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chinese turnip cake recipe
- Total Time: 280 minutes
- Yield: 16–20 pieces 1x
- Diet: Dairy-Free, Vegan option available
Description
This easy Chinese turnip cake recipe features wonderfully crispy edges and a creamy, flavorful center, perfect as a hearty weeknight meal or a unique dim sum experience at home. It’s a budget-friendly and authentic dish designed for healthy family meals.
Ingredients
- 1.5 kg daikon radish, peeled and coarsely grated
- 15 g fine sea salt
- 40 g dried shiitake mushrooms, rehydrated and diced
- 25 g dried shrimp, rehydrated and chopped
- 20 g dried scallops, rehydrated and shredded
- 200 g glutinous rice flour
- 100 g rice flour (non-glutinous)
- 600 ml hot vegetable stock
- 45 ml vegetable oil
- 3 large shallots
- 4 cloves garlic
- 2 red bird’s eye chilies, deseeded and minced
- light soy sauce
- dark soy sauce
- sugar
- 2.5 ml white pepper
- spring onions, for garnish
- fried shallots, for garnish
Instructions
- Prep Daikon & Dried Ingredients: Grate 1.5 kg daikon, salt with 15g, and rest for 30 minutes to draw moisture. Squeeze firmly and discard liquid. Rehydrate, dice mushrooms, chop shrimp, and shred scallops.
- Make Chili Swirl: Heat 15 ml (1 tbsp) oil. Sauté 1 shallot, 2 garlic cloves, and 2 chilies for 2 minutes until fragrant. Add shrimp and scallops, cook 3-4 minutes until aromatic. Stir in light soy sauce, dark soy sauce, and sugar; cook 2 minutes until thick. Reserve 15 ml (1 tbsp) for garnish.
- Sauté Daikon & Mushrooms: In a large wok, heat 15 ml (1 tbsp) oil. Sauté remaining shallots and garlic for 2 minutes until fragrant. Add diced shiitake and squeezed daikon. Stir-fry for 5-7 minutes until daikon softens and is fragrant.
- Prepare Batter: Whisk glutinous rice flour, rice flour, white pepper, and salt. Gradually add 600 ml hot vegetable stock, whisking until a smooth, thick batter forms that coats the whisk. Stir in the stir-fried daikon and mushroom mixture.
- Assemble & Swirl: Grease a 20×20 cm (8×8 inch) pan. Pour 90% of the plain batter evenly into the pan. Add the reserved chili swirl to the remaining 10% batter, mix until dark. Dollop the dark batter over the plain batter and swirl gently with a skewer for distinct ribbons. If batter seems watery, add a spoonful of rice flour to thicken.
- Steam & Cool: Prepare a steamer. Place the pan inside. Steam over high heat for 60-75 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean and the cake looks firm. Cool completely for 2-3 hours at room temperature, or chill for 4+ hours for clean slicing.
- Pan-Fry & Serve: Invert the cooled turnip cake and cut into 1 cm (0.4 inch) thick rectangles. Pan-fry slices in oil for 3-4 minutes per side until golden and crispy. Drizzle with the reserved chili swirl and garnish with spring onions and fried shallots.
Notes
For best texture, use firm, white daikon radish. Dried ingredients can be bought in bulk online. To save time, use pre-grated daikon or prep dried ingredients and aromatics the night before. For a vegan option, omit dried shrimp and scallops, adding more shiitake, dried tofu skin, or smoked tofu. For a lighter option, reduce dried shrimp/scallops and increase shiitake. For a kid-friendly version, omit dried shrimp and chili swirl. The chili swirl is versatile and great on other dishes.
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 100 minutes
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Steaming, Pan-frying
- Cuisine: Chinese
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 2 pieces
- Calories: 250 calories
- Sugar: 3 g
- Sodium: 500 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 1 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 9 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 40 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 8 g
- Cholesterol: 45 mg