Pancit Bihon Guisado

Pancit Bihon Guisado is a Filipino noodle dish made with thin rice noodles, pork, cooked chicken, and vegetables. The bihon cooks in a seasoned broth until it has soaked all of it up, and the cabbage, carrots, and snow peas keep a little crunch.

I have known Pancit Bihon Guisado for as long as I can remember. Although it is easy to prepare and readily available in local restaurants and panciterias, I have always associated it with special occasions. It is almost always served at birthday parties, town fiestas, and holiday gatherings, usually alongside other Filipino favorites like lumpia. I have always enjoyed having the two together.

I remember my mom preparing pancit bihon for my birthdays when I was a child. She used to tell me that serving pancit on birthdays symbolizes long life and prosperity. Whenever she asked if I wanted pancit bihon or Filipino spaghetti for my birthday, I always had a hard time choosing. To be on the safe side, I would ask for both.

What is Pancit Bihon Guisado?

Bihon is the thin rice noodle, and guisado means sauteed, which is how the cooking starts. Pancit canton is made with egg noodles, and pancit bihon comes out softer and lighter once the noodles have absorbed the broth. My Filipino pancit combines the two noodles in one wok. This one uses bihon alone, with pork, cooked chicken, and vegetables.

Why This Pancit Bihon Recipe Works

• The bihon cooks in seasoned broth. Soy sauce goes in before the noodles, so the seasoning is already in the liquid they absorb. They are done when they are tender and the bottom of the wok is dry. A noodle that still has a hard center at that point needs a splash of hot water and another minute of tossing.
• The meat and vegetables come out before the noodles go in. You get the whole wok for tossing the bihon, and the cabbage and snow peas wait in a bowl instead of cooking further. They go back in for the last 1 to 2 minutes, just long enough to heat through.
• A 10-minute soak is enough. The noodles should bend without breaking. Thinner bihon softens faster, so check the package if yours looks finer than usual.

Ingredients

• Pancit bihon – Dried rice noodles. They need a short soak before cooking.
• Pork – Sliced thin and cut into small pieces. Tender cuts such as shoulder or loin work best for the short cooking time.
• Cooked chicken – Half a pound, deboned and sliced thin. Leftover boiled or roasted chicken works well here.
• Snow peas – Trim the strings from the edges before cooking.
• Carrots – Cut into thin strips so they cook quickly.
• Cabbage – Half a small head, chopped into pieces about the size of the carrot strips.
• Celery leaves – Finely chopped. The leaves have a stronger aroma than the stalks, and a full cup is not too much here.
• Onion – Chopped.
• Garlic – Minced.
• Chicken powder – Two teaspoons make the broth. A chicken bouillon cube works the same way.
• Soy sauce – Five tablespoons. Brands vary in saltiness.
• Water – Three to four cups. This becomes the broth the noodles cook in.
• Cooking oil – Any neutral oil for sauteing.

Filipino and Asian grocery stores sell the noodles as bihon or rice sticks, and some brands are noticeably thinner than others. Thinner noodles soak and cook faster, so watch their texture as the broth cooks down.

1. Soak the pancit bihon in water for about 10 minutes.
2. Drain and set aside.

1. Heat the cooking oil in a large wok. Saute the garlic and onion until the onion softens.
2. Add the pork and saute for 2 to 4 minutes, or until light to medium brown.
3. Add the cooked chicken and saute for 2 minutes.
4. Add the chicken powder and 3 to 4 cups of water. Stir, then simmer for 15 minutes.

1. Add the carrots, snow peas, cabbage, and celery leaves. Simmer for a few minutes until the vegetables are tender but still have a little bite.
2. Remove the meat and vegetables from the wok using a strainer or slotted spoon. Set aside, leaving the cooking liquid in the wok.

Remove the vegetables while the cabbage still has a little crunch. It cooks again when everything goes back into the wok.

1. Pour the soy sauce into the cooking liquid and stir.
2. Add the drained bihon noodles. Toss gently to distribute the liquid and cook until the noodles are tender and the liquid has completely evaporated.
3. Return the cooked meat and vegetables to the wok. Toss everything together and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes.
4. Transfer to a serving platter and serve hot. Share and enjoy!

What to Serve with Pancit Bihon

• Calamansi – Cut a few in half and set them on the platter. I squeeze some over my serving along with a few drops of patis.
• Pinoy Fried Chicken – Crispy fried chicken goes well with pancit, especially as part of a larger Filipino meal.
• Puto – Soft steamed rice cakes, often served alongside pancit at Filipino celebrations.

Storage

• Refrigerator: Store leftover pancit bihon in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 to 4 days. The noodles firm up when chilled, so add a little water when reheating to loosen them.
• Freezer: It freezes for up to 2 months in a freezer bag or airtight container, pressed flat so it thaws faster. The snow peas and cabbage go limp after thawing, so the texture is best when you cook a fresh handful of vegetables and toss them in while reheating.
• Reheating: Heat it in a pan over medium heat with 2 to 3 tablespoons of water, tossing until the noodles loosen and are steaming hot all the way through. The microwave works too; cover the plate and heat in short bursts so the edges do not dry out.

More Pancit Recipes

• Filipino Shrimp Pancit Bihon – The same noodles cooked with pan-fried shrimp and a shrimp cube instead of pork and chicken.
• Garlic Bihon – Bihon in a broth from poached chicken, with annatto for color and plenty of garlic.
• Pancit Canton at Bihon – Bihon and canton cooked together with pork, chicken, and shrimp, close to the bam-i of Cebu.
• Chicken Pancit – Bihon and sotanghon in one pan, with the broth from boiled chicken leg quarters.
• Pancit Canton – The egg noodle version with pork, shrimp, and Chinese sausage in a soy and oyster sauce base.

• Pancit bihon – Sotanghon (glass noodles) works, with the soaking time on its package and the water adjusted as needed. The texture comes out softer and more slippery.
• Pork – Sliced ham or more cooked chicken. Ham only needs 2 minutes in the wok, so add it with the chicken instead of browning it first.
• Cooked chicken – Thinly sliced raw chicken breast or thigh. Add it with the pork and make sure it is fully cooked before the noodles go in.
• Snow peas – Snap peas, with the strings pulled off. Green beans cut into 2-inch pieces also work and need a minute or two more in the broth.
• Celery leaves – Chopped celery stalks or flat-leaf parsley. Stalks go in with the carrots; parsley goes in at the end with the noodles.
• Chicken powder – One chicken bouillon cube, crushed into the water. Chicken broth in place of the water works too, with the chicken powder left out.

Pancit bihon is a good dish to prepare when you have family or friends coming over, especially with lumpia and other Filipino favorites on the table. Serve it hot with calamansi on the side and let everyone help themselves from the platter. My mom served pancit bihon at my birthdays when I was young, and the reason she gave, long life and prosperity, still holds for me.