Pancit Malabon by popular Filipino bakery Goldilocks. Photo: @goldilocksph / Instagram
Pancit Malabon by popular Filipino bakery Goldilocks. Photo: @goldilocksph / Instagram
Pancit Malabon by popular Filipino bakery Goldilocks. Photo: @goldilocksph / Instagram
Pancit Malabon by popular Filipino bakery Goldilocks. Photo: @goldilocksph / Instagram

What is Filipino pancit, the noodle dish named one of the best stir-fries?


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Three variations of Filipino pancit have made it to the 50 Best Stir-Fries in the World by TasteAtlas.

The term pancit refers to various noodle dishes in Filipino cuisine. Pancit Malabon, Pancit Bihon and Pancit Canton are the ones included in the list.

Pancit Malabon ranked 22nd with 4.2 stars, beating other famous stir-fries such as the chow mein from China and Singapore's kway teow.

The dish gets its name from its city of origin, Malabon – about 10km north of the Philippine capital Manila – that is known for its abundance of fresh seafood.

Pancit Malabon uses thick rice noodles with a shrimp-infused sauce. It is typically served with various seafood toppings such as squid and mussels, as well as hard-boiled eggs, pork crackling and dried fish flakes.

“Like other pancit varieties, this local favourite is also traditionally served on special occasions,” the international food database writes on its website.

Pancit Bihon came in 34th place with four stars. Perhaps the most famous variant of pancit, it uses thin translucent rice noodles infused with soy sauce. It comes with sliced pork or chicken and various vegetables, and is served with a light squeeze of calamansi or lemon.

The third type is Pancit Canton, ranking 36th with 3.9 stars. The dish is mostly prepared the same as the Bihon variation, but it uses thin yellow wheat noodles cooked with meat, seafood and vegetables. The sauce is a mixture of soy and oyster.

Aside from its flavours and easy preparation, pancit holds some cultural value among Filipinos, who believe that serving the dish at birthday parties brings a long and prosperous life for the celebrant.

Topping the TasteAtlas list is phat kaphrao from Thailand with a 4.8 rating. The traditional dish combines meat or seafood with holy basil and other ingredients such as shallots, garlic and chilli peppers.

According to the food database: “The dish is flavoured with soy sauce, sugar and fish sauce and typically comes served with rice, a fried egg and fish sauce on the side.”

Coming in second is South Korean's dak galbi (4.7 rating), followed by tibs from Ethiopia (4.6 rating) and Peruvian dish lomo saltado (4.5 rating). China's beef chow fun (4.5 rating) rounds out the top five.

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Zakat definitions

Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.

Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.

Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.

Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.

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Where to donate in the UAE

The Emirates Charity Portal

You can donate to several registered charities through a “donation catalogue”. The use of the donation is quite specific, such as buying a fan for a poor family in Niger for Dh130.

The General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments

The site has an e-donation service accepting debit card, credit card or e-Dirham, an electronic payment tool developed by the Ministry of Finance and First Abu Dhabi Bank.

Al Noor Special Needs Centre

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Beit Al Khair Society

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Dar Al Ber Society

Dar Al Ber Society, which has charity projects in 39 countries, accept cash payments, money transfers or SMS donations. Its donation hotline is 800-79.

Dubai Cares

Dubai Cares provides several options for individuals and companies to donate, including online, through banks, at retail outlets, via phone and by purchasing Dubai Cares branded merchandise. It is currently running a campaign called Bookings 2030, which allows people to help change the future of six underprivileged children and young people.

Emirates Airline Foundation

Those who travel on Emirates have undoubtedly seen the little donation envelopes in the seat pockets. But the foundation also accepts donations online and in the form of Skywards Miles. Donated miles are used to sponsor travel for doctors, surgeons, engineers and other professionals volunteering on humanitarian missions around the world.

Emirates Red Crescent

On the Emirates Red Crescent website you can choose between 35 different purposes for your donation, such as providing food for fasters, supporting debtors and contributing to a refugee women fund. It also has a list of bank accounts for each donation type.

Gulf for Good

Gulf for Good raises funds for partner charity projects through challenges, like climbing Kilimanjaro and cycling through Thailand. This year’s projects are in partnership with Street Child Nepal, Larchfield Kids, the Foundation for African Empowerment and SOS Children's Villages. Since 2001, the organisation has raised more than $3.5 million (Dh12.8m) in support of over 50 children’s charities.

Noor Dubai Foundation

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum launched the Noor Dubai Foundation a decade ago with the aim of eliminating all forms of preventable blindness globally. You can donate Dh50 to support mobile eye camps by texting the word “Noor” to 4565 (Etisalat) or 4849 (du).

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

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The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Part three: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Updated: September 17, 2023, 1:08 PM`