Mami (pronounced: ) is a popular

Filipino Filipino may refer to: * Something from or related to the Philippines ** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines. ** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...

noodle soup Noodle soup refers to a variety of soups with noodles and other ingredients served in a light broth. Noodle soup is a common dish across East Asia, Southeast Asia and the Himalayan states of South Asia. Various types of noodles are used, such as ...

made with

wheat flour Wheat flour is a powder made from the grinding of wheat used for human consumption. Wheat varieties are called "soft" or "weak" if gluten content is low, and are called "hard" or "strong" if they have high gluten content. Hard flour, or ''brea ...

noodles Noodles are a type of food made from unleavened dough which is either rolled flat and cut, stretched, or extruded, into long strips or strings. Noodles are a staple food in many cultures (for example, Chinese noodles, Filipino noodles, I ...

broth Broth, also known as bouillon (), is a savory liquid made of water in which meat, fish or vegetables have been simmered for a short period of time. It can be eaten alone, but it is most commonly used to prepare other dishes, such as soups, ...

and the addition of meat (

chicken The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domestication, domesticated junglefowl species, with attributes of wild species such as the grey junglefowl, grey and the Ceylon junglefowl that are originally from Southeastern Asia. Rooster ...

beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quant ...

pork Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the domestic pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BCE. Pork is eaten both freshly cooked and preserved ...

) or wonton dumplings. It is related to the '' pancit'' class of noodle dishes, and the noodles themselves are sometimes called ''pancit mami''.

Origin

Its creation is generally attributed to Ma Mon Luk, a Chinese

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...

to the Philippines who began selling noodles served with chicken broth and chicken meat in

Binondo, Manila Binondo () is a district in Manila and is referred to as the city's Chinatown. Its influence extends beyond to the places of Quiapo, Santa Cruz, San Nicolas and Tondo. It is the oldest Chinatown in the world, established in 1594 by the ...

in 1920. He originally worked as an ambulant vendor, carrying the food in two metal vats on a pole much like '' taho'' vendors. Thus, mami was originally

street food Street food is ready-to-eat food or drinks sold by a hawker, or vendor, in a street or at other public places, such as markets or fairs. It is often sold from a portable food booth, food cart, or food truck and is meant for immediate consump ...

, but with the success of his business, Ma eventually opened up an eatery and ultimately a chain of restaurants bearing his name. As a street vendor, Ma originally called his dish "''gupit''", after the

Tagalog Tagalog may refer to: Language * Tagalog language, a language spoken in the Philippines ** Old Tagalog, an archaic form of the language ** Batangas Tagalog, a dialect of the language * Tagalog script, the writing system historically used for Tagal ...

word for “cut”, because he would cut the noodles and chicken with scissors. He later decided to call the dish "Ma mi" (). However, Ma did not have the name trademarked. Soon, imitation noodle soups sprouted with a name that was, personally, his.Jose Victor Z. Torres, The Legend of Ma Mon Luk
''Rogue'', April 2017 However, the claim that Ma invented the ''mami'', which originates from the media company

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Philippine commercial broadcast network that serves as the flagship property of ABS-CBN Corporation, a company under L ...

, is likely untrue. According to linguist Gloria Chan-Yap, ''mami'' is Fujianese in origin, not

Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding ar ...

; in

Philippine Hokkien Philippine Hokkien is a dialect of the Hokkien language of the Southern Min branch, primarily spoken vernacularly by Chinese Filipinos in the Philippines, where it serves as the local Chinese ''lingua franca'', primarily spoken as an oral langua ...

literally means "meat noodles" (). Like the siopao, the noodle dish already existed in Filipino-Chinese cuisine before Ma popularized his version.

References

Philippine soups Philippine fusion cuisine Philippine noodle dishes Chinese fusion cuisine {{soup-stub

Origin

See also

References