Breakfast and Silogs

Silog, a portmanteau of sinangag (garlic fried rice) and itlog (egg, typically fried sunny-side up), is an entire genre of breakfast, although it can really be eaten all day. Almost any cured meat can be slotted into the format, from Tapa, jerky-like beef, and Tocino, somewhere between Western bacon and Chinese char siu, to Corned Beef and Homemade Spam—always matched with pickles and vegetable sides, to temper the richness: Salted Bitter Melon, Lacto-Fermented Green Mango, Atsara, crunchy cucumber, and juicy wedges of tomato. For a sweeter start, there’s Champorado, chocolate rice porridge—although this too is typically given a savory finish of crispy dried salted fish, shredded and scattered or laid whole on top, delicate bones, head, tail, and all.