Pancit Chami
Pancit Chami is a delicious noodle dish that everyone will enjoy! Stir fried miki noodles glistening with sauce cooked with pork, chayote and carrots.
If you’ve been to Lucena City, chances are you’re familiar with pancit chami. I had my first authentic experience with this tasty noodle dish when we visit my sister-in-law in Lucena. Flavorful miki noodles with pork, chayote and carrots sitting in aromatic sauce. We don’t leave the city without having pancit chami.
What is Pancit Chami?
Like Pancit Miki Guisado and Lomi, this noodle dish has miki noodles as a prominent ingredient. Authentic pancit chami recipe only requires chayote, carrots and a choice of protein. This noodle dish is the pride of Lucena and they even have an annual festival for it.
Modern versions of the dish add other vegetables like bell peppers, cabbage and the likes. They also mix together proteins like chicken and shrimps. I’m sure these versions are delicious but I’d like to stick to the original pancit chami recipe.
Make you’re own miki noodles!
Miki noodles are in fact egg noodles. Miki noodles are sold fresh unlike Chinese egg noodles which are sold dried. You can also use dried egg noodles for this recipe but you need to cook them first in well-salted boiling water. But if you’re up for a challenge, why not make your own miki noodles using my homemade miki noodle recipe!
Tips for an amiable experience
I tried to stick to the authentic chami recipe but if you do want to add other vegetables or proteins, feel free to do so.
If you don’t have time to make homemade miki noodles, you can substitute with egg noodles that can be bought at Asian stores.
Pancit Chami is cooked with sauce in it. Do not let the sauce completely evaporate. Add water if necessary and adjust seasoning if needed.
The secret ingredient is always LOVE
You may also like:
Pancit Habhab or Pancit Lucban of Quezon province is a delicious medley of Miki Lucban noodles, vegetables and pork!
Pancit Malabon with thick rice noodles coated in rich and vibrant sauce and loads of toppings.
Pancit Chami
Ingredients
- 300 grams miki noodles (or egg noodles)
- ¼ kg pork belly
- 1-2 pcs chayote
- 2 pcs carrots
- 1 medium onion
- 3 cloves garlic
- ½ cup soy sauce
- 2 tbsp fish sauce
- 1 tbsp black ground pepper
- 3 cups pork broth
- 3 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 tbsp salt (for boiling pork)
Instructions
- Boil pork belly in a pot with water and the 1 tbsp. of salt. When pork is soft and tender, remove from pot and save 3 cups of pork broth for later use.
- Cut the cooked pork belly in cubes approximately 2 in. x 2 in. Set aside.
- Heat oil in a wok or a deep pan over medium heat. Cook the pork belly slices until crispy and golden. Remove from wok and set aside.
- Using the same wok or pan, sauté onion and garlic until translucent and fragrant. Tip in carrots and chayote then cook until soft and tender. Add ground black pepper and fish sauce, give it a quick stir then remove vegetables from the pan and set aside.
- Pour the 3 cups pork broth and soy sauce in the wok or pan. Bring to a simmer for 10 minutes then taste and season if needed. Add miki noodles and stir to coat noodles with sauce.
- Add cooked pork belly and vegetables then stir to incorporate. Simmer for 10 minutes while occasionally stirring until the noodles are cooked through and there's still some sauce remaining.
- Remove from heat and serve while still warm. Bon appetit!
