What is Tapsilog?

Tapa is dried or cured beef or venison, although other meat or even fish may be used. The term tapa however, has mostly become associated more with this form of cured meat and tinapa filipinos prepare thin slices of meat and cure it with salt and spices as a method of preserving it. Tapa is best fried or grilled, often served with rice, fried egg and achara (pickled papaya strips). (literally "made into tapa") with smoked fish.

Tapsilog is the term used when tapa, garlic-fried rice ("sinangag"), and fried egg ("itlog") are combined into one meal, which is served primarily during breakfast. The word tapa is related to the Sanskrit term tapas which means "heat". In Tagalog, a restaurant that primarily serves tapa is called a tapahan, tapsihan or tapsilugan. According to some sources, "tapsilog" and "tapsihan" are slang words. However, these terms are used by those restaurants and many Filipinos of all social strata. Tapsilog and tapsihan, therefore, may be considered standard words in the Filipino language and not slang. The word tapsilog has spawned many other dishes, all having fried rice (or garlic fried rice) and fried egg in it and suffixed with silog.