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Pork Sisig Tacos

Pork Sisig Tacos are soft or hard taco shells filled with spicy bits of pork sisig, the popular Filipino appetizer or entrée. In its regular form, the sisig appetizer is cooked three times. You can opt to make the sisig filling ahead. First, the pork belly slab is boiled in a sweet broth, then oven-roasted to a crisp just like lechon (roast pork). Finally, the roast pork is chopped in bits, marinated with vinegar, onions and fiery siling labuyo (bird’s eye chilies) with calamansi or lemon juice and pan-fried. For this recipe, pork sisig makes a hearty, enticing filling to soft or hard taco shells then piled high with one’s favorite accompaniments. The pork sisig recipe was inspired by Chef Claude Tayag from the cookbook Kulinarya: A Guidebook to Philippine Cuisine.
*To slightly cut cooking time, I offer how to boil the pork in the Instant Pot in the procedure below.
Course: Appetizer, Dinner, Lunch, Main Course, Merienda, Side Dish, Snacks
Cuisine: American, Asian, Filipino, Mexican
Keyword: Pork Sisig Tacos Mexican Filipino
Servings: 4 people
Calories: 1153kcal
Author: Asian in America recipe.

Ingredients

For pork sisig

  • 1 pound pork belly a whole piece
  • 2 whole white or yellow onions chopped, divided, use 1 onion for boiling pork, rest for marinating
  • 6 cups water for boiling pork belly
  • 1 cup pineapple juice canned or fresh, for boiling pork
  • 1/2 Tablespoon salt
  • 1/2 Tablespoon whole black pepper corns
  • 2 Tablespoons calamansi or lemon juice fresh or frozen calamansi juice; or fresh lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup white vinegar
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 4 cloves garlic peeled, minced
  • 2 to 3 pieces siling labuyo (bird's eye chilies)
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil to pan fry pork sisig
  • 2 stalks scallion greens chopped, for garnish
  • 1 whole red onion sliced, for garnish
  • 1 whole lemon sliced, for garnish (or fresh calamansi if preferred)

For tacos and toppings:

  • 8 to 10 pieces taco shells soft or hard
  • 3 whole tomatoes chopped
  • 1 large red or green bell pepper seeded, white membrane removed, chopped
  • 2 large fresh, ripe mangoes peeled, pitted, sliced in 1/4-inch cubes
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 1 cup salsa mildly spicy
  • 2 to 3 cups shredded fresh lettuce
  • 2 cups grated cheddar cheese

Instructions

Step 1- To boil pork on the stove-top:

  • In a large stockpot place the entire pork belly slab. Pour the water and pineapple juice. Add the salt, peppercorns and onions. 
    Cover and cook pork over medium-high heat then after it boils, lower to a medium simmer. Cook pork for 55 to 60 minutes till tender.
    When pork is cooked, remove from the stockpot. Drain and discard liquid. Pat pork dry with paper towels.

Step 2 -To roast the pork belly:

  • Place the pre-boiled pork slab on a shallow baking pan or rimmed cookie sheet (with a height of 1 inch). Oven roast till top is crisp like lechon. 
    *Roasting time should be 30 minutes for every pound at a pre-heated oven of 350 F. Adjust according to weight and amount of pork you are using.
    When pork roast is done, remove from the oven and let it cool on the counter, uncovered for 1 to 2 hours.

Step 3 -To pan fry the pork sisig:

  • Using a cleaver or large, sharp knife, chop the slab of pork into tiny, small cubes till finely minced.
    Place the chopped pork in a medium-sized bowl. Marinate with calamansi (or lemon) juice, onions, vinegar, salt and black pepper. Add the chopped siling labuyo (bird's eye chilies). Let the pork absorb the seasonings for about 1 hour (or up to overnight, refrigerated).
  • In a large, cast-iron skillet, over medium-high heat, add the oil. When oil is hot enough after 2 minutes, add the pork belly bits. Stir fry the meat till it turns brown and is crisp, for about 3 minutes.
    Garnish with scallions, red onions, slices of lemon and more siling labuyo if desired. Serve this as a filling for the tacos. Or as an appetizer or main dish on its own.

Step 4-To assemble tacos:

  • Fill taco shells with pork sisig at the bottom. Leave enough room for toppings desired. Pile as many layers as possible. 

For Step 1: To boil pork in the Instant Pot

  • For the first step, to hasten cooking time to boil the pork, do it in the Instant Pot.
    Place the whole slab of a pound of pork belly in the inside pot. Pour the water and pineapple juice. Add the onions, salt and black peppercorns.
    Close and lock the lid of the Instant Pot. Set the steam release handle to a Sealing position.
    Click Manual and cook on High Pressure for 25 minutes.
    When buzzer sounds, do a Quick Release of the steam release handle. When the float pin drops, carefully unlock the lid. Press Cancel to turn off.
    Using a pair of tongs, or large slotted spoons remove the pork belly. Follow rest of procedure from Step 2 above.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 1153kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 29g | Fat: 105g | Saturated Fat: 52g | Cholesterol: 171mg | Sodium: 2094mg | Potassium: 987mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 14g | Vitamin A: 2435IU | Vitamin C: 28.8mg | Calcium: 548mg | Iron: 2.3mg