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Betty A.
February 15, 2017
This is the kind of soup meal we need on a chilly winter day like today. Thanks for sharing. I love it when Food 52 shares Filipino recipes I grew up with. It's like a warm smile from home.
Churpie
February 15, 2017
"Unlike Chinese cooking, Filipino cuisine tends to use a lot of garlic and onion..." Wtf, this statement is completely BS. Chinese food all over uses garlic and onions. This "Pancit Molo (Filipino Pork Dumpling Soup)" is basically Chinese wanton soup; also "paos" (bao), "pancit" (chow mein), and "lumpia" (spring rolls)!
Mary-Ann
February 15, 2017
Ms. Churpie. I can understand your indignation. The Philippines, which is composed of 7100 islands (depending on whether it's high or low tide), has been trading with Chinese merchants for more than a millennium. Naturally, there would be cultural exchanges, even intermarriage. In Binondo, a district in Manila, they boast of one of the oldest and still functioning Chinatown, complete with horse-drawn carriages, shrines with incense burning, and little hand-made dumpling shops. Just about every household has their own pancit molo, made from scratch. And no, you can't really say it's just a Chinese dumpling soup. Our Chinese friends would not agree. I'm half Chinese. And my Chinese dad would laugh and disagree with you. When the Italians adopted the Chinese noodles to make their pasta, did the world dismiss it as above? Cultures may adapt certain ideas but they end up making it their own. Chinese cooking uses garlic and onions very differently than Filipinos do. And it makes for very distinct cuisines. Thank you.
Patricia R.
February 15, 2017
"Chinese cooking uses garlic and onions very differently than Filipinos do. And it makes for very distinct cuisines."
Having grown up in a Filipino household and then married into a Chinese family, I agree with you on that. The biggest difference in the use of garlic and onions for me, compared to Chinese cooking, is that in many (if not most) of the Filipino dishes I make, the recognizably Filipino flavor comes from cooking the garlic and onions until deeply caramelized--almost burnt. That isn't to say that they don't do that in Chinese cooking too, but I've experienced it more in Filipino cooking.
Having grown up in a Filipino household and then married into a Chinese family, I agree with you on that. The biggest difference in the use of garlic and onions for me, compared to Chinese cooking, is that in many (if not most) of the Filipino dishes I make, the recognizably Filipino flavor comes from cooking the garlic and onions until deeply caramelized--almost burnt. That isn't to say that they don't do that in Chinese cooking too, but I've experienced it more in Filipino cooking.
Mary-Ann
February 15, 2017
Agree with you on that! We do the long slow saute to extract the best of these aromatics. The garlic component can even be more prominent, depending on what region the dish hails from. Sometimes, it can even rival a Gilroy Garlic Festival!
yummyinmytummy
February 15, 2017
Pancit (means noodles) was introduced by the Chinese, but the Filipinos have adopted pancit into the local cuisine prepared in a variety of ways, including fried noodles (Chow Mein). The Pancit Molo does resemble the Chinese Wonton Soup, HOWEVER, the ingredients and the flavour distinct itself from any other dumpling soup. I think it's more flavourful and perfect on a cold winter or rainy day. It warms my heart just thinking about it :) Thank you for sharing the recipe!
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