Batchoy Recipe

When I see batchoy on the menu, I usually order it first. I like the fresh miki, the hot broth, and all the pork toppings in one bowl. It is not just sliced pork. You also get liver and intestines, which make the bowl more filling than regular mami. Add crushed chicharon, toasted garlic, and spring onions on top. This is not a bowl I rush through. La Paz in Iloilo City is known for this noodle soup.

I first tried it at Ted’s Oldtimer La Paz Batchoy in Glorietta when I was in high school. I liked it so much that I started looking for it in other restaurants and comparing how each place made the broth and the toppings. This is the simple home version I came up with after trying different bowls through the years. It will not be exactly the same as the ones from Iloilo, but it gets you close enough for home cooking. If you have had chicken mami before, this goes in that direction, but with innards, chicharon, and shrimp paste in the broth.

The broth needs to taste right before I assemble the bowl. I season it first, then cook the pork until tender. The chicharon and toasted garlic go in last because they are better when still crisp. Fresh miki cooks fast, so I place it in the bowl and pour the hot broth over it.

What is Batchoy?

Batchoy is a Filipino noodle soup with fresh miki, pork, pork innards, chicharon, toasted garlic, and a hot broth seasoned with shrimp paste. The most popular version is La Paz batchoy, which comes from the La Paz district of Iloilo City on the island of Panay.

La Paz batchoy is closely tied to Iloilo, especially the area around the La Paz public market. Shops like Ted’s and Deco’s helped make it popular, but people still tell different stories about how it started. Those stories may be different, but batchoy is now one of the foods many people look for when they visit Iloilo.

Some say the name came from Hokkien Chinese words linked to meat soup or minced meat. That makes sense because pork is a big part of the bowl. This is different from Batchoy Tagalog, the Luzon version that uses miswa noodles, pork blood, and ginger. You can find it in carinderias and small eateries. Some eat it as merienda, but one big bowl can already be a meal.

Batchoy Ingredients

The shrimp paste is optional, but the rest are what make batchoy taste right. I grouped them by the broth and meat first, then the toppings.

For the Broth and Meat:

• Pork – Use a cut with a little fat, like shoulder or belly. Cut it into bite-sized pieces so it cooks evenly and slices cleanly later.
• Pork intestines – Clean them well and boil them once before slicing.
• Pork liver – Slice it into thin strips. It only needs a few minutes in the broth, so add it near the end.
• Miki noodles – Fresh egg noodles are the usual choice and barely need cooking. If you cannot find fresh miki, see the substitutions below.
• Shrimp paste (guinamos) – This gives the broth the batchoy flavor I look for. Optional but recommended. See the note below on the block type.
• Salt, sugar, onion powder, and ground black pepper – These season the broth. The sugar is not for sweetness. It just helps balance the salt.

For the Toppings:

• Pork cracklings (chicharon) – Crush them and scatter on top right before serving. About a cup. They lose the crunch if they sit in the broth too long.
• Spring onion – Chop this and add it on top before serving.
• Toasted garlic – A must for that nutty aroma. Make a big batch ahead and keep it in a jar.

The shrimp paste here is guinamos, a salted shrimp paste sold in small dark blocks instead of the wet bagoong alamang in jars. You dissolve a piece in water, boil it, then strain the liquid into the broth. If you cannot find guinamos, use a little bagoong alamang or patis. Add a small amount first, then taste the broth before adding more.

Making batchoy at home is simple once the broth is seasoned and the meat is cooked. Here is how I put it together.

1. Boil 7 cups of water in a pot.
2. Add the salt, sugar, onion powder, and ground black pepper.
3. Stir in the shrimp paste and let the broth cook for about a minute so the seasonings dissolve.
4. Taste the broth and adjust the salt or shrimp paste before the meat goes in.

1. Add the pork and simmer until fork-tender, about 30 to 45 minutes.
2. Add the cleaned intestines and the sliced liver.
3. Cook for another 6 to 10 minutes, until the liver is just firm. Do not let it cook too long or it turns grainy.
4. Remove the pork, liver, and intestines, then slice the pork into thin strips.

1. Put the boiled miki noodles in a serving bowl and arrange the pork, liver, and intestines on top.
2. Pour the boiling hot broth over everything, then add the crushed chicharon, chopped spring onions, and toasted garlic. Serve right away.

Pour the broth while it is very hot. Fresh miki cooks fast, so the heat finishes it right in the bowl.

What to Serve with Batchoy

• Puto – Steamed rice cakes go well with it. The mild sweetness balances the salty broth.
• Pandesal – Good for dipping and for finishing the broth at the bottom of the bowl.
• Calamansi – A squeeze of calamansi helps balance the savory broth.
• Fish sauce – Keep patis on the table so everyone can season their own bowl.
• Chili Garlic Oil – For anyone who wants a little heat.

Storage

The trick with batchoy leftovers is to keep everything in its own container. The broth, the meat, the noodles, and the toppings all keep better apart, and the noodles especially go soft if you let them sit in broth.

• Refrigerator: Keep the broth and meat together in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Store the noodles and toppings on their own. Leave noodles sitting in broth and they swell up and turn soft, so I always add them fresh.
• Freezer: The broth and cooked meat freeze well for up to 2 months, and the broth still tastes good after thawing. Do not freeze the noodles, chicharon, or toasted garlic. The noodles turn mushy, and the chicharon and garlic lose their crunch.
• Reheating: Bring the broth back to a rolling boil, put fresh noodles in a bowl, and pour the hot broth straight over them. That hot broth is what softens the miki and warms the meat at the same time. Add the chicharon and toasted garlic last so they stay crisp.

More Filipino Noodle Soup Recipes

• Lomi – Thick egg noodles in a starchy broth with pork, kikiam, and meatballs.
• Beef Pares Mami – Sweet-savory braised beef over mami noodles in beef broth.
• Spicy Beef Noodle Soup – Beef in a star anise broth with chili for a spicy bowl.
• Pancit Bato – A noodle soup made with the smoky pancit bato noodles from Bicol.
• Pancit Molo – Another Iloilo specialty, a wonton soup with pork and shrimp dumplings.
• Chicken Sotanghon Soup – Glass noodles with shredded chicken in a light, garlicky broth.
• Chicken Macaroni Sopas – A creamy macaroni soup with chicken and milk for cold days.

Substitutions

• Miki noodles – Fresh egg noodles are best. Pancit canton, bihon, sotanghon, or thin misua also work. Cook them first, since only fresh miki can go straight into hot broth.
• Shrimp paste (guinamos) – Bagoong alamang or a splash of patis works. Start with a small amount.
• Pork – Chicken makes a lighter bowl. For a beef version, try beef mami.
• Pork intestines – Leave them out and use more pork, or use tripe if you like.
• Pork liver – Chicken liver works, or skip it.

Batchoy is the bowl that got me into Filipino noodle soups, and this is the home version I like the most. I like mine with extra toasted garlic and chicharon, and a little calamansi on the side. I hope you try this and enjoy a good bowl of Batchoy at home.