What is a trip without a little culinary experience?
They say you've never really experienced a place unless you've had a taste of the local cuisine. So, whenever I get that chance to travel, I make it a point to go to the local food grubs and "do what the Romans do".
This is my friend Xander after finishing a spicy bowl of chao long. (WARNING: Do not put too much chili paste unless you can handle it. Else you would look like this guy after a few spoonfuls! haha)
Pretty Charm enjoying her first mouthful.
During my one week stay in Palawan, there was never a day that I didn't have a steaming bowl of Chao Long. Chao Long is Palawan's version of the Vietnamese noodles, "Pho", rice noodles in a clear broth of your choice (chicken, pork, beef, or beef ) with your choice of condiments on the side. This is Palawan's "batchoy", the go-to comfort food after a night of partying, breakfast, snacks, dinner, pretty much every meal.
Beef stew topped with condiments. YUM-O!
There is a Chao Long House in almost every street corner in Puerto Princesa, and some are even open 24/7 for those who have late night cravings. The very first eateries who offered this mouth-watering soup bowl were owned by Vietnamese who sought refuge in Palawan during the war, then recipe was passed on and evolved into the Chao Long we now love to binge on.
Chao Long is best paired with garlic bread to counter the chili.
Now, I'm back in the queen city of the south, with no chao long house in sight. It's raining and I am craaaaaviiing for a hefty bowl of homemade noodles.
I tried to recreate the tasty beef Chao Long stew, unfortunately it takes 8 hours of intensive cooking before it's ready to be devoured and I do not have the time and patience to wait that long. I guess we wont be seeing that cooking on the Master Chef kitchen anytime soon!(hahaha) So Instead, I opted to experiment on the chicken noodles and it was THE BOMB! It's filling and tasty. Nothing beats a steaming bowl of chicken soup on a rainy day.
Here's the recipe for Vietnamese chicken noodles. Do not be deceived by the long list of ingredients. It's easy and it only takes about 15 to 20 minutes.
VIETNAMESE CHICKEN NOODLES (PHO GA)
Ingredients:
Soup Base – 1
Green Onion sliced in half
3 inches Ginger sliced in half
2
tbsp. sugar
2
tbsp. salt
1
Liter of water
½
kilo chicken (1 lb.)
A
pack of Rice Noodles
Spices - 1 piece Cinnamon bark
5
pcs. Star Anise
1
tbsp. Fennel seeds
1
tbsp. Cumin seeds ( you may also use powder)
1
tbsp. Coriander seeds
1
tbsp. Black pepper corns
2
cloves
·
Put all of the spices in a cheese cloth (if it’s
not available, you can you use a sterile gauze) and make sure to tie it up. You
may also toast the spices before you put them in the bag.
Condiments - Bean
sprouts (cleaned and with ends pinched off)
Basil
leaves (Chinese basil is preferred, but you could definitely use Italian basil)
Onion
leaves / scallions (chopped)
Chili
(sili espada / labuyo / jalapeno) chopped
Red
onions (chopped thinly)
Fish
sauce
Chili
paste
Hoisin
Sauce
Procedure:
1.
Pour water into a pot and bring to boil. Add
sugar and salt.
2.
Place onion and ginger in a bowl and cook in the
microwave for 2-3 minutes then add to boiling water. Let it simmer for 3
minutes.
3.
Add chicken and let it boil for 7 minutes. (Be
sure to take out the scum).
4.
Put in spice bag. Simmer for another 5 minutes
then turn it off.
5.
Take out the chicken and debone. Cut into bite size
pieces
6.
In a separate pot, cook noodles as instructed in
the box. Drain.
7.
In a big bowl, put together the noodles,
chicken, and soup.
8.
Serve with condiments on the side
ENJOY!
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