A traditional steamed Chinese turnip cake made with daikon radish, Chinese sausage, shiitake mushrooms, dried shrimp, and dried scallops.
Table of Contents
What is Lo Bak Go?
Lo bak go means Chinese turnip cake in Cantonese. It is also known as radish cake (daikon radish cake) and Chinese carrot cake. It's made with daikon radish (or Chinese turnip), rice flour, Chinese sausage (lap cheong), and shiitake mushrooms which are steamed into a cake. Once the turnip cake is steamed, it is cooled and sliced, and pan-fried so that the surface areas are crispy and the insides are nice and soft.
Most people are familiar with pan fried turnip cake because it is a very popular dim sum dish but it is also traditionally served during Chinese Lunar Year as well because it is associated with good luck.
That being said, daikon cake is definitely not just limited to Chinese New Year or dim sum. We like to make it all year round because it makes for an easy snack and we love the crispy pan-fried turnip cake tossed with a bit of xo sauce! Let's learn how to make this classic dim sum in the comfort of your home!
If you're like me and love making dim sum at home, I also have a steamed spare rib in black bean sauce recipe which I love making for dinner and serving with white rice, and a Chinese stuffed peppers recipe, that's delicious to make as an afternoon snack!
Chinese Turnip vs Daikon
Daikon tends to be a bit on the spicier side and can sometimes be slightly bitter, but for this recipe, you don't really need to worry about that since the spiciness and bitter flavors don't come through in this turnip cake.
I also find that it is easier to find daikon radish since it is a more popular ingredient. Sometimes they are even referred to as 'lo bak' in the store.
Chinese turnips are known but be a bit on the sweeter side and contain a bit more water in them.
Both work well with this recipe, and to be honest, you barely can tell the difference between the two ingredients when used in this recipe.
Ingredients and Substitutions for Chinese Turnip Cake
- Daikon Radish - When you are picking daikon radishes at the supermarket, make sure it is firm and not turgid. It shouldn't be very soft and bendy. The firmer it is, the more water it contains and the fresher it is.
- Rice Flour - When you are buying rice flour, make sure you are buying rice flour and not glutinous rice flour. Rice flour usually comes in clear packaging with red writing. Glutinous rice flour comes in clear packaging with green writing.
- Chinese Sausage - Chinese sausage (lap cheong) is a must for this recipe.
- Dried Shiitake Mushrooms - You can find this at any Chinese grocery store. You need to soak this in warm water 1 hour ahead of time to reconstitute it before you can use it.
- Dried Shrimp - If you can't find dried shrimp, this ingredient adds a bit more saltiness to the turnip cake and can be found at an Asian grocery store.
- Miso - Instead of salt, I like to use miso to give the turnip cake its savory flavor - it also gives it a nice umaminess as well. You can use salt if you don't want to use miso.
- Dried Scallops - Dried scallops need to be soaked ahead of time and reconstituted. This is an optional ingredient. If you want to go a more traditional route, you can use dried shrimp instead.
How To Make Turnip Cake
Preparing Daikon Radish
Peel the turnip and remove the ends. Then cut it into half or thirds so it is easier to work with. Whenever you cut any type of cylindrical shape veggie, always try to cut them in half so it sits on the cutting board flat side down, so it doesn't roll around while you're cutting it. I like to cut my turnip to 2mm match stick slivers. It gives a bit of substance to the cake but not giant big chunks. I prefer manually cutting them over grating it because I find you have a bit more control of the size of the matchsticks, and I personally think it's faster as well. If you prefer to grate your turnips, you can do that as well either by hand or with a food processor, keep in mind more water will come out of it, so it may make a softer cake.
Reconstituting Dried Scallops
If you are using dried scallops, you need to reconstitute them back with hot water. (It takes a while so start this right away) Try to use a smaller bowl so you can use less water but make sure that the scallops are covered with the water. Alternatively, you can do this with dried shrimp instead if you are going the more traditional route. You can use the water that was soaking the dried scallops as part of the 1 ½ cups of water for some extra flavor.
Make Sure the Turnip Cake Doesn't Stick to the Pan
It is very important to oil the pans you are using to steam the turnip cake so it doesn't get stuck to the bottom after it is cooked. I personally like to line the bottom of my pans with circular-shaped parchment paper and oil the sides so there is no chance of it ever sticking to the bottoms just to be safe. Make sure you also oil the sides of the pan as well.
Let It Cool Before Removing it From the Pan and Slicing It
Once the turnip cake has finished cooking, wait for it to cool before removing it from the pan so that it doesn't break. Once you remove it out of the pan, it is crucial to cool it for a few hours (preferably in the fridge) before cutting it and frying it. This is very important because it is too gooey to be cut and handled and it will break apart if you pan fry it before it has had a chance to solidify.
Tips
- Lo bak go is notorious for sticking to pans because of the rice flour, which makes it difficult to get that crispy exterior. I personally think it fries the best using a Teflon non-stick pan, and don't be shy with the oil as well.
- When you are shopping for rice flour, make sure you are not buying glutinous rice flour. It's a very different ingredient. Rice flour usually comes in plastic bags with red writing and glutinous rice flour comes in plastic bags with green writing.
- After it has finished steaming, you must make sure the turnip cake has been cooled in the fridge and had enough time to solidify before cutting it so that the turnip cake can hold its shape in the frying pan.
- When you are picking daikon radishes at the supermarket, make sure it is firm and not turgid. It shouldn’t be very soft and bendy. The firmer it is, the more water it contains and the fresher it is.
Turnip Cake Variations
Bacon, Cheese, and Onion
The bacon gives this turnip cake a salty smoky flavor and the pan-fried onions give it a slightly sweet onion flavor which is not very strong. The cheese and miso give this a bit of umami flavor and makes the texture a bit creamier as well. If you have some extra bacon fat from caramelizing the bacon, use it to fry up the turnip cakes! 🙂
- Cheese - I like to use sharp-aged cheddar for this recipe because it has a stronger and salty flavor to it and it melts into the lo bak go and gives it a creamy texture. That being said, I think any type of cheddar will work for this recipe. Try not to use mozzarella, it doesn't have much flavor and the only benefit to it is the cheese stretch. Cheese adds a lot of extra flavors if you are pan-frying the turnip cake because the cheese will caramelize and turn crusty.
- Bacon - For the bacon, you can use pretty much any kind of bacon of any thickness. Pancetta (Italian bacon) also works well as well.
Pan-Fried with XO Sauce
Once the turnip cake has cooled, you can cut them into 1-inch cubes and pan-fry them until crispy perfection. Once they are crispy, toss them with a bit of XO sauce or Chinese chili oil (we like the Chili crisp, from Lan Gao Ma) and you have a simple and delicious snack!
Steamed with Sweet Soy Sauce
Once you have finished steaming the turnip cake, you can eat it as-is! Serve it with a lot of fresh thinly sliced green onions drizzled with a sweet soy sauce and dig in!
How to Pan Fry Lo Bak Go
Once the turnip cake has completely cooled, cut them up into small pieces and pan-fry them! I like to cut them into 2 cm cubes and fry them up that way. I find they have more surface area to crisp up and brown that way and it also makes it much easier to eat as well. You can also slice them into the traditional rectangles as well.
If you have extra bacon fat, you can even add a bit of the bacon fat with some oil to fry them up with that for some extra flavor! 🙂
More Traditional Chinese Recipes You May Like
- Steamed Chinese Spare Ribs with Black Beans
- Chinese Sticky Rice (Lo Mai Fan)
- Bitter Melon Recipe with Black Bean Sauce
- Dim Sum Style Chinese Stuffed Peppers
- Sweet and Sour Pork Recipe
- Three Cup Chicken (San Bei Ji)
- Dry-Fried Long Beans and Minced Pork with Olive Vegetables
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Recipe Card
Chinese Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go, 萝白糕)
Recipe Notes
- IMPORTANT: You must make sure the turnip cake has been cooled in the fridge and had enough time to solidify before cutting it so that the turnip cake can hold its shape in the frying pan.
- When you are picking daikon radishes at the supermarket, make sure it is firm and not turgid. It shouldn’t be very soft and bendy. The firmer it is, the more water it contains and the fresher it is.
- When you are buying rice flour, make sure you are buying rice flour and not glutinous rice flour. Rice flour usually comes in clear packaging with red writing. Glutinous rice flour comes in clear packaging with green writing.
- Instead of salt, I like to use miso to give the turnip cake its savory flavor – it also gives it a nice umaminess as well, but if you don't want to use miso you can use salt.
- When you measure out the rice flour, make sure you are not using a heaping amount. Use the back of a knife and level out the measurement by running it along the rim of the cup to remove any excess rice flour.
- Lo bak go is notorious for sticking to pans because of the rice flour, which makes it difficult to get that crispy exterior. I personally think it fries the best using a Teflon non-stick pan, and don't be shy with the oil as well.
- Pan-Fried with XO Sauce - Once the turnip cake has cooled, you can cut them into 1-inch cubes and pan-fry them until crispy perfection. Once they are crispy, toss them with a bit of XO sauce or Chinese chili oil (we like the Chili crisp, from Lan Gao Ma) and you have a simple and delicious snack!
- If you are making the bacon, cheese, and onion variation, pan fry the finely chopped bacon and sliced cheese during the step you would normally pan fry the Chinese sausage and shiitake and follow the same steps afterwards. Add the grated cheese to the batter when you mix in the cooked turnip.
Ingredients
- 2 lbs Chinese turnip (Daikon Radish, approximately 10 inches in length and 3 inches wide), approx. 3-4 cups
- 1 Chinese sausage (lap cheong)
- 4 large dried shiitake mushrooms
- 4 small dried scallops or 2 tablespoons of dried shrimp (optional)
Turnip Cake Batter
- 1¾ cups rice flour (8oz, not glutinous rice flour)
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1¾ cups water
- 1 tablespoon white miso (or 1½ teaspoon salt)
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- ¾ teaspoon sugar
Garnish (Optional)
- Green onions
- Sesame seeds
- Pan fried dried scallops
Bacon, Cheese and Onion Variation (Not Traditional, See Notes)
- 1 cup sharp old cheddar (Grated)
- 1 small onion (Sliced, pan fried)
- 8-10 slices bacon (finely chopped and pan-fried)
Instructions
Preparation
- Soak the shiitake mushrooms in hot or boiling water until it is soft. Depending on the size, it may take 30 minutes to an hour. Try to fully submerge the shiitake mushrooms under water by placing a small plate into the bowl to weigh them down.Once it is soft, remove the stems and discard them, then chop them into small pieces and set them aside.
- Chop up the Chinese sausage into small pieces and set it aside.
- (Optional, if you are using dried shrimp or scallops) Add the dried scallops into a small bowl and cover it with ¼ cup of hot water. Make sure the scallops are fully immersed in the hot water. Keep it covered to 'steam' in the bowl for at least 30 minutes or until soft. Hand shred it into small pieces when it is soft and set it aside.Alternatively, you can use dried shrimp as well. Make sure you rinse the dried shrimp to remove any sand before you soak it. Roughly chop the shrimp once it is soft and set aside.
Preparing the Turnip
- Remove the ends of the turnip and peel it. Cut the turnip into half or thirds to make it easier to cut or grate if it is larger than 6 inches long.
- Option 1 - Smoother Turnip Cake: Grate the turnips by hand or with a food processor. I recommend this method if you plan to pan fry it because it will give you a smoother and flatter surface to get the most crispiness. Option 2 - Heartier and Chunkier Turnip Cake: Alternatively, you can cut the turnip by hand. Cut the smaller pieces in half lengthwise so that the turnip can sit flat side down on the cutting board so it doesn't roll around while you are cutting it. Cut them into thin 2mm slices and then stack them 3-4 slices high and cut across into 2mm matchsticks. (See blog post for photos). Set it aside
Preparing the Batter and Steamer
- In a large bowl, combine the rice flour, corn starch, sugar, miso (or salt), and white pepper. Mix everything together until there are no lumps and the batter is smooth. Set it aside for later.
- Prepare the steamer on the stove over medium heat. Make sure there is enough water in there to steam for 45 minutes to an hour. Fill it with enough water so that the water level is right below the steaming tray.If your wok or steaming tray doesn't have enough water after 25 minutes of steaming, you may need to add more water.
Cooking the Ingredients
- In a frying pan set to medium heat, add about 1 tablespoon of oil and wait for the oil to get hot.
- Add the shiitake, dried shrimp, or dried scallops and Chinese sausage in and toast the Chinese sausage until it turns dark red and the oils come out. It should take about 2-5 minutes
- Add in the turnip and 3 tablespoons of water into the pan. Cook it for 5 minutes and then cover it with a lid to steam it for another 1-2 minutes
- Once the turnip is soft, pour the hot turnip mixture from the pan into the large bowl of rice flour batter and mix well. The batter will still be runny, don't worry it will solidify when we steam it.
Steaming the Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go)
- Oil the pan you are steaming the turnip cake in very well so that it doesn't stick to the bottom and the sides. I also like to cut out a small round piece of parchment paper to place it on the bottom to make sure that the turnip cake cannot stick to the bottom of the pan. I use an 8-inch round aluminum pan that is 3 inches deep.
- Pour everything into the oiled pan and press any turnip that is sticking out down and flatten the top of the cake with a spatula.
- When the steamer is hot, place the pan gently into the steamer.
- Steam it in a steamer for 45 minutes. To check if it is cooked, poke a wooden skewer or chopstick into the middle of the turnip cake - it should come out clean. If it has wet batter stuck to the skewer, add 10-15 more mins to the cooking time.
- Remove the pan from the steamer with oven mitts and let it rest for about 30 minutes. A little water may accumulate on top of the turnip cake from the water dripping from the lid. That's okay, the water will absorb back into the cake.Run a spatula or a small knife along the sides of the pan. Put a plate on top of the pan and flip it upside down, the turnip cake should release and fall onto the plate. Remove the parchment paper from the turnip cake (which should be at the top after you flip it upside down).Be careful, the pan is very hot. I like to use oven mittens to do this entire process.
- If you are going to eat it freshly steamed, garnish it with green onions and some sweet soy sauce, and dig in!If you are pan-frying it, let it cool at room temperature for an hour, and then put it in the fridge to let it fully cool before cutting it. This is very important because freshly steamed turnip cake is too soft to be cut and it will break apart if you pan fry it before it has had a chance to solidify.
Pan Frying the Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go)
- Once the turnip cake has had at least 3-4 hours to cool in the fridge, cut the turnip cake into 2 cm cubes, or the traditional rectangles, and pan-fry it in oil in a non-stick pan on medium heat. (If you have extra bacon fat from browning the bacon, you can use some of that as well with a bit of oil! :)) Pan fry them until they are brown and crispy.Don't be shy with the oil. Turnip cake likes to stick to the pan if you are not using a well seasoned or non-stick pan.
- Enjoy immediately with a bit of chili oil or sriracha. Turnip cake tastes best when it is hot or still warm.
Nutrition
*Nutritional information is calculated using online tools and is an estimate*
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Samantha Paul says
Incredible…really is a more creative dish till now, I really enjoyed your recipe. These looks soooo good & more delicious, I will try to making this dish in some few days. Thanks for sharing…keep shared your new ideas with delicious recipes……!
Joyce says
Woohoo! I am so happy you enjoy my recipes and ideas - especially since they can be so far from the traditional path! haha! 🙂 Hope you enjoy it!
Jessica Robinson says
Love that it's such a creative dish! Definitely love that you included step images for this recipe!
Adriana Lopez Martin says
I have always wanted to cook with turnips but never had a good recipe this one looks amazing. And the browning is just perfection. I want to try this soon!
Monica | Nourish & Fete says
Any minor amount of skepticism I had was completely overturned when I saw the words bacon, cheddar, and caramelized onions. 🙂 You can never go wrong with those, and this is no exception! Great recipe!
Katie | Healthy Seasonal Recipes says
I find this recipe fascinating, as I have never heard of turnip cake. The idea of cheddar and bacon are no stranger around here though. Sounds incredibly savory!
Karen @ Seasonal Cravings says
This is such a creative dish and one that I have never had! I love all the step by step photos and directions for us newbies. Looks delicious!
heather (delicious not gorgeous) says
i love how game you are to change up the classics!! i have to say that lo bak go is good but not one of my must-get's when i'm at dim sum (not like gon chow ngau ho or ham suey gok), but this version might change my mind (;
Joyce says
haha I am so glad you think so, I was wondering if anyone would flame me of freak out about this but I definitely think it's nice to sometimes switch things up as long as the core is traditional! 🙂 Gon chow ngau ho is my go to for every restaurant too!! I gauge how good a restaurant is on that dish alone haha!