Pancit Molo is an adaptation of the Chinese Won-Ton soup. This Philippine dish has it's origin from a city in Iloilo called Molo. Do you know that in Iloilo, the first letter of your surname is the same as the city/town you're from? Interesting factoid. :) My maternal grandfather's real surname (he was adopted later and used his adopted family's surname) started with the letter D and he was from a town called 'Dingle' (deeng-leh).

Anyway, back to Pancit Molo and soups. My family and I love eating different variations of soup during winter, my favorite soup to make is some kind of noodle soup. Everytime I have pork filling left-overs from making Lumpia Shanghai, I make it into siomai or wonton and use this to make Pancit Molo.

To make the siomai, I use ground pork, minced carrots, flat-leaf parsley, onions with salt and pepper plus one egg to act as a binder. I wrap it using small squares of pastry made exclusively for wontons. Use at the most, one teaspoon of filling per wrapper. Close the edges using beaten egg to make a complete seal. I put a bit of flour on the bottom of the plate where you'll set the siomai so it does not stick to the bottom and to each other.

For the soup, I saute the garlic and onions. I add several pieces of chicken parts with bones and let it sweat. Afterwards, I add several cups of water and bring it to boil. I skim the impurities out and let it simmer until the chicken is tender. I take out the chicken and cut the meat into strips. Meanwhile, I add the carrot strips and other vegetables I have in the fridge like spinach and celery. Add the siomai to the broth, let simmer for 20 minutes. It is important to just let it simmer because if you have the broth boiling, the siomai might open up if it has not been sealed well.

Season to taste with pepper and either salt or fish sauce. Add the cooked chicken and minced green onions before serving. If you prefer, you can add noodles to Pancit Molo (just like I did). Add the noodles to the broth at the last 5minutes of cooking (depending on how long the noodles will cook).

As you may have noticed by now, almost all the dishes I cook make use of only one (or two at the most) pot or pan. Is it obvious that I hate to wash dishes? LOL Thank goodness for the dishwasher, one of the best (second only to the washing machine) inventions for the household. Anyway, if you're into washing pots and pans, you can make the chicken broth ahead of time (but why bother when you can do it in the same pot - that's always my opinion).

Pancit Molo Recipe

Filling:
1/2 lb. ground pork
1 carrot, chopped
1 tbsp minced parsley
1 egg
salt and pepper to taste

Broth:
1 tbsp. oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 onion, chopped
1/2 lb chicken bones
salt and pepper to taste
green onions, chopped (for garnish)


SUBSCRIBE BY EMAIL HERE