Pro Tips
**Chef's Tips & Troubleshooting:**
- Make sure the pan and oil are hot before adding ingredients for the best sear.
- Fry in batches to avoid overcrowding — lowering the temperature makes food greasy.
- Do not overcook the noodles — they will continue to soften when stir-fried in the pan.
- For crispy chicken, avoid flipping too often — let each side cook undisturbed to develop a crust.
Cooking Tips
For the most tender results, cook low and slow — a gentle simmer (not a vigorous boil) breaks down connective tissue without drying out the meat. Taste and adjust seasoning toward the end of cooking. As liquids reduce, flavors concentrate, so what tastes balanced early may become too salty later.
Ingredient Substitutions
Chicken alternatives: Pork shoulder or boneless thigh meat can substitute for chicken in stews. For lighter fare, extra-firm tofu or seitan works in stir-fries and braises. Short on time? A pressure cooker (Instant Pot) can reduce cooking time by roughly half for most braised and stewed Filipino dishes. Reduce liquid slightly since less evaporates.
Storage & Reheating
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3–4 days. The flavors often deepen overnight, making leftovers even more delicious. Reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat, adding a splash of water or broth if the sauce has thickened during storage. Microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring between each.
Garlic Bihon
Thin rice bihon noodles are stir-fried with copious amounts of crushed and chopped garlic, shredded chicken, julienned carrots, and chopped celery until each strand is fragrant, savory, and infused with deeply toasted garlic flavor.
Instructions
- Pour water into a cooking pot. Let boil. Add chicken. Boil for 35 minutes.
- Remove chicken from the pot. Let it cool down. Shred the chicken (separate meat from bones). Set the shredded meat aside.
- Add annatto seeds into the pot with chicken stock. Cover the pot, boil for 5 minutes. Set aside.
- Heat oil on a wide pan. Add garlic. Cook until the garlic turns golden brown in color.
- Remove half of the garlic from the pan. Set it aside.
- Continue cooking using the remaining garlic. Add onion and celery into the pan. Sauté until the onion softens.
- Add shredded chicken. Sauté for 1 minute.
- Pour the chicken stock into the pot while filtering the annatto seeds using a strainer or kitchen sieve. Let boil.
- Add Knorr Chicken Cube. Stir.
- Fold in carrot and half of the total green onions. Cook for 2 minutes.
- Add bihon noodles. Cover the pan. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Toss noodles and continue to cook until liquid gets totally absorbed.
- Season with ground black pepper and fish sauce (patis). Toss. Adjust heat to low. Cover the pan and cook for 1 ½ minutes.
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Pro Tips & Troubleshooting
- Make sure the pan and oil are hot before adding ingredients for the best sear.
- Fry in batches to avoid overcrowding — lowering the temperature makes food greasy.
- Do not overcook the noodles — they will continue to soften when stir-fried in the pan.
- For crispy chicken, avoid flipping too often — let each side cook undisturbed to develop a crust.
Cooking Tips
Taste and adjust seasoning toward the end of cooking. As liquids reduce, flavors concentrate, so what tastes balanced early may become too salty later.
Substitutions
Short on time? A pressure cooker (Instant Pot) can reduce cooking time by roughly half for most braised and stewed Filipino dishes. Reduce liquid slightly since less evaporates.
Storage & Reheating
Reheat on the stovetop over medium-low heat, adding a splash of water or broth if the sauce has thickened during storage. Microwave in 30-second bursts, stirring between each.
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