixed ingredients in a covered container
- Store the covered container (with meat and mixture) in room temperature for 14 hours. It may also be refrigerated but would take at least 3.5 days to complete.
Number of servings (yield): 6
My rating
Welcome to Panlasang Pinoy! 
any idea where these ingredients can be bought?
hey, you can find those ingredients at grocery stores. its not hard to find, for sure u can find it at big supermarkets like robinsons or sm. its where i usually buy ing. for tocino…
phosphate can be found in supermarkets also?
I’ll have to try this recipe, it looks really good
pls write the common names of ingredients.
look good but the ingredients are hard to find……….
do chicken meat can be a replacement in pork? isnt the ingredients are the same? i cant cooked pork in my work(israel). but wat i hav learned from this cooking videos i cooked with my employer n she loved the taste (more on chicken recipes)!
Yes! chicken can be used, I perfer it cause of the fact it has less fat on the meat. Yummy!!!
i really want to try this, i am truly thankful sa inyo dahil d kau nagdadamot ishare ang knowledge nyo sa cooking.thank you.SAn nga pala video nito parekoy?
Hi Rowena, thank you sa pagsubaybay. Sana di ka magsawa. Ingat lagi!
i cant understand what is the ingredients
Kuya,sabi ng finnish husband ko,di daw healthy sa health natin ang pagsalin ng chemical powder sa food?totoo ba yun?though i love tocino so much!paki reply agad kuya.thanks.kaya ang hirap hanapin ang mga ingredients na ito dito sa finland.
actually hindi naman masama…. Lahat naman ng kinakain natin meronng chemical content, i think we just need to make sure na nakukuha lang natin ung tamang amount
ascorbic acid ay ginagamit pamalit sa dapat ay salitre na bad sa health, ascorbic acid serves as preservatives din as i remember.
Thanks for the info. Im going to try this recipe.
yeah, that’s what I learned…
I like this Tocina,, but I’m not familiar with the recipe…
pls write the common name of the ingredients and the ingredients are hard to find. is there any option about the ingredients to replace.
its not that hard to find. u can find it at grocery stores like sm or robinsons. you can ask for assistance if ever u dont know where to find those ingredients.
oh wait where u from? if ur fron philippines. then u can find it at the grocery stores mentioned.
how long will the finished product last?..will it last for several months if packed in bags?.is it possible to know the expiry date for this?
it true there is a lot of chemicals on this recipe nitrite is the bad one that’s why there is a lot of cancer in the united states than any where else in the world.
Hello Vanjo,
I make tocino at home but since I cook them right away I only use sugar & salt. Have you tried that without the other ingredients.
Just wondering
thanks,
Ailynne
you are right Ailyn, it’s better to use natural ingredients,much safer and better taste as well!
hello wanna help you in making tocino,, just use pineapple juice and a little salt plus sugar tpos ihalo lhat s meat then u just need to dissolve them evenly by ur hand,,using also food coloring ,,,red one,,that’s it,next tym give ko s inyo ang measurement ng ingredients,,kc my husband is making tocino as our business here in abroad
rochele, can you send me the measurement of the ingredients of your tocino? please, please i really need it because we don’t have the salitre or prague powder here in KSA. My family love tocino whether chicken or beef..that’s all we have here in KSA po…Thank you in advance fr your help. God Bless
ate rochele ask ko rin po ung exact measurements nung tocino recipe mo..maganda kasi puro natural ingredients lang.. favorite kasi to ng mga kids ko.. thanks!!!!
Is it really necessary to use Phosphate and prague when cooking tocino? Aren’t these engridients carcinogenic?
you may omit prague and phosphate when cooking tocino. I’ve tried it and the taste is still the same. if you are using too much of the ingredients it may be carcinogenic
Do I still need phosphate if I plan to cook it very soon (not preserving it for later).
Im not familiar with the ing, and i dont know where to buy it too. Your prog. helps me a lot cooking delicious food for my family and friends.Thank you so much.
hi, where can i buy meat processing seasonings, like, phosephate, vitamin c, etc. thank you
What’s the ascorbic acid for?
hi kuya ang hirap nmn yatang makuha yan sa switerland ang mga ingredeints mo.
more powers to panlasangpinoy.com more pilipino will surely proud of you.
gud day!balak k png e2 nlng epresnt q s product presnta2n.pwde p b 2 different meat ang ilagay s isng lalagyan?like chicken and fork or fork n beef.tnx
@ Panlasang Pinoy…ano pong purpose ng anisado wine?…tsaka ano pong effect if masobrahan ng gamit?
Yummy treat… We may omit the preservatives if we will be cooking the Tocino immediately.
hi,we use to make tocino but with out those chemicals , like other you can use what you have in you`r cover it`s healthy no chemical only natural, use sukang paombong datu puti ,brown sugar ,red food color, salt iodize , and try ……
PP – We love tocino and I want to try this recipe this weekend but I want to confirm: to qualify meat as “ham” it has to be cured so is this “pork ham” you speak of just the garden variety cured ham that you buy typically in the silver or gold package at the grocers? Or is this something different? I’m heading to WalMart. Can I pick any of these ingredients up at that store?
Pen, this is different from the cured garden variety hams in the deli shops. You will not find the ingredients at Walmart. I usually buy them online.
Oh dear, I was afraid of that…can you steer me in the right direction? What site do you buy this from? Can I pick something up like this from a butcher shop? Would they know what I am talking about? Thanks again!
thanx 4 sharing your talent in cooking….
i learned so much….
can i share a homemade tocino recipe n they used to sell this…
it’s a recipe of a very popular BBQ shop in the ’70s
for every kilo of meat sorry i’m now a muslim convert…
4 tbsp sugar and 1 tbsp salt…. so its 1:4
u can adjust later accdg 2 ur taste…..
this is my first time to make tocino and chorizo for my 1-yr and 3 -yr old grandchildren because they love to eat these food. I want to be sure that what they eat are clean and healthy food. Can i do away with prague powder, phosphate and instead use unsweetened pineapple juice? THAnks.
G’day ( maayong adlaw – Visayan ), I am an Australian living here in Oz who is happily married to a Filipino who is currently in Bukidnon ( Mindanao ). I have been to visit my wife in the PHP’s several times and do enjoy much of the cuisine there especially pork tocino. My inquiry is related to obtaining some of these ingredients here in Oz. Can you help me by recommending any Asian suppliers here where I may be able to buy these ‘ uncommon ‘ ingredient’s – they are hard to come by. Some can be substituted but I would prefer to keep as close as possible to the traditional pork tocino recipe and maintain authenticity respectfully. Yours sincerely – Dave.
thank a lot.we have an idea in cooking it..but its hard to find the ingredients
Prague powder is sodium nitrate, as I saw it on You Tube. Pero Prague powder is carcinogenic. any green ?substitite
hi,my kids love tocino,ayaw kong gumamit ng preservative kasi almost everyday thry eat tocino for breakfast of baon,please send me a recipe of tocino ang longganisa without preservative.thanks more power.
HELLO IM GABRELLE AND IM IN THE US I WANNA TRY TO COOK TOCINO BUT I DONT KNOW WHAT IS Phosphate, Anise Wine ,Prague Powder I REALLY HAVE PROBLEM ABOUT THE Phosphate I RESEARCH IT GOOGLE BUT THEY DIDNT GIVE ME THE RIGHT ANSWER PLEASE HELP ME THANK YOU
Got mine from amazon.com. Can’t seem to find it locally.
I found some of the ingredients at the chemist shop (drugstore).