Noodles are found in every region, in every country and in every continent. Asia has a long history for noodles. And most noodle dishes flee to its national origins. Evidently, every home including Filipino homes has its own technique and taste for cooking noodles. Yet since I was a kid, these noodles, thin, thick, white, yellow, fresh, dried, are introduced by the Chinese. No wonder they are famously called Chinese Noodles.

There is no mistake in cooking Chinese noodles as long as the noodles are cooked firm and perfect. Any topping and method will make the dish good. So I cooked a VERY VEGGY EGG NOODLES (Pancit Canton), a thick dried egg noodles with lots of vegetables for an all-in-one-dish.

VERY VEGGY EGG NOODLES (Pancit Canton)

1/4 cup cooking oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
3 onion heads, peeled and quartered
1/4 kilo porkloin, sliced into 1/2″
1 kilo pancit canton
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 tsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. fish sauce (patis)
2 cups pork broth
1 cup carrots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 cup Baguio bean, cut into 1 inch long
1 1/2 cup cabbage, sliced into pieces
salt
ground pepper

Boil in sliced porkloin with 3 cups of water into a saucepan until cooked and tender. Separate broth and porkloin. Set aside.

Heat a large nonstick wok over medium-high heat. Swirl in the cooking oil, then add the porkloin, garlic and onion. Stir-fry until the porkloin turns golden brown, about 1 minute.

Stir in the 2 cups broth, soy sauce, sugar, and black pepper. Bring to a simmer.

Add the carrots, Baguio beans and cabbage. Simmer and cook for about 5 minutes.

Add the Pancit Canton noodles. Raise the heat to high and toss constantly until the noodles absorb much of the sauce.

Remove from the heat and serve.

CREAMY CHICKEN MACARONI SOUP is commonly known as SOPAS and is Filipino favorite soup dish for breakfast or merienda. It is an all-in one meal in a bowl. Macaroni pasta for your carbs, chicken chunks for protein, carrots and red bell as your veggies and milk as creamer for your vitamins and minerals.

SOPAS or CREAMY CHICKEN MACARONI SOUP

3 tbsp. cooking oil
2 heads garlic, peeled and minced
2 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
½ kilo chicken breast, finely chopped
½ kilo elbow macaroni (or any pasta will do)
2 liters of water
1 large carrot, peeled and finely chopped
3 medium red bell pepper, unseeded and finely chopped
1 small can evaporated milk
3 tbsp. Knorr Cream of Chicken Soup
2 Knorr Chicken Cubes
salt and pepper

Heat a large soup pot over low heat. Swirl in the cooking oil then add garlic and onion. Cook slowly, stirring often about 4 minutes.

Add the chopped chicken. Raise the heat to medium-high. Stir constantly until chicken turned white.

Add water. Bring to a full boil.

Add elbow macaroni. Raise the heat to high, stirring often until macaroni is cooked.

Add cream of chicken soup, chicken cubes, carrots, red bell peppers and evaporated milk.

Season with salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes and serve your Creamy Chicken Macaroni Soup while hot.

Our son, Zachary Caleb, turns one month today! I know that to some it is not considered a major highlight, but for me, being his mother, today is a cherished and thanksgiving day. I am grateful for the happiness and joy he is giving to me each day despite of the sleepless nights and scaring me of his fragility. I know it will be a wonderful countdown to his 1st birthday as we will watch him grow and learn things with us. As a mom, it is one of the greatest blessings I have and I will not trade my sons for anything in this world.

Along with Caleb’s small celebration, www.hungrynez.com is also celebrating its first anniversary! Yeah, my food blog turns one-year old this month, which made me realize that time really flies so fast. I have learned so many things, from cooking, baking, shopping and blogging. I enjoy every time I post a recipe as much as I enjoy and have fun cooking and learning things from other food bloggers. I am grateful for my friends, Mark, Kris, Chrissy and Chit for sharing their knowledge on blogging and inspiring me to do better with my blog. I know, I still owe you guys pizza. And before I forget, I thank my readers who regular visit my blog.

So to celebrate a little, I cooked Pancit or Pansit Bihon Guisado (Rice Sticks Noodles with Vegetables) this morning for our merienda and some I sent to my officemates. As a Filipino tradition, a grand feast or a simple celebration will never be complete without a Pansit on the table. Pansit is commonly prepared during birthdays, as it symbolizes long life and good health. As a trace of Chinese influence in our country, Pansit can be claimed as a Pinoy food as Filipinos created different variation of Pansit like Pansit Luglog, Pansit Malabon, Pansit con Sabaw, and many more.

Pansit or Pancit Bihon Guisado (Rice Sticks Noodles with Vegetables)

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 kilo chicken breast
1/2 kilo porkloin
3 heads garlic, peeled and minced
3 medium onion, peeled and sliced
1/2 cup soy sauce
2 liters of water
1 kilo pansit bihon
2 tbsp. black pepper
1 medium cabbage, thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, peeled and thinly sliced
salt

Boil chicken breast and porkloin in a 500 ml of water. Season with salt. Cook until tender.

Separate chicken breast and porkloin and stock. Save stock.

Slice chicken breast and porkloin to about 1 inch size. Set aside.

On a large wok or skillet, heat cooking oil. Saute garlic and onion.

Add sliced chicken and porkloin.

Add sliced cabbage and carrots.

Add soy sauce until it covers the meat and veggies.

Add water and meat stock.

Bring to boil.

When veggies and meat are already cooked, separate them from the boiling water.

Add rice stick noodles or pansit bihon.

Cook, tossing constantly until noodles absorb the water.

Place cooked Pansit Bihon on a big platter and top it with the veggies and meat you set aside earlier.

Serve with ice cold softdrink.

MEATY SPAGHETTI

Spaghetti noodles

3 tbsp. butter
1 tsp. garlic, minced
2 medium onion, minced
1/2 kilo ground beef
500 grams spaghetti sauce
200 grams tomato sauce
1/4 cup brown sugar
water
salt

pepper

Cook spaghetti noodles according to its cooking instruction. Set aside.

Melt butter on a skillet.

Sauté garlic and onion.

Add beef. Saute for 5 minutes.

Add spaghetti sauce and tomato sauce. Bring to boil over medium heat.

Add water to your desired consistency.

Cook until meat is tender. Stirring constantly.

Season with salt, sugar and pepper.

Place cooked spaghetti noodles on a plate and top with meaty spaghetti sauce and cheese.

PASTA CARBONARA

1 kilo pasta, round or flat

1/2 cup butter
1 tbsp. garlic, minced
1/4 cup white onion, finely chopped
1/2 kilo chicken fillet, cut into small cubes
1/4 kilo sweet ham, sliced in small squares
2 cans Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 can of all-purpose cream
dried oregano
salt
pepper

Cook pasta based on instructions. Set aside

Melt butter in a large sauce pan over low heat.

Saute garlic and onion.

Add chicken and ham. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Pour on cream of mushroom soup and all purposecream. Cook and constantly stirring until the sauce bubbles.

Remove the pan from heat and season with salt, pepper and dried oregano.

Pour carbonara sauce over pasta and serve.

Anyway, desserts and sweets are my best part of the meal. They make lunches and dinners truly enjoyable. My eyes as well as my taste buds enjoy the variety of colors, shapes, sweetness and tang of fruits, sweet breads, chocolates, puddings, candies, gelatins, and many more.

My favorite desserts are those which are with noodle or pasta. Pasta suggests a large variety of opportunity as main dish, side dish and as a dessert. Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme becomes an ultimate alternative substitute to a satisfying snack, an invigorating appetizer or a complement to a well-prepare meal. Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme is just one of the most well-known pasta salads in the country.

Just a couple of reminders I learned from my mother in preparing Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme. One, cook ingredients must be completely cooled before mixing the mayonnaise. And, Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme should be kept chilled at all times as mayonnaise-based salad are ideal breading ground for bacteria that might cause poisoning.

CHICKEN MACARONI SALAD SUPREME

250 grams Elbow or Salad Macaroni
1 medium carrot, peeled and finely chopped
250 grams chicken breast, skin removed
1/2 cup white onions, peeled and minced
1/2 cheddar cheese, cubed
1 cup pineapple tidbits, drained
2 tbsp. sweet pickle relish, drained
1 tbsp. granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise
8 cups water
salt
ground white pepper
cooking oil

Boil 6 cups water in a saucepan. Add salt and cooking oil.
Add macaroni to boiling water. Cook uncovered 9 – 10 minutes, stirring once in a while to prevent pasta from sticking from the bottom of the pan. Do not overcook.

Drain cooked pasta in a colander and immediately place under running water. Drain well. Let it cool and transfer to a mixing or salad bowl. Set aside.

Wash off any soil or dirt from carrot and place in a small saucepan with 2 cups of water. Place chicken breast in the saucepan with the carrot. Bring to a boil, then lower temperature to simmering. Simmer until chicken and carrot are cooked.

If cooked, remove from fire and drain. Peel of skin from carrot using fingers and finely chop carrots. Place cooked chicken breast on a plate and shreed chicken meat, separating meat from bones.

Add carrots and chicken to macaroni.

Add onions, cheese, pineapple tidbits and pickle relish to a bowl.

Season with salt, ground white pepper and sugar.

Add mayonnaise and carefully mix all ingredients together. Be careful no to crush the macaroni.

Refrigerate your Chicken Macaroni Salad Supreme to 2-3 hours before serving.

I was craving for some Pancit last night but I didn’t want to tag my two boys as they were enjoying watching some Pixar short films over on youtube.com. So, I took off… not to the nearest Chinese resto, but to the kitchen and decided to make a wonderful hot evening dinner that my family practically inhaled. I used my fave Long Kow Vermicelli which is available in local grocery stores. This goodie was introduced to me by my friend, Tina, who also shares the same passion with me – eating. I didn’t go into any experiment because I wanted to do the all-time favorite recipe, the quick and easy Chicken Sotanghon Guisado. The long noodles I used are also known as Dried Rice Vermicelli which is a kind of the Asian, rice-based noodle variety comparable with angel hair pasta. It is transparent and sold in long and wound skein. Most of Chinese noodles, including this, must be soaked in hot or lukewarm water before cooking to soften and uncoil the threads.

If we will dig into the origins of noodles, it will be a very long story particularly a very long history in Asia. Most of the noodle recipes now took a big leap from their nationalist origins. So they are not found only around Asia but across the world. Asian stir-fries and noodle dishes cook fast. Make sure you have all your ingredients prepped in advance.

2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1/2 kilo chicken breast, deboned sliced
1 head garlic, crushed
1 bulb onion, minced
3 tbsp. soy sauce
1/2 tsp. brown sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tsp. sesame oil
500 gms. Vermicelli Noodles
1 tsp. ground black pepper or more to taste
1 small cabbage, thinly sliced
1 medium carrot, peeled and thinly sliced

Place the vermicelli in a large bowl and cover them with very hot water, the hottest your tap can produce. Set aside to soften for 10 minutes, then drain. Set aside.

Heat a large nonstick wok over medium-high heat. Swirl in the vegetable oil, then add garlic, onion and chicken. Stir-fry just until the chicken turns white, about 3 minutes.

Stir in the water, soy sauce, sugar, and black pepper. Bring to a simmer until chicken is cooked.

Add the noodles. Raise the heat to high and cook, tossing constantly, until the noodles absorb
much of the sauce and what remains is a glaze, about 3 minutes.

Add the carrots and cabbage. Cook, stirring gently but constantly, until heated through, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat, add sesame oil and toss gently.

Serve.

No, it’s not Italian nor Filipino…

Neither a beef nor chicken…

It is Spanish Style Sardines Pasta from Tita Bel’s kitchen of experiments. A quick fix meal with only few ingredients yet will give you that great hit of spicy and sweet flavor. Spanish sardines in jars are best (in flavor and in price) but if you are in a tight budget, those in cans are okay.

Tita Bel’s Pasta

500 grams spiral noodles, cooked

1 tbsp. garlic, minced
½ cup white onions, chopped
1 small can/jar of Spanish Style sardines
1 250ml Spaghetti Sauce (I suggest RAM Spanish Style Spag Sauce)
1 tbsp. patis (fish sauce)
1 tbsp. tomato paste
3 tbsp. water
1 tbsp. brown sugar
Grated cheese

Drain the Spanish sardines. Set aside sardines oil.
Mix water and tomato paste. Set aside.
Sauté garlic, onions and sardines in sardines’ oil. Make sure to sauté well.
Add patis.
Then, add spaghetti sauce and tomato paste mixture.
Next, add brown sugar.
Lastly, simmer for 5 minutes.

Pour sauce over pasta. Top with grated cheese.

* If you have kids at home, you might want to add another tablespoon of brown sugar to make it more kid-friendly taste or use sweet blend spaghetti sauce instead.