Chinese Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go)

Up close with a plate of Chinese turnip cakes.

Chinese Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go)

Let’s make your dim sum favorite, Chinese Turnip Cake or lo bak go with this delicious and easy recipe. This savory turnip cake recipe is made with fresh daikon radish, juicy Chinese sausage, shiitake mushrooms, and shrimp for the most delicious Lunar New Year dish.

Course Appetizer, Appetizer & Sides, Lunch & Dinner Recipes, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine Chinese

Keyword Chinese radish cake, Chinese turnip cake, Chinese turnip cake recipe, daikon cake, lo bak go, pan fried turnip cake, radish cake, radish cake recipe, turnip cake, turnip cake recipe

Prep Time 45

Cook Time 45

Chill Time 30

Total Time 2

Servings servings

Calories 306kcal

Author Megan

Equipment

Ingredients

2 tablespoon (25 g) dried shrimp soaked and diced
3-4 dried shiitake mushrooms soaked and diced
2 lb Daikon radish peeled and grated
4 cloves garlic minced
1 ½ piece (100 g) Chinese sausage minced
2 stalks green onion minced

Batter

1 ¾ cup (210 g) rice flour
2 tablespoon (20 g) cornstarch
1 cup (255 ml) water

Seasoning

1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 teaspoon chicken bouillon powder
½ teaspoon white pepper
1 teaspoon sesame oil

Instructions

Prep

Rinse and soak. Rinse the shiitake mushrooms and dried shrimp separately. Add each ingredient into different bowls and add hot water to cover. Soak for 15 minutes or until soft. Drain and dice into small pieces. And squeeze out some water from the mushrooms.
Peel and grate daikon. Peel and shred the daikon radish using a grater or a food processor.
Make the batter. Combine the rice flour and cornstarch in a mixing bowl. Add the water and whisk until smooth. Set aside.

Cook

Cook garlic, shrimp, and mushrooms. In a large skillet or wok on medium-high heat, add 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil and wait until the pan is hot. Then, add the minced garlic, chopped shrimp, and chopped mushrooms. Saute for about 30 seconds to 1 minute.
Cook the Chinese sausage. Next, add the minced Chinese sausage and saute for an additional 30 seconds.
Cook daikon. Add the shredded daikon and mix to combine. Cover the wok or skillet and cook for 6-7 minutes.
Add seasoning. After the daikon has cooked, add the salt, sugar, chicken bouillon, white pepper, and sesame oil. Mix to combine. Then cover the wok and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes.

Steam

Prepare the cake pan. Line the bottom of your cake pan with parchment paper and grease the edges of the pan.
Assemble. Gently give the batter a stir. Then slowly add the batter into the daikon mixture and stir until combined and there are no more clumps and the mixture has thickened, about 1-2 minutes. Then pour the mixture into the prepared cake pan and use a spatula to flatten the surface.
Prepare the steamer. Fill your steamer with water and bring it to a boil on high heat. Then transfer the cake pan to the steamer and steam on medium-high heat for 40 minutes. (Optional) About 35 minutes in, sprinkle minced green onion on top of the turnip cake. The turnip cake will be done when you pull a toothpick out from the center and it comes out clean.
Cool. Remove the turnip cake from the steamer and let it cool at room temperature for 30 minutes to 1 hour before removing and slicing.
If pan frying. If you want to pan-fry the turnip cake, the cake needs to be set in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight. To fry, heat 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil in a large pan over medium-high heat. Then pan fry slices of the turnip cake for about 4-5 minutes on each side until golden and crispy.
Serve. Serve the turnip cake with chili crisp or soy sauce. Enjoy!

Notes

Pick a plump radish with a smooth surface. Plump radishes with smooth surfaces indicate a freshly picked radish that is less bitter.
Shred the daikon with a food processor. If you have a food processor, use the shredding function on it. It will save you an immense amount of time and energy.
Soak the shrimp and shiitake mushrooms in hot water. Soaking the shrimp and mushrooms in almost boiling hot water will reduce the amount of time you need to soak them before cooking.
Check for doneness. You will know the daikon cake is done steaming when you insert a knife, chopstick, or toothpick into the center of the cake and it comes out clean.
Pan-fry the turnip cake. I recommend cooking pan-fried turnip cakes over eating them immediately after they are steamed. The pan frying gives the outer layer a subtle crisp that contrasts the soft interior beautifully.
Let the turnip cake rest before pan frying. If you opt for pan-fried turnip cake, I recommend chilling the steamed Chinese radish cake in the refrigerator for up to 4 hours to set. If not, the radish cake may be overly mushy and hard to pan-fry.
Storage: You can store this radish cake recipe in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. To reheat, pan-fry the Chinese radish cake on a hot oiled skillet until warm. Alternatively, you can store the turnip cake in the freezer in an airtight freezer safe container for up to 1 month

Nutrition