A comforting Filipino noodle soup made with tender pork meatballs, miswa noodles, and fresh vegetables—perfect for a rainy day or a light family meal.
Cooking Tips:
• Frying the meatballs first keeps them firm and prevents them from falling apart in the soup.
• Soak sotanghon in water for 10 minutes before cooking to shorten the boiling time.
• Add leafy vegetables last to keep their bright color and nutrients.
Ingredients Tips:
• You can replace pork with chicken for a lighter version.
• Fresh sweet corn gives better flavor, but canned corn works in a pinch.
• Patola can be swapped with zucchini if not available.
Sotanghon Bola-Bola
A comforting Filipino noodle soup made with tender pork meatballs, sotanghon noodles, and fresh vegetables—perfect for a rainy day or a light family meal.
Ingredients
For the Bola-bola (Meatballs):
- 1 kg ground pork
- 2 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tbsp ground black pepper
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 2 eggs
- 1 pork cube crushed
- Cooking oil for frying
For the Soup:
- 2 tbsp cooking oil
- 1 medium onion chopped
- 1 head garlic minced
- 1.5 liters water
- 1 pork cube
- 2 pcs sweet corn kernels removed
- 300 g sotanghon mung bean noodles
- 2 pcs patola sponge gourd, sliced
- Salt and pepper to taste
- A handful of spinach leaves
- A handful of saluyot leaves
Instructions
Prepare the Bola-bola:
- In a large bowl, combine ground pork, garlic, salt, cornstarch, eggs, and pork cube. Mix until well combined.
- Form into bite-sized balls.
- Heat oil in a pan and fry meatballs until golden brown. Set aside.
Cook the Soup:
- In a large pot, heat cooking oil. Sauté onion and garlic until fragrant.
- Add water and pork cube, then bring to a boil.
- Stir in sweet corn and simmer for 5 minutes.
- Add the fried meatballs and cook for another 5 minutes.
- Add sotanghon noodles and simmer until softened.
- Stir in patola and cook for 2–3 minutes.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Finish and Serve:
- Add spinach and saluyot leaves just before turning off the heat.
- Serve hot with steamed rice or on its own as a hearty soup.
