When cooking dishes for Christmas Eve’s Noche Buena or the Christmas Day family celebration, there’s nothing more important than for the host to be well prepared with classic dishes which are crowd-pleasers.

Pancit Sotanghon with Shrimps, Ham and Vegetables (Photo by Elizabeth Ann Quirino)

Serves 4.

Ingredients

• sotanghon or cellophane noodles - 1 bundle (16 ounces), pre-soaked in water, 2 cups of noodles if uncooked (from Asian markets)
• shrimps - 1/2 pound, large, peeled, deveined
• garlic - 2 cloves, peeled, minced
• onion - 1 whole medium, chopped
• celery - 1 cup chopped
• patis or Filipino fish sauce - 4 Tablespoons (from Asian markets), divided, use half for stir fry, rest for dipping side sauce
• vegetable or corn oil - 2 Tablespoons, for stir fry
• soup stock - 1 cup (vegetable or chicken broth)
• cooked ham - 1 cup, sliced in 1-inch strips
• carrot - 1 cup peeled and sliced pieces (from 1 large carrot)
• sugar snap peas - 2 cups, washed, edges trimmed
• lemon juice - from a whole piece, about 1 Tablespoon, divided, use 1 teaspoon for side dipping sauce
• green onions or scallions - 1 to 2 stalks, chopped (about 1/3 cup), for garnish
• salt - 1 teaspoon
• freshly ground black pepper powder - 1 teaspoon

Procedure

• If there are any, cut off the string which ties together the bundles of cellophane noodles.

• In a medium sized bowl filled with water at room temperature, soak the sotanghon noodles for about 25 minutes. Do not pre-soak noodles longer than this time or they get mushy while cooking.

• Peel, devein and wash the fresh shrimps. Set aside.

• After 25 minutes, drain the water from the noodles. Let the noodles rest on a colander and set aside for later.

• In a large skillet, over medium high heat, add the cooking oil. After 1 to 2 minutes when the oil is hot enough, sauté the garlic, onions, celery. Once the onions are transparent, in about 2 minutes, add the peeled shrimps. Pour in the patis (fish sauce) and soup stock or broth.

• When the shrimps are cooked and turn pink, in about 8 to 10 minutes, add the cooked ham strips and carrots. Blend ingredients well. Then add the snow peas which should take 3 to 5 minutes to cook. Do not overcook the snow peas or they will not be crunchy.

• Add the pre-soaked noodles to the skillet. Incorporate well with the rest of the ingredients, making sure the liquid coats the noodles evenly. Continue cooking for 5 minutes more. The soup stock will get absorbed by the noodles in a few minutes and that is okay. Season with salt and black pepper. Sprinkle a few drops of lemon juice all over the noodles. Garnish with scallions. Serve with a side of fish sauce.