Pancit Malabon is type of Filipino noodle dish. It is composed of thick rice noodles with an orangey-red sauce. There are a variety of components in the sauce. It is made-up of chopped boiled pork, smoked fish flakes, crushed pork rinds, fish sauce, and annatto oil. The color of the sauce is attributed to the oil, which is made by combining cooking oil and annatto seeds. This noodle dish has generous seafood toppings, which are (but not limited to) shrimp, squid, and oysters. In addition to these toppings, sliced boiled eggs, blanched Napa cabbage, chopped scallions, and more crushed pork rinds are also added.
Malabon is the name of the place where Pancit Malabon originated. It is a city within Metro Manila geographically located north of the City of Manila. It is adjacent to the coastal City of Navotas, which is home to the Navotas Fish Port Complex – a major fish port and fish market in the Philippines. The geographic location of Malabon makes it easy for residents to source for fresh seafood.
Pancit Malabon is visually similar to Pancit Palabok and Pancit Luglug. However, there are a few notable differences between these Filipino pancit dishes. First and foremost, the sauce of Pancit Malabon is not as thick as its two lookalikes. It is simply because it does not use flour or any starch that can cause the sauce to thicken. Secondly, Pancit Malabon has a variety of toppings, that even includes pre-cooked squid (adobong pusit) and oysters (this can either be steamed oysters or adobong talaba).
Making your own Pancit Palabok can be intimidating. I won’t blame you if you feel that way. The dish might seem complex at first glance, especially if you have no idea on how to make it. The good news is, its not complicated at all. It might look overwhelming, but it is not hard to make.
If you will quickly scroll below to the recipe section, you’ll notice that I grouped the ingredients below into three categories. The sauce ingredients has its own spot, along with the toppings, I did not provide a category name for the noodles, since this is something that you can easily figure out. I created this structure so that you can focus on a certain task at a given time. For example, if the recipe is asking you to make the sauce, your attention will only be focused on the sauce ingredients – nowhere else. I hope that you are seeing the clearer picture by now.
Note that there are links in some of the ingredients below, if you will need to prepare it beforehand. I figured that this can make your task easier.
I like Pancit Malabon because it is delicious, it is visually appetizing, and it brings back a childhood memory. If you were following my stories on my blog posts, you might have a bit of idea about myself. Did you also know that I used to work part-time for our family business back then when I was in high school. Well, I was not technically there to work, but rather be a warm body at my parent’s shop that sells and installs marble tiles and accessories. It was along a main highway in Las Pinas (Alabang-Zapote Road). I am usually manning the shop during Saturdays and most days of summer, when school is out. Adjacent to the shop is a small restaurant that specializes in Pancit Malabon. The place is called Aling Cely’s. I would go there during merienda time and order Pancit Malabon (or sometimes chicken mami). I never got tired of eating this dish. In fact, this was one of the dishes that I tried preparing when I was still learning how to cook. Now, I am sharing what I learned to you.
Try this Pancit Malabon Recipe. Let me know what you think.
Pancit Malabon
Ingredients
- 1 lb. thick rice noodles
- 8 to 10 cups water for boiling
- 1 head garlic crushed and toasted
- 6 pieces calamansi or 4 pieces lime
Sauce ingredients
- 1 Knorr shrimp cube
- 1/4 cup annatto oil atsuete oil
- 6 ounces boiled pork belly sliced into small pieces
- 4 tablespoons tinapa fish flakes
- 1/2 cup crushed pork rinds chicharon
- 1 medium yellow onion minced
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 1 cup water
- 3 tablespoons fish sauce
- 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
Toppings
- 10 to 12 pieces steamed large shrimp without shell and head
- 1 cup adobong pusit
- 1/2 cup steamed oysters talaba
- 1 cup sliced Napa cabbage pechay Baguio, boiled for 30 seconds
- 1/4 cup chopped scallions dahon ng sibuyas
- 3 boiled eggs halved and sliced into thin pieces
Instructions
- Soak the rice noodles in water for at least 3 hours, or according to package instructions. Note: if using traditional pancit Malabon noodles, you will need to soak it in water overnight. Drain the water from the noodles afterwards.
- Pour 8 to 10 cups of water into a cooking pot. Let boil. Add the soaked noodles into the pot. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes or until completely done. Remove from the cooking pot. Set aside.
- Prepare the Pancit Malabon sauce by pouring annatto oil in a pan. Once the oil starts to get hot, saute garlic and onion.
- Add sliced pork, cook for 1 minute.
- Add tinapa fish flakes, chicharon, and fish sauce. Stir.
- Pour water. Bring to a boil.
- Add Knorr shrimp cube. Stir. Cover the pan. Cook in medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Add ground black pepper. Stir.
- Combine the noodles and sauce. Add toasted garlic and more chicharon (if desired). Gently toss until all the ingredients are well blended.
- Transfer to a serving plate. Top with topping ingredients. Note: Be creative.
- Serve with calamansi or lime.
- Share and enjoy!
Conchita Rivera says
May 23, 2019 at 2:58 pmLooks yummy n easy to make