Pancit Malabon is the ultimate noodle experience! Topped with flavor-packed shrimp gravy and various seafood and garnishes, this classic Filipino dish is hearty, tasty, and sure to wow the crowd!
One of my close friends had a baby shower-slash-potluck over the weekend. I initially planned on buying a tray of sandwiches or a couple of large pizzas for the party, but my other friend coordinating the get-together insisted that I prepare a homemade dish, even going as far as delegating Pancit Malabon to me.
I have no complaints, as I haven’t had this Filipino classic for a while, and I was eager to satisfy the cravings. Judging from the empty aluminum pan I brought the pancit in, everyone enjoyed it as much as I did.
What is Pancit Malabon
Pancit Malabon is a traditional Filipino dish that originated in Malabon city, hence the name. Like most pancit, it’s commonly served during fiestas or special occasions on a bilao, a flat-round container of woven bamboo, rattan, or wood, which adds to the “native feel” of the dish.
It’s made of thick rice or cornstarch noodles and a yellow-orange-hued sauce that draws flavor and color from achuette (annatto seeds), shrimp broth, and crab fat. The array of toppings reflects the abundant coasts of the area where fishing was once a major livelihood, and it’s common to find it heavily laden with harvests from the sea.
Ingredients notes
- Noodles – Pancit Malabon uses thick rice or cornstarch noodles. They’re cooked in boiling water, drained, and tossed with shrimp gravy before garnishing with various toppings.
- Sauce – the yellow-orange gravy derives its color and taste from shrimp stock, patis, and atsuete. While it’s similar to that of Pancit palabok and Pancit luglug, adding crab fat gives it a more distinct flavor.
- Toppings – a generous assortment of seafood toppings set Pancit Malabon apart from other pancit dishes. The recipe includes hard-boiled eggs, blanched Napa cabbage, pork crackling, toasted garlic bits, green onions, shrimp, squid, and smoked fish flakes, but you can also add oysters, mussels, and scallops to make the dish extra special.
Quick tips
Soak the noodles just until softened and cook until al dente to keep from getting mushy. They will continue to soften when mixed with the hot shrimp gravy.
How to serve
- Due to a somewhat elaborate process, Pancit Malabon is usually reserved for fiestas or special gatherings such as birthdays and holidays.
- To serve, toss the noodles with the sauce, transfer to a bilao or platter, and garnish with the choice of toppings. To enjoy, spritz with calamansi to brighten the flavors.
How to store leftovers
- Store leftovers in a covered container and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- Reheat in the microwave at 2 to 3-minute intervals until completely warmed, stirring well after each interval.
More pancit recipes
Ingredients
- 1 package (16 ounces) thick cornstarch or rice noodle sticks
- water
For the Toppings
- canola oil
- 4 cups napa cabbage, shredded
- 1/2 pound pork belly, diced
- 1/2 pound squid, cleaned and cut into rings
- 1/2 pound large head-on shrimp,
- 1 cup tinapa flakes
- 1 cup pork cracklings, crushed
- fried garlic bits
- 4 hardboiled eggs, peeled and quartered
- 1/4 cup green onions, chopped
- calamansi
For the Sauce
- 5 cups shrimp stock
- 1 tablespoon annatto powder
- 2 tablespoons shrimp base powder or 2 bouillon cubes
- 2 tablespoons fish sauce
- 6 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons crab fat
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- In a bowl, soak noodles in water just until softened. Drain well.
- In a pot over medium heat, bring about 6 cups of water to a boil. Add noodles and cook for about 5 to 7 minutes or until cooked but firm to bite. Drain well and set aside.
- In a pot over medium heat, bring about 2 cups water to a boil. Add cabbage and cook for about 30 to 35 seconds or until tender yet crisp. With a slotted spoon, remove from pot and submerge into a bowl of iced water until cooled. Drain well and set aside.
- In a pot over medium heat, bring about 1 cup to a boil. Add squid and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, remove from the pot and set aside.
- In a pan over medium heat, add pork belly and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned and crisp. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels.
- Peel shrimp, leaving tail intact. Reserve shrimp heads.
- In a pot over medium heat, bring 1 cup water to a boil. Add shrimp and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes or until color changes. With a slotted spoon, remove shrimp from pot and set aside. Reserve liquid.
- In a pan over medium heat, add 1 tablespoon oil. Add tinapa flakes and cook, stirring regularly, for about 1 to 2 minutes or until lightly browned and heated through. Remove from pan and set aside.
- With a knife, coarsely chop reserved shrimp heads. In a pot over medium heat, combine shrimp heads and 5 cups water. Bring to a boil, skimming any foam that rises to top. Lower heat and simmer for about 10 minutes to extract flavor. Using a fine-mesh strainer, strain liquid and discard shrimp solids.
- In a small bowl, combine 1/4 cup of the shrimp stock and annatto powder. Stir well until annatto powder is dissolved and water has changed to orange color.
- In a large saucepot over medium heat, combine shrimp stock (about 4 cups from boiling the shrimp heads and about 1 cup reserved from boiling shrimp), fish sauce, and annatto water.
- Add shrimp base and stir until dissolved. Bring to a boil.
- In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 1/4 cup water. Stir until smooth. Whisking vigorously, slowly add the cornstarch slurry to shrimp stock and continue to cook for about 5 minutes or until slightly thickened.
- Add crab fat and stir until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
- In a large bowl, combine noodles, cabbage, sauce, chicharon and tinapa flakes. Gently toss and then transfer to serving plate.
- Top with hard boiled eggs, shrimp, pork, toasted garlic bits and green onions. Serve with calamansi wedges.
Notes
Video
Nutrition Information
“This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.”
danilo macaspac says
tnx for sharinghu your best recipe godbless
Lalaine Manalo says
You’re welcome. God bless!
Bernard Corrales says
Suggestion… if crab meat is not preferred, the meat of the shrimp may do good. I am not a fan of frozen crab meat myself. for additional flavor, boil the skin and head bone of the shrimp or crab and make it as base for the sauce. The pork rind (chicharon) also adds flavor.
Bernard Corrales says
If crab meat is not fresh, replace it with shrimp meat itself. Frozen crab sticks not as flavorful. The tinapa (dried fish), to me, is a MUST. Dash of green onion leaks VERY APPRICIATED.
jessica says
Hi! I’m not sure if you’ve tried Manila Sunset’s pancit malabon in Cerritos/Artesia area, but I was wondering if you have, does your recipe have a similar taste? I lived in Long Beach but moved to Las Vegas. They don’t have a manila sunset out here and i’m craving for pancit malabon.
Gerry says
What is Shrimp base?
Lalaine Manalo says
It’s like chicken bouillon but shrimp :). It comes in powder form or cubes and the most popular brand I can think of is Knorr.
janjan says
optional po ba ang paglagay ng taba ng talangka
Lalaine Manalo says
I highly recommend it but you can skip if you don’t have any available 🙂
Donna says
Pwede ba lutuin na yung sauce day before the event?
Lalaine Manalo says
Yes, you can. Make sure lang to refrigerate para di mapanis 🙂
jodolo says
where can you get shrimp stock? can we substitute using knorr shrimp boullion. making my own shrimp stock would double the cooking time…
jodolo says
or is this okay? https://www.campbells.com/swanson/stock/seafood-stock/ please let me know.
Lalaine Manalo says
I’ve never tried seafood stock but it should work since it’s common to add shrimp, squid and other seafood to Pancit Malabon 🙂
Lalaine Manalo says
I make it from scratch by boiling and then extracting the juices from shrimp heads but yes, you can use shrimp bouillon 🙂
RAine says
Where do you get the shrimp base? What does it look like? Which area in Seafood City or ISland Pacific do you find it in? Thanks
Lalaine Manalo says
It’s like chicken bouillon, usually Knorr ang brand. You can find it in powder form or cubes.
vilma says
Where do buy the crab fat from? Thank you
Lalaine says
I buy it from Seafood City in Cerritos, it comes bottled. Taba nang talangka 🙂