Sisig

Name: Sisig
Prep time: 1 h
Cook time: 2 h
Yield: 6 servings
Ingredients: 1 pig's head half, or 800 g pork jowl, ears and snout; or 1 kg pork belly, as the easier version; 3 litres water; 1 onion; 1 head garlic; 2 bay leaves; 1 tbsp peppercorns; 2 tbsp salt; 250 g chicken liver; 3 onions, finely chopped; 6 chillies, siling labuyo, chopped; 6 cloves garlic; 100 ml calamansi juice, or lime; 3 tbsp soy sauce; 2 tbsp vinegar; 1 tsp black pepper; 3 tbsp butter or margarine; 3 tbsp mayonnaise, in the modern style; 1 egg, cracked on at the table; chicharon, crushed; a cast iron sizzling plate; rice; and beer

Makes 6 servings

Units

Ingredients

Pork

1pig’s head half, or 800 g pork jowl, ears and snout
or 1 kg pork belly, as the easier version

To boil

3 litreswater
1onion
1 headgarlic
2bay leaves
1 tbsppeppercorns
2 tbspsalt

Liver

250 gchicken liver

The mix

3onions, finely chopped
6chillies, siling labuyo, chopped
6 clovesgarlic
100 mlcalamansi juice, or lime
3 tbspsoy sauce
2 tbspvinegar
1 tspblack pepper
3 tbspbutter or margarine

Optional

3 tbspmayonnaise, in the modern style
1egg, cracked on at the table
chicharon, crushed

To serve

a cast iron sizzling plate
rice
and beer

Directions

Boil it until the meat is tender enough to pull from the bone but not falling apart, because it still has to be grilled and chopped.
Skim the surface of the pot as it cooks. Lift it out and let it cool completely, then pick the meat, skin, ears and snout off the bone. Cool it fully before the next stage, which also makes it far easier to handle.
Grill the boiled pieces over charcoal until the skin is blistered, charred in patches and crisp at the edges. It takes 10 to 15 minutes and it should smell smoky. Grill the chicken livers at the same time until just cooked through. Do not overcook the livers, which go dry and chalky, and take them off while they are still pink inside.
Chop the pork and liver finely with a heavy knife, into pieces of about 5 mm. Chop it by hand rather than mincing it. Sisig should be a mixture of small distinct pieces with varied texture, and a mincer turns it to paste.
Mix the chopped pork and liver with the onion, garlic, chilli, calamansi, soy sauce, vinegar and pepper. Taste it and get the balance right: it should be sour first, then salty, then hot. The sourness is what the word sisig originally meant, so do not be shy with the calamansi.
Melt the butter on the plate and tip the mixture on. Press it down and let it sit for a minute so the underside crisps, then toss it. Let it catch and crisp on the plate rather than stirring constantly. Serve it immediately, still sizzling, carried to the table on a wooden board.
Crack a raw egg over it at the table if you want, and stir it through the hot mixture so it cooks. Anyone avoiding raw or lightly cooked egg should skip that, and the dish is complete without it.

Technique

Pork belly and jowl make a far easier version and are what most home cooks use.
Aling Lucing’s restaurant in Angeles City is regarded as the origin of the modern dish.
Angeles City holds a sisig festival.

Substitutions

Pork belly and jowl in place of a whole head.
Lime in place of calamansi, which is close.

Variations

Made with pork belly, which is much simpler.
With mayonnaise, in the Manila style.
Bangus sisig, made with milkfish.

History

Chopped, seasoned pig face and ears, grilled and served sizzling on a hot plate, often topped with a raw egg stirred in tableside, invented in its now-familiar chopped, sizzling form by Lucia Cunanan, a restaurateur in Pampanga, in the 1970s, who is credited with reworking an older, simpler dish of boiled and marinated pig parts into the grilled, chopped version now widely recognized. Its name comes from a Kapampangan word meaning to snack on something sour, referencing the calamansi lime and vinegar traditionally used to season the dish, giving it a bright, tangy edge against the rich, fatty pork. Sisig spread from its Pampanga origin into nationwide popularity across the Philippines, particularly as a popular beer-accompanying dish at bars and casual restaurants.

Frequently asked questions

What is Sisig?

Sisig is a main from Philippines: sizzling chopped pork face and chicken liver with calamansi and chili. Chopped, seasoned pig face and ears, grilled and served sizzling on a hot plate, often topped with a raw egg stirred in tableside, invented in its now-familiar chopped, sizzling form by Lucia Cunanan, a restaurateur in Pampanga, in the 1970s, who is credited with reworking an older, simpler dish of boiled and marinated pig parts into the grilled, chopped version now widely recognized. Its name comes from a Kapampangan word meaning to snack on something sour, referencing the calamansi lime and vinegar traditionally used to season the dish, giving it a bright, tangy edge against the rich, fatty pork. Sisig spread from its Pampanga origin into nationwide popularity across the Philippines, particularly as a popular beer-accompanying dish at bars and casual restaurants.

How long does Sisig take to make?

Sisig takes 1 hr of preparation and 2 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated hard to make.

What can I substitute in Sisig?

Yes, within limits. Pork belly and jowl in place of a whole head. Lime in place of calamansi, which is close.

What is the most important thing to get right in Sisig?

Grill the boiled pieces over charcoal until the skin is blistered, charred in patches and crisp at the edges. It takes 10 to 15 minutes and it should smell smoky. Grill the chicken livers at the same time until just cooked through. Do not overcook the livers, which go dry and chalky, and take them off while they are still pink inside.