This recipe, inspired by Kanin Club’s sinangag na sinigang, deconstructs the sour stew and transforms it into a lively fried rice. You’ll find the usual sinigang ingredients here: thinly sliced pork belly, tomatoes, kangkong, sitaw. Instant sinigang mix ties everything together. We find that Maggi’s provides just the right level of sourness—bright and puckery, but not face-scrunchingly sour.
Like Kanin Club, you can add texture to your fried rice with crispy battered vegetables. We stick to kangkong and okra, but you can experiment with other veggies of choice, like eggplant. Just be sure to make the batter right before frying—letting it sit too long activates the gluten, making the coating heavier and less crisp.
For the best results, use day-old rice, which has a firmer texture and won’t clump when stir-fried. If you only have freshly cooked rice, cook it with slightly less water than usual to keep it from turning mushy.
Not into pork? Swap it for shrimp and turn this into a seafood sinigang fried rice!
Ingredients
Fried Rice
- 3 tbsp oil
- 1 cup pork belly, sliced
- 4–5 tomatoes, sliced
- ¼–⅓ cup red onion, diced
- ½–1 tbsp tomato paste, optional
- 2 green chilies, sliced
- 3 ½ cups day-old cooked rice
- 1 pack Maggi instant sinigang mix
- 1 cup kangkong stem and leaves, chopped
- ⅓ cup sitaw, chopped
- fish sauce, to taste
Crispy Vegetables (Optional)
- ½ cup cold water
- 2 ½ tbsp flour
- 2 ½ tbsp cornstarch
- ½ tsp baking powder
- pinch of salt
- kangkong leaves
- sliced okra, optional
- neutral oil, for frying
Cook pork: Heat oil in a wok over medium-high heat. Add pork belly and cook, stirring constantly, until browned. Set aside.
Cook vegetables: In the same pan, add the tomatoes and cook until soft. Stir in the red onions and tomato paste (if using). Cook, stirring frequently, until the tomato paste darkens in color and caramelizes, about 5 minutes. Add the green chilies and cook until softened.
Cook rice: Add the rice, sinigang mix, kangkong, sitaw, and the cooked pork. everything together until the rice is evenly coated, the vegetables are distributed, and everything is heated through.
Make crispy vegetables (optional): Heat oil in a small pot or deep skillet to 350°F. In a bowl, whisk together the cold water, flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt until smooth. Working one at a time, dip the kangkong leaves and okra (if using) into the batter. Fry battered vegetables until crispy and lightly golden, then rest on a metal rack or paper towels.
Serve: Transfer fried rice to a serving dish, or split between individual rice bowls. Garnish with crispy vegetables. Serve immediately.
