Chinese Vegan Radish Cake
The Chinese Vegan Radish Cake (turnip cake, loh bak go (蘿蔔糕) is a savory treat made with diakon radish, mushrooms, fresh herbs, spices and rice flour which is steamed, sliced and then gently pan-fried to perfection so it is crispy on the outside and soft and tender on the inside.
Servings: 16
Calories: 215kcal
Ingredients
- 12 dried mushrooms soaked for at least 30 minutes in hot water and chopped finely.
- 1 diakon radish
shredded - 1/4 cup water
to help soften the diakon - 1 tbsp Vegetable powder (gluten free) (Can substitute chicken powder if you are not vegan) Vegetable powder is the dried scoop-able version of vegetable bouillon. You can also use a vegetable bouillon cube and just crush and add to the recipe. We mention vegetable powder as this is what is available in Hong Kong)
- 1 tbsp sugar
or sugar alternative - white pepper
to taste - 1 tsp five spice powder
- 5 cups rice flour
- 5.5 cup water or as needed to create the consistency of soft cement
- 3 green onions
chopped (white and green sections) - water for steaming (amount depends on steaming apparatus used)
- 2 tbsp canola oil
for frying (Use a non-stick frying pan)
Chinese Dipping Sauce
- 4 tbsp tamari (soy) sauce - 4 tablespoons tamari sauce if need it to be gluten free
- 2 tsp Chinese black rice dark vinegar
- 1/2 tsp ginger grated
Instructions
- In a large wok, place one teaspoon of oil and then add shredded diakon and cook until softened and about 1/4 cup water to finish the cooking process. (about 10 minutes) Season diakon with vegetable or chicken powder (vegetable bouillon cube crushed), sugar salt, white pepper and five-spiced powder. All the water should be evaporated.
- Slowly add the rice flour, a little at a time, to the daikon mixture, stirring continuously. Add a little water at time to help smooth the product up to six cup of water. (The consistency you are looking for is like a soft cement or bondo for a car or maybe stiff frosting in the can (don't laugh) Don't let the mixture burn so keep it moving until you reach the right consistency. Please note: I had a very large diakon and I live in a super humid climate and all of these factors play a part in determining how much water you will need to add to your mixture. You may need to add between 5 to 6 cups of water, maybe less or maybe more, to achieve the soft cement like consistency. It is very important that you add just a little water at a time until you get to the consistency of soft cement. I needed to add 5.5 cups to achieve the consistency I was looking for.
- Turn the burner off. Add a little at a time the chopped mushrooms and spring onions to your diakon flour mixture. Season to taste.
- Scoop the batter into a 9-inch cake tin and level it and smooth out the batter. (If your steamer is small, divide diakon batter into 2 smaller pans)
- Do not worry if you do not have a"big fancy steamer". You can use your wok and place 2 chopsticks at the bottom of your wok in an "x" formation, then place a small plate of top, carefully add water to the bottom of your wok about 2 inches or so on the bottom, then place your diakon cake dish on top of plate and then place a lid on top of your wok and steam.
- Alternatively if you do not have a wok, there is always plan B for steaming. I use my big soup pot that has a lid. It is very deep but not very wide so I have to split my diakon batter into 3 smaller ovenproof round dishes. I place a very small oven proof round dish upside down on the bottom of my soup pot, then I place my small bowl or diakon batter on top of the upside bowl so the weight of it holds down the upside down bowl. Then I carefully pour my water inside my soup pot about 2 inches on the bottom without getting any on my diakon radish cake. I then place a lid on my soup pot to cover and steam the radish cake.
- Steam over high heat for approximately 45 minutes- 1 hour or until a chopstick comes out clean.
- Allow cake to cool in the refrigerator at least 4 hours or overnight.
- Make your dipping sauce. In a small bowl add Tamari (soya) sauce, black Chinese vinegar and freshly grated ginger, stir and set aside.
- Slice cake into slices. Put a little cooking oil in a frying pan and place the sliced diakon cake into the frying pan. Brown the diakon cake lightly on both sides until golden brown. Garnish with green onions and serve with dipping sauce. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
My favorite way to steam is to use my big soup pot with a lid. I put in an oven safe small bowl on the bottom upside down in the middle of the soup pan . Then, I set my Chinese vegan radish cake dish just on top of the upside bowl. It is pretty heavy so it will weight down the small upside down bowl. I then carefully add the water to the pan without getting any on the Chinese vegan radish cake. Put the lid on the big soup pan over the Chinese vegan radish cake and steam away. Alternatively, I cross two chopsticks in a wok with a lid and make the letter "X", add water to your wok, put a plate over the chopsticks and your Chinese Vegan Radish cake on top of plate and lid on top of your wok and steam away.
Nutrition
Serving: 1g | Calories: 215kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 418mg | Potassium: 117mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 22IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 17mg | Iron: 1mg