It all started at the La Paz Market in Iloilo. There was a family selling meat at the market. At the end of the day, there were leftover parts of the beef. From those leftover beef parts came the birth of the most famous dish of Iloilo: batchoy.
There is also a shop at the market that sells thin egg noodles, and these two—combined with the rich and delicious broth—gave birth to our beloved noodle dish.
Almost every year, I get an invite to judge or participate in some culinary event in Iloilo. Chef Tibong Jardeleza spearheads anything culinary in the city. It is one of the places I refuse to skip because of the dining places Tibong brings us to.
As soon as we land at the airport, we hop into a van, and the first stop is the La Paz Market, where we immediately have batchoy. Deco’s at the La Paz Market is the batchoy of choice of our host. As we wait in anticipation, we ready our utensils, along with the pepper and the puto that go with it.
Our first sip from the piping-hot broth starts with blowing off some of the heat and savoring this provincial specialty. The broth is clean-tasting, very hot, and soothing to the tummy. Pepper elevates this broth. This dish is so delicious that we sometimes come back for one more bowl before leaving. Another popular spot at the market is Netong’s, which is, to me, equally delicious.
A few weeks after this trip, I often find myself craving authentic batchoy.
I play badminton with my second family almost every day in our village. One of our top players is from Iloilo and, as a young student, would go from one batchoy place to another every day, deciding who made the best batchoy in town.
“Sometimes, I wonder how I didn’t get sick with all the batchoy I had,” he says. With that exposure to so many versions of batchoy, he now creates his own.
One morning while playing, I heard that our badminton buddy Eric was bringing his version of authentic Iloilo batchoy. He arrived with a portable burner, and on top was piping-hot broth. His cooked noodles were in a container, complete with the meat toppings and other ingredients.
We quickly finished our games, and while still hot and sweaty, one by one, we took turns trying it. Some took some home, but I tried it right there. I got the container of noodles, poured in some piping-hot broth, let the broth stay for a minute, then poured it back and added a fresh ladle of hot soup.
I like my food very hot. Doing this heats the filling, giving you a piping-hot serving of batchoy.
I took a spoon of the broth, blew on it, and tasted it. OMG! Delicious, clean, tasty, rich, and absolutely delicious broth. Then I combined the noodles with the broth and—voila!—winner! I wanted to kiss Eric. It was that good.
This brought me back to the La Paz Market in Iloilo. Eric’s version is just as delicious as Deco’s and Netong’s, if not better. To me, though, a little more chopped onions and fried garlic on top would make it even better. His broth is the key to this winner.
I have ordered from Eric three more times. I have secretly branded him the Batchoy King of Manila. Panalo! We are blessed to have him in our badminton family.
Today, I don’t have to wait a year for Chef Tibong’s invite to try Iloilo’s rich and delicious noodle dish. I just message Eric!
Want to experience authentic batchoy in Manila? Send Eric a message! He makes a fresh batch once a week.
Check him out: Eric Navarro – 0917 8133742