Five Ingredient Pancit Bihon (Rice Stick Noodles)

Pancit Bihon is the rice stick version of the whole repertoire of noodles in the Philippines.  We have egg (actually flour in some brands) noodles or pancit canton and sotanghon noodles made from mung beans. These three types of noodles are in almost every Filipino pantry even in the homes of those who have moved here in the United States.  I keep them in stock so I have them every time I have a craving for pancit, the Filipino general term for noodles.

In this dish I used the rice stick noodles to make Pancit Bihon, a very popular dish in the Philippines served for everyday meals as well as parties.  I had some guests yesterday and one of them has gluten allergy so Pancit Bihon came to mind.  I was preparing a lot of other dishes so I wanted a simple version of this dish and this is what I came up with.  Five ingredients but everybody loved it including my friend Linda who wanted the recipe.

Five Ingredient Pancit Bihon (Rice Stick Noodles)

• 1 lb rice stick noodles (available in Asian stores and the ethnic sections of large grocery stores)
• 1 box vegetable or chicken broth (4 cups)
• 6 carrots cut into disks
• 6 celery stalks cut into 1/2 inch pieces
• 1 whole cabbage, cut into bite sized pieces
• salt and pepper to taste.

Soak the rice stick noodles in water for 10 minutes for easy handling.  

Place the broth in a pot and place the cut vegetables and cook them till they are soften but still crunchy. Do not overcook.  

Remove the vegetables from the pot with a slotted spoon. Place the rice stick noodles in the broth and cook the noodles till they are pliable and edible and the liquid has evaporated.  Stir while cooking the noodles especially towards the end when most of the broth is gone.  You may add more broth or water if you need it until the noodles are in the pliable and edible state.  Do not overcook it either or it will be soggy.

Mix the cooked vegetables with the noodles.  Season with salt and pepper.  You can use soy sauce or fish sauce instead of salt if you like.  

Note:

This is a large batch. You can freeze the leftovers.  It is one noodle that freezes well.