Wooden Spoon-Style Crab Pancit

You can say that Wooden Spoon's popular Crab Pancit is French. The recipe was conceived in Paris for Aux Iles Philippines, the Filipino restaurant helmed by culinary icon—and mother of Wooden Spoon chef Sandy Daza—Nora Daza. It looks nothing like the pancit back home. Here, a thick egg and crab sauce rests on a pale white nest of fried vermicelli noodles, richly flavored yet light enough to be an appetizer.

The last surviving Wooden Spoon branch closed during the pandemic. Fortunately, you can replicate their Crab Pancit at home with this recipe. The crab sauce's intense flavor eluded our multiple tests, until a dash of Magic Sarap came along and finally cracked it.