There are dozens of different types of noodles to choose from, but if you want to go back to your roots and you’re craving for some noodle-y goodness and very much Filipino when it comes to its taste and style, Pancit Palabok is the one for you!
This is a popular dish and is surely a favorite all around the country. It certainly appears as a fancy dish because of the topping included, so this is perfect for special occasions or gatherings.
In this recipe article, you will learn how to make the festive palabok dish in the easiest possible we can with this recipe! You don’t need to worry about the next upcoming special occasion you’re preparing as this surely won’t disappoint. Show your love for your family and friends with this!
Read on below to learn more about the pancit palabok and some tips and tricks that come along with it.
What is Pancit Palabok?
Pancit palabok is a Filipino style dish made out of rice noodles that has come from the influence of Chinese people back in the days when trading with them was common. Since Filipinos tend to love food which is mixed with a lot of flavors.
It is traditionally topped with pork-and-shrimp sauce, shrimp, tinapa, chicharon, and eggs. Surely fitting of the word palabok, because it is a word which literally means “added flavor.”
If you’re curious about what a pancit is, they were introduced to us as said earlier by Chinese settlers and it has long since evolved into different styles of cooking in various places all around the Philippines.
The term pancit came from a Chinese word which means “convenient food.” It is fitting since noodles are found everywhere and is easy to partner with different styles of food.
Ingredients You’ll Need
Noodles
In this recipe, we will be using dried pancit bihon or rice noodles available in the market and grocery stores. If you want to learn more about pancit, see this article: Pancit Canton Vs Pancit Bihon.
Shrimps
If you want to stir away from the ready-made ingredients and want to use fresher ones, instead of going for the shrimp bouillon cubes (which are completely acceptable, by the way), go for the fresh shrimps, and extract its juices to use as a shrimp stock.
This process involves crushing the heads, grinding them and adding water to extract the flavor.
Aside from this, you will also use common pantry ingredients like pork, fish sauce, onion, garlic, annatto, egg, lemon, flour, black pepper, and cooking oil. If you are filling up your pantry, here’s a handy shopping guide:
Equipment You’ll Need
- Cooking Pot (Kaldero)– We will use a deep cooking pot or casserole to boil and cook the pancit.
- Sauce Pan- We will also need a sauce pan deep enough to cook the palabok sauce.
In need of kitchen tools and equipment? Read this before you buy:
How to Make Pancit Palabok
Pancit palabok can be done quite easily, though it is not as simple as the other popular dishes. But despite that, it is a truly satisfying job once you finish it, and you’ll be rewarded with a really delicious treat right in front of you.
There’s three things needed to be done here, one is to cook the rice noodles, then prepare the sauce ingredients, and then prepare the toppings.
Preparing the sauce ingredients and the toppings are the bulk of the work that needs to be done because it involves a lot of mixing ingredients with one another and a lot of chopping and slicing, and all of that tedious job, so you better have the time to do all of these!
A good tip is to keep things done step-by-step and slowly so as to avoid errors along the way.
What Goes Well With Pancit Palabok?
Most of the time Pancit Palabok or pancit in general is considered as food served in celebrations. This means it won’t be served alone but with other food that goes well with it.
Pancit palabok is best paired with other celebratory food like the rice cake Puto, the Lumpiang Shanghai, and of course, your favorite cola soda.
How to Store and Reheat Pancit Palabok
In case you have leftovers, store the pancit and the sauce separately in clean food containers with lid. Refrigerate in to extend their shelf life for up to 3 days.
To reheat the pancit, simply blanch in boiling water until soft and rehydrated. To reheat the sauce, you can either use a microwave oven or over a stove top.
Other Pancit Versions
Pancit Palabok is one of the many versions on how to have your pancit. Different places all around the archipelago present us with other versions of popular pancit dishes. Some of these are:
- Pancit Canton
- Pancit Lusay
- Pancit Sotanghon
- Pancit Luglug
- Pancit Bihon
- Pancit Malabon
- Pancit Habhab
- Pancit Lomi
- Pancit Molo
For a quick reference about this recipe, see the recipe table below:
Authentic Pancit Palabok Recipe
Equipment
- Cooking Pot
- Sauce Pan
Ingredients
- 1 pack rice noodles (500 g or 1.1 lbs), (bihon noodles)
- water, as needed
Sauce Ingredients
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 500 g (1.1 lbs) ground pork
- 1 pc onion, chopped
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp annatto powder, diluted in ¼ cup pork broth (or water)
- 3 cups pork broth
- 3 tbsp fish sauce
- 4 tbsp flour, diluted in ¼ cup pork broth (or water)
- 1 cup shrimp broth, or 1 pc shrimp bouillon
- ½ tsp ground black pepper
Topping Ingredients
- 250 g (17 oz) shrimp, shell removed and cooked
- ½ cup tinapa flakes, (smoked fish)
- ½ cup chicharon, pork rind, crushed
- 3 pcs hard-boiled egg
- ¼ cup spring onions, chopped
- 3 tbsp garlic, fried
- 2 pcs lemon, or 6 pcs calamansi
Instructions
- Soak the rice noodles in water for 15 minutes. Drain.
- In a cooking pot, pour-in and boil water in medium heat.
- Add-in the rice noodles. Cook for 2 to 4 minutes or until firm. Drain and set aside.
- In a saucepan, pour-in and heat oil in medium heat.
- Add-in the minced garlic and chopped onions. Saute until tender and aromatic.
- Add-in the ground pork. Cook for 5 to 7 minutes or until nicely browned.
- Add-in the pork broth, shrimp broth and diluted annatto powder. Bring to a boil. If using a shrimp bouillon, add-in once boiling and simmer for 3 minutes.
- Add-in the diluted flour, then add-in the fish sauce, and ground pepper. Simmer until the sauce becomes thick. Set aside.
- Transfer the noodles into a serving plate and then pour-in the sauce. Arrange the topping ingredients over the sauce. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
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