Mabuhay mga Kapamilya tayo.  Greetings to all of you, our internet Family! This is Lana and I am an Island gal twice over … 100% Filipina and Hawai’ian at heart.  For me and my friends and family, food has a special place in our lives.  It’s food that hallmarks all of life’s most treasured moments … birthdays, weddings, baptisms, anniversaries and, yes, funerals.  So, foodies rejoice:  you’re going to see quite a few recipes shared here at The Halau.

I have always described Filipino cuisine as Asian Soul Food … today, it’s taking America by storm as one of the hottest Asian cuisines to get in-the-know about.  For me, I never thought that something like pancit (a simple pan-fried noodle dish) would ever become a commonplace go-to food like eggrolls and hamburgers.  But, here we are in 2017 and I see all kinds of commercials on TV and on the internet about where to get tasty Filipino dishes like adobo or longenisa sausages or lumpia.

Mom taught me that there are many different types of pancit cooked in the Philippines.  Some recipes are a dry-noodle stir fry similar to Chinese chow mein, with variations based on the type of noodle chosen.    Other recipes have a sauce and ingredients added on top of the noodles before mixing (pancit palabok) , and still others are a type of noodle soup that is a well-known recipe style in Southeast Asian cooking, like pancit miki.  Today’s recipe for pancit molo showcases one of these different pancit recipes created in traditional Filipino kitchens.  Pancit molo is a variation of Chinese wonton mein, which isn’t so unusual given centuries of Chinese cultural influence from across the South China Sea.

Creating the dumplings is a matter of culinary style.  There are different variations on the folding: Some will use the purse-string style.  Others fold a round wrapper into a half moon and crimp the ends.  Some will do the same using a square one, but fold it in half with the filling in the center and make a triangle. The edges are crimped together.  I have also seen a wonton folded like an envelope of sorts, too.  My mother likes to add either shredded cabbage, napa cabbage, or baby bok choy.  In the Philippines, there is also the leafy green called malunggay (Moringa Oleifera) that is often added to the soup.  One can also add julienned carrots for color.  The classic pancit molo is served with a robust chicken broth (or a combination of chicken and ham broth) and garnished with chopped green onions. Others also top it with crispy fried chopped shallots or crispy fried garlic.

Click the link and try this recipe today … it’s delicious! Masarap!

Source: Pancit Molo (Filipino Pork Dumpling Soup) Recipe on Food52