MOLO SOUP RECIPE

Molo Soup or Pancit Molo is a soup dish composed of a mixture of ground pork wrapped in wonton wrapper, shredded chicken meat, and shrimps. This dish resembles the Chinese wonton soup but the array of ingredients and flavor makes this dish stand out. After doing some research, I found out that this dish originated from a famous town in Iloilo, Philippines called “Molo” (yes, you guessed it right). But why call it Pancit (or Pansit) when there are no noodles in the dish? I too have the same question. Maybe our Ilonggo friends can help us out on this one.
I like my Molo soup topped with some minced green onions and lots of toasted garlic : I even put a teaspoon of fresh lemon or calamansi juice . This is one of the soups that I enjoy having during the cold months because it does not only make me feel warm ; it also brings out some childhood memories back home that are worth reminiscing.
This recipe is good for 20 people. We actually made this for a potluck party with our Filipino friends. Just use half or a quarter of the measurements depending on the number of people that you will share this with.
Try this Molo Soup recipe.

Ingredients:
2 lbs ground pork
2 lbs chicken
1 ½ cups water chestnut, minced
6 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon salt
1 cup shrimp, sliced, chopped, or minced
½ cup annatto seeds (soaked in ¾ cup water)

1 cup minced onions (¾ cup goes to the filling while ¼ is for sautéing)
2 packs wonton wrapper (about 100 counts)
½ cup minced green onions
4 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 tablespoons)
½ tablespoon ground black pepper
1 piece raw egg
¼ cup toasted garlic to garnish (please see Arroz Caldo post on how to toast garlic)
4 tablespoons cooking oil
12 cups water (8 cups to boil chicken, 4 cups to be added to the soup)

Cooking procedure:
1. Pour water in a casserole and bring to a boil.
2. Put-in the chicken and boil for 40 to 60 minutes or until tender
3. While waiting for the chicken to be tender, combine the ground pork, water chestnut, green onions, onions, egg, salt, and ground black pepper in a large mixing bowl then mix well until ingredients are well distributed.
4. Get a piece of wonton wrapper and place in a clean flat surface.
5. Scoop a tablespoon of the ground pork mixture and place on the middle of the wonton wrapper.
6. Wrap the ground pork mixture with wonton wrapper (watch the video for more information)
6.1 Slightly wet the borders of the wonton wrapper with water. This can be done by dipping your clean fingers in a cup with water and run it through the edges of the wonton wrapper.
6.2 Fold the wonton wrapper to secure the filling. The lower left end should meet the upper right end forming a triangle. Press the edges to make it intact and to avoid possibilities of opening)
6.3 Slightly wet the three pointed sides of the wonton wrapper then fold each of them towards the middle (as if you are trying to connect the pointed end to an imaginary dot in the center of the wrapper).
6.4 Continue doing this procedure until all the ground pork mixture is wrapped.
7. Remove the chicken from the boiling water and let it cool down. Set chicken stock (water used for boiling) aside.
8. Once the chicken reaches room temperature, manually separate the meat from the bones then chop the separated meat to your desired sized. Set aside.
9. Heat a clean casserole then pour-in the cooking oil.
10. Sauté the garlic and onions then add the chopped chicken and cook for 3 to 5 minutes.
11. Add the fish sauce, annatto water (water from the soaked annatto seeds), and chicken stock then bring to a boil.
12. Pour-in additional water then bring to a boil once more
13. Add the shrimps then cook for a minute
14. Add the wrapped ground pork mixture and cook for 12 to 18 minutes (use low heat)
15. Put-in some minced green onions and toasted garlic as desired.
16. Transfer to a serving bowl and serve while hot. Share and enjoy!