Pancit Canton

Pancit Canton is another dish of Chinese origin that has very much become a part of Filipino cuisine. Just like pancit palabok (the very first recipe I shared with you here), pancit canton is one of the many pancit variations in the Philippines. In pancit palabok, we use bihon or rice noodles, while in pancit canton, we use canton or egg noodles, which is the dried type that is flavored with crab or shrimp.

When cooking pancit canton, there are several ways of preparing the noodles. The most common method is to blanch the dried noodles in boiling water for a few seconds then draining them before stirring into the sauce. Some blanch the noodles, and after draining, lightly fry them in oil. Some like it crispy so they plunge the dry noodles in plenty of hot smoking oil until puffed, after which the meat, vegetables and sauce are poured over the fried noodles arranged on a serving plate.

Pancit canton is my daughters’ all-time favorite noodle dish so I cook it very often. Based from experience, blanching the noodles makes them soggy so I don’t do it. I prefer that they cook in broth so that they can absorb the flavor of the meat and/or seafood that I'm cooking it with.

Pancit canton is a very flexible noodle dish. You can cook this with whatever vegetables, meat or seafood you want. Want cauliflower? Bell pepper? Broccoli? Shrimp? Squid? Chicken? Pork? Go for it! No matter what you decide to add on it, it will surely be yummy!

Prep Time: 20 mins          Cook Time: ~30 mins           Servings: 6                                 

Ingredients:

• 1 lb pancit canton (egg noodles)
• ½ cup pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• ½ cup squid, cleaned and sliced into rings
• ¾ cup boiled chicken breast, cut into thin strips
• ¾ cup boiled pork, cut into strips
• 1 medium size carrot, julienned
• 1 bundle small pechay, washed & trimmed
• ½ cup snow peas. washed & trimmed
• ½ cup green beans, thinly sliced diagonally
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 cup chicken & pork broth (I use the broth from which I boiled the chicken & pork.)
• 1 cup shrimp extract (I made this from shrimp heads mashed using mortar and pestle then mixed with a cup of chicken broth and then strained.)
• 1/3 cup soy sauce
• 1 Tbsp fish sauce
• 3 Tbsp oyster sauce
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 4 Tbsp. fried garlic (optional - for topping)
• 2 pcs. Lemon or 4-6 pcs calamansi (optional)
• 1 cup egg omelet strips (cooked from 2 eggs, beaten with a pinch of salt. This is optional. We just love topping our pancit canton with this.) 

Procedure:

1. In a wok, over medium heat, saute garlic in 2 tbsp olive oil until light brown. Add onion. Saute until translucent.

2. Add vegetables and shrimp. Stir-fry until half cooked. Add fish sauce & a pinch of black pepper. Mix well. Transfer to a plate and set aside.

3. In the same wok, add the remaining 2 tbsp olive oil and stir-fry chicken and pork until light brown.

4. Add squid. Stir-fry for a minute.

5. Add broth, shrimp extract, oyster sauce and soy sauce. Bring to boil.

6. Add noodles. Mix well with other ingredients. While constantly tossing, simmer until noodles are done.  

7. Finally, add vegetables and season with pepper. Mix well. Remove from heat.

8. Sprinkle with lemon. Top with fried garlic and egg omelet strips. (optional)
9. Serve & enjoy!

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