Meaty vegan sisig is the perfect plant-based way to enjoy the spicy and sour flavors of this Filipino comfort food.
Filled with healthy ingredients and packing the same punch of flavors as the usual recipe, you can't go wrong with this dish!
Sisig is a popular comfort food in the Philippines, often consumed with a hefty helping of beer. Renowned chef Anthony Bourdain famously mentioned that if there was a Filipino dish that had the greatest chance of going mainstream, it would be sisig.
It's typically made with a lot of meat. Specifically parts of a pig that are typically thrown away (think their ears, snouts, cheeks). While it's admirable that this dish reduces food waste by using oft disposed of parts of an animal, what about those of us who don't want to eat any animal products?
Thankfully, with the magic of substitutions, we have a cruelty-free way of enjoying the meaty texture and distinct flavors of sisig!
Ingredients Highlights
- Soy Curls: One of the meat subsitutions we'll be using for this dish are soy curls. These are high-protein whole-food plant-based product that come out with a meaty texture once hydrated.
- Cremini Mushrooms: This is the other meat subsitution we'll be using. Cremini mushrooms have this savory and earthy flavor that makes them a tasty and healthy way to veganize this recipe.
- Red onion and bell pepper: While the original version of this dish is heavy on meat, it still contains some veggies! The red onion and bell pepper add some nice texture, while being a healthy addition to this dish.
- Calamansi juice: Sisig contains a sour flavor profile, and what better way to incorporate that than with calamansi. This is a sour citrus fruit that's native to the Philippines. You might have a hard time finding the actual calamansi fruit in most of North America. This is because it needs a warm climate to grow. So I recommend trying to get calamansi juice for preparing this dish. If you still can't find that at your local asian grocery, lemon juice makes for a good substitution.
- Thai chilies and white vinegar: These add the other main flavor profile to this dish which is spicy. Be careful when you handle those thai chilies! Like other hot peppers, you'll get a painful burning sensation for a while if you touch a part of your body after touching one of those. Wash your hands properly with soap after handling.
How to Make Meaty Vegan Sisig
One advantage of making vegan sisig is it comes together so easily compared to its meat-heavy counterpart. Usually you'd have to spend 30 minutes to 1 hour prepping and boiling the meat ingredients. But here we skip all that and replace it with the much simpler prep of the soy curls.
First, hydrate 100g of soy curls by placing them in a bowl and submerging completely in warm water. Let soak for 10 minutes. Then drain the water using a colander and squeeze out and excess water from the soy curls using your hands.
Chop the soy curls into smaller pieces to make them easier to eat.
Then combine the soy curls, 300g of chopped cremini mushrooms, 1 diced red bell pepper, 3 seeded thai chilies, and 3 bay leaves into a bowl. Be careful when handling the thai chilies! If you touch them and touch your skin afterwards without washing your hands thoroughly, it'll leave this painful stinging sensation. I learned this the hard way.
Add 3 tablespoon of soy sauce, 2 tablespoon of vegan oyster sauce (if available), 1 tablespoon of calamansi (or lemon) juice, and 1 tablespoon of white vinegar into the bowl. If you can't find vegan oyster sauce, just substitute it with more of the soy sauce. Mix everything in the bowl until well-combined.
Now heat a skillet over medium-high heat. You can use a cast-iron skillet here instead for fun. Once hot, add 1 tablespoon of canola oil (or another neutral oil) and sauté 1 diced red onion for around 2 minutes.
Add the mixture you've prepared into the pot (including any sauces that pooled at the bottom of the bowl). Add 2 tablespoon of vegan mayo at this point if you want some added creaminess. Cook for 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Remove the pot from the heat, let cool for at least 5 minutes, and...tada! You have your meaty vegan sisig. Enjoy this with a serving of hot rice and/or a cold beer.
Tips
- Some of the ingredients like vegan oyster sauce, vegan mayo, and calamansi juice may not be readily available depending on where you live. But don't let that deter you from making this dish! You can use substitutions, leave them out, or make your own version of the ingredients with recipes you find online.
Meaty Vegan Sisig
Equipment
- skillet (can be cast-iron) (can also use a frying pan or a regular cooking pot)
- large bowl
Ingredients
- 100 g soy curls dry
- 300 g cremini mushrooms chopped
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 3 thai chilies seeded
- 3 pieces bay leaves
- 3 tablespoon soy sauce preferably low-sodium
- 2 tablespoon vegan oyster sauce optional
- 1 tablespoon calamansi juice or lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon white vinegar
- 1 tablespoon canola oil or other neutral cooking oil
- 1 red onion diced
- 2 tablespoon vegan mayo optional
Instructions
- Hydrate the soy curls by placing them in a bowl and soaking with water for at least 10 minutes.
- Drain water from the soy curls using a colander and squeeze out any excess water using your hands.
- Chop the soy curls into smaller pieces.
- Combine soy curls, mushrooms, red bell pepper, thai chilies, and bay leaves into a bowl.
- Add the soy sauce, vegan oyster sauce, calamansi (or lemon) juice, and white vinegar into the bowl. Toss until well-combined.
- Heat a cooking pot over medium-high heat.
- Once hot, add oil and sauté onions for 2 minutes.
- Add mixture into the pot (including any sauces that pooled at the bottom of the bowl). Add vegan mayo as well if using. Heat for about 7 minutes while stirring occasionally.
- Remove from heat and let cool for at least 5 minutes. Enjoy!
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