Pancit Estacion of Cavite

This version of Cavite's Pancit Estacion is a noodle dish that has a little of everything. Crisp, fresh mung bean sprouts or togue to Filipinos, define this entree. Then, add smoked fish flakes, shrimps, crunchy crumbs of chicharron (pork rinds), hard-boiled egg slices, scallions, garlic and onions. These are all spread on a bed of thick, achuete (annatto) sauce and flavored with fish sauce and calamansi (or lemons). This was inspired from a recipe on Republic of Taste: The Untold Stories of Cavite Cuisine by Ige Ramos (Manila, Philippines). Serves 4.

Course: Dinner, Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine: Asian, Filipino

Keyword: Filipino Pancit Noodles Estacion

Servings: people

Calories: 333kcal

Author: Asian in America

Ingredients

For the Palabok Sauce:

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
4 cloves garlic minced
1/2 pound fresh boiled shrimps boil fresh shrimps in 1 to 2 cups water for 8 to minutes to cook; use discarded heads for extracting shrimp juice
1/4 cup shrimp head juice extracted from boiling shrimp heads in water
1/4 cup achuete (annatto) water from soaking 2 teaspoons achuete in warm water
3 cups chicken broth
3 Tablespoons cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup chicken broth at room temperature
1 to 2 teaspoons patis (fish sauce)
1 whole egg beaten

For the Noodles:

3 Tablespoons vegetable oil
12 pieces shallots, chopped fine
2 whole garlic cloves minced
250 g. dried bihon noodles
250 g. togue (mung bean sprouts)
1 cup chicken broth

For the final Pancit Estacion assembly:

1/2 cups salted peanuts crushed coarsely
1/2 of a whole white or yellow onion sauteed
2 cloves garlic peeled, minced, sauteed
1/2 cup crumbled chicharron (pork rinds) crushed
1/2 cup flaked tinapa (smoked fish) bones and skin removed
1 to 2 stalks scallions sliced
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 whole hard-boiled eggs peeled, sliced, for garnish

Instructions

To cook the Palabok sauce:

In a medium-sized skillet, over medium-high heat, add the cooking oil. When oil is hot enough, saute the garlic and onions for 1 to 2 minutes till brown. Do not burn the garlic, it affects the outcome of the dish.
Pour the shrimp heads liquid. Mix and let the mixture simmer for 1 minute.
Pour the achuete (annatto) water and chicken broth. Season with patis (fish sauce). Let the mixture boil in about 5 minutes.
Lower the heat to a simmer. Add the diluted cornstarch (now a liquid) to the sauce in the skillet. Stir continuously for about 5 minutes till orange sauce becomes thick and coats the spoon.
Very slowly, pour the beaten egg into the mixture while continuously stirring. You will create a threadlike design of the egg in the sauce. Take away from the heat. Set aside.

To cook the Noodles:

Separately, in a large wok or skillet, add the oil. Saute the garlic and shallots for 1 to 2 minutes. Pour the chicken broth. Add the bihon noodles. Cook till the liquid is absorbed by the noodles. This will take about 5 minutes. Mix well.
Add the togue (bean sprouts). Mix well. Continue cooking for 3 minutes more. Set aside.

To assemble the Pancit Estacion:

Plate the cooked noodles and bean sprouts on a serving platter. Mix in the sauteed onions and garlic.
Pour almost all the palabok sauce on top. Leave a little extra sauce for later when the dish has to be reheated.
To the noodle dish, add the remaining ingredients on top of the noodles and sauce: Boiled shrimps, Tinapa flakes, peanuts, chicharron. Season with ground black pepper.
Garnish with slices of hard-boiled eggs, calamansi (or lemon) and scallions. Serve warm.

Cook's comments:

In the cookbook recipe, the author added crushed kropek (fish crackers) and sliced, fresh kamias (bilimbi) to the topping.
I did not have both ingredients at the time of cooking. But feel free to add if you prefer and if available in your area.

Nutrition