Filipino Garlic Rice, also called Sinangag, is a traditional Filipino food. Often eaten with eggs, spam, or even as part of a larger meal, Garlic Rice is a staple that can be turned into fried rice or eaten as is. You can even turn this into a Filipino Garlic Spam Fried Rice dish!

Ingredients:
- Jasmine Rice: Use the long-grain Jasmine variety of rice to make your Garlic Rice. You can use freshly-cooked rice (just add a touch less water) or use day-old rice that’s been sitting in your fridge.
- Garlic: Use as much garlic as you would like for this recipe! I usually use around 2 to 3 cloves per cup of rice.
- Oil: You will need a neutral cooking oil, such as a vegetable or canola oil, to fry the garlic.
- Salt: Using a natural sea salt in this recipe will bring out the spicy-sweet flavor of the garlic.
How to Make Filipino Garlic Rice
This easy Filipino rice is a simple and quick recipe to whip up.


Roughly chop or slice your garlic cloves. Add in your oil to a large pan and add in the garlic. Fry the garlic for about 4 minutes. Take care not to burn the garlic, as burned garlic tastes bitter.

After frying the garlic, add in your cooked rice. Toss and mix the rice with the garlic. Season with salt and give your rice another toss to evenly combine all the ingredients.
Serve your rice as-is or with crispy garlic and sliced green onion.
What to Serve with Filipino Garlic Rice
There are a couple ways to serve your freshly made garlic rice.
It is often eaten as a side in Filipino culture.
I like to use my garlic rice with a fried egg on top, or as a base for Spam fried rice.
Common Questions about Filipino Garlic Rice
What kind of rice should I use?
You should use Jasmine rice for your garlic rice. Jasmine rice is a long-grain aromatic rice that holds flavors well. You can buy Jasmine rice at any grocery store or buy it in bulk at Costco.
Do I have to use day-old rice for Garlic Rice?
It’s a typical fried rice notion that you should always use day-old rice for your fried rice. This is because using older rice is a bit drier and will stand up to frying better than just-cooked rice. If you forget to make rice the day ahead, or simply have a craving for garlic rice, you can make rice before you fry the garlic, just add a touch less water than you normally would so you yield a drier rice.
Is garlic rice healthy?
Rice is one of the most popular grains consumed in the world. It has a low amount of sodium, fat and cholesterol. When adding rice with garlic, it becomes a superfood. Garlic is known for it’s ability to fight bacteria, viruses and fungus. One of the nutrients in garlic, allicin, is known for its ability to aid in fighting bacteria.