PANCIT CABAGAN: THE RECIPE AND ITS ORIGIN

Have you tried Pansit Cabagan (PANsi Cabagan)? If you travel up north, this is one delicious noodle dish that you must try! It’s surprising that I never got to blog about this native delicacy when, in fact, my hometown Cabagan is its origin. Travelers would often drop by our town to savor the unique taste of our very own pancit!

The History of Pancit Cabagan

I had the chance to access the study conducted by the Socio-cultural and Higher Education Research Department of Isabela State University, and I learned some facts about the origin of “Pansi Cabagan,” which I’ll share with you today.

Like any other noodle dish in the Philippines, Pansit Cabagan is of Chinese origin. According to the research conducted, in the year 1887, a group of Chinese traders who originally came from Amoy (now Xiamen), China, landed in Aparri, Cagayan. One of the traders was said to be responsible for introducing pancit in Cabagan. His name is Sia Liang, also known as Dianga. Dianga married a Filipina named Augustina Deray Laddaran, who established a panciteria in Cabagan during the pre-war period.

Dianga made his own “miki” (uncooked noodles). He used first-class wheat flour. The dough was mixed with lime (lejia), derived from guava fuel, kneading it with a long and strong rolling pin that is attached to the wall. After the dough is flattened, it is thinly sliced using “campy” or the Chinese butcher’s knife to form the noodles. The original Pancit Cabagan, cooked by Dianga, was said to have the following ingredients: “hibi” (small dried shrimps) or pork, bagoong, soy sauce, cooking oil, and pork broth.

When one of his restaurant workers learned and mastered the “Miki” production, he set up his own “Miki” outlet and “pansiteria,” which was later followed by other people in the municipality.

During World War II, Dianga’s restaurant got burnt. However,  Dianga’s daughter, Potenciana Sia-Villa, opened a new restaurant after the war which was called The New Life Restaurant. Some years after, a few more restaurants that sell Pancit Cabagan were established. These were Mary’s Restaurant, Luring’s Panciteria, Ferring’s Restaurant, and Evergreen Restaurant. None of these restaurants are still open these days, but new ones are established. Nowadays, restaurants in Cabagan that specialize in pancit are Aling Kikay’s, Josie’s, and Felecita’s. These restaurants have their own version of Pancit Cabagan, which are all worth trying.

The New Pancit Cabagan Recipe

As the years passed, the recipe of Pancit Cabagan has changed, and has now gained popularity in different parts of Luzon. The new recipe has added garnish such as crunchy “‘lechon carajay’,  and boiled quail eggs. Here’s a sample recipe of the new version that you might want to try at home:

Ingredients

1 kg “Miki” (noodles)
1/2 clove garlic
2 pcs onion (medium-sized)
1/4 kg. pork
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tbsps. fish sauce
1/4 kg. cabbage
1 pc. green or red bell pepper
1 pc. carrot
1/4 cup chopped leeks or “kuchay”
1 tbsp. ground pepper
1/4 kg lechon kawali
20 pcs. boiled quail eggs
12-14 cups broth of pork bones

Steps for Cooking Pancit Cabagan

1. Saute garlic and pork. Cook until brown.
2. Pour soy sauce and fish sauce over the pork, then add beef broth. Let it boil until the pork becomes tender.
3. When the water is boiling, add “Miki” and simmer for three minutes.
4. Season to taste.
5. Serve and garnish with “kuchay”, sliced onions, quial eggs, and lechon kawali.

To enhance the taste of your Pancit Cabagan, you can add additional sauce—soy sauce with chili, chopped onion, and freshly squeezed calamansi juice!

Would you like to visit my hometown, Cabagan, and try our famous Pancit Cabagan? I highly recommend Josie’s Panciteria. The owner is a friend of my mom, and we are regulars at her restaurant! Josie’s Restaurant is right across Milagros District Hospital along the National Highway (her daughter has a new branch in Garita, Cabagan)!

How to Travel to Cabagan, Isabela

• Take a flight from Manila to Tuguegarao. From the airport, take a tricycle and tell the rider to take you to the bus or van terminal going to Cabagan, Isabela.

• Take a bus from Manila to Tuguegarao and ask the bus conductor to drop you off in Cabagan, Isabela.