In Caribbean countries such as Puerto Rico and Cuba, tocino is made from pork fatback

Fatback

Fatback is a cut of meat from a domestic pig. It consists of the layer of adipose tissue under the skin of the back, with or without the skin...

 (not pork belly

Pork belly

Pork belly is a boneless cut of fatty meat derived from the belly of a pig. Pork belly is popular in Asian cuisine, and forms a part of many traditional European dishes such as the Alsatian Choucroute garnie, the Swiss Berner Platte, and the German Schlachtplatte...

) and neither cured nor smoked, but just fried until very crunchy and added to recipes, much like lardon

Lardon

Lardon is a small strip or cube of pork fat used in a wide variety of cuisines to flavor savory foods and salads. In French cuisine, lardons are also used for larding, by threading them with a needle into meats that are to be braised or roasted...

s in French cuisine

French cuisine

French cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from France that has developed from centuries of social change. In the Middle Ages, Guillaume Tirel , a court chef, authored Le Viandier, one of the earliest recipe collections of Medieval France...

.

Preparation in the Philippines

The meat is sliced into thin strips. Anise

Anise

Anise , Pimpinella anisum, also called aniseed, is a flowering plant in the family Apiaceae native to the eastern Mediterranean region and Southwest Asia. Its flavor resembles that of liquorice, fennel, and tarragon.- Biology :...

 wine, annatto

Annatto

Annatto, sometimes called roucou or achiote, is a derivative of the achiote trees of tropical regions of the Americas, used to produce a yellow to orange food coloring and also as a flavoring...

, water, salt, sugar, and saltpeter

Sodium nitrate

Sodium nitrate is the chemical compound with the formula NaNO3. This salt, also known as Chile saltpeter or Peru saltpeter to distinguish it from ordinary saltpeter, potassium nitrate, is a white solid which is very soluble in water...

 are combined in a container. Each strip is then sprinkled with the mixture and stacked in a separate container, which is covered and kept refrigerated for about three days to cure.

Tocino is traditionally boiled in water (just enough water to cover the meat) or fried in oil, or is cooked over medium heat until the fat is rendered. The original tocino is marinated only with salt, sugar, and saltpeter, although pineapple juice may be added for a slightly tart flavor. Kapampangans

Kapampangan people

The Kapampangans or Capampan͠gans are the sixth largest Filipino ethnolinguistic group, numbering about 2,890,000. The original Kapampangans may have descended from Austronesian-speaking immigrants to Luzon during the Iron Age.The province of Pampanga is traditional homeland of the Kapampangans...

 who make tocino mix it for 2 to 3 hours in order to achieve the thickness and softness of the meat, then leave it overnight at room temperature before serving it, a dish they call burong babi (fermented pork).

Tocino is often eaten with garlic rice

Rice

Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...

 and fried egg in a dish called "Tosilog" or "tocino, sinangag at itlog
."

Preparation in the Caribbean

Tocino is cut into small squares and fried until crunchy and added to recipes like mofongo

Mofongo

Mofongo is a fried plantain-based dish from Puerto Rico. There are also similar dishes, made by boiling and mashing plantains, known as fufu de plátano in Cuban cuisine and Mangú in the Dominican Republic.-Description:...

 and arroz blanco con tocino, "White rice and Tocino". In Cuba, it can be added to soft bread.

Tocino is also the Spanish translation for bacon, which is the American word for cured meat.

See also

• Cuisine of the Philippines
  Cuisine of the Philippines
  Philippine cuisine consists of the food, preparation methods and eating customs found in the Philippines. The style of cooking and the food associated with it have evolved over several centuries from its Austronesian origins to a mixed cuisine with many Hispanic, Chinese, American, and other Asian...
  
  
• Puerto Rican cuisine
• Longganisa
• Tapa
  Tapa (Filipino cuisine)
  Tapa is dried or cured beef, mutton or venison, although other meat or even fish may be used. Filipinos prepare thin slices of meat and cure it with salt and spices as a method of preserving it...
  
  

External links

• Pork Tocino Recipe- Collection of Free Filipino Food Recipes
• Tocino de Pancetta, Panciahttp://www.theepicentre.com/tip/baconandpancetta.html
• Panceta de Cerdo http://www.proz.com/kudoz/spanish_to_english/other/147819-panceta_de_cerdo.html
• Tocino Puerto Rico http://elainebiss.blogspot.com/2010/01/rice-recipe-i-love.html