The Woks of Life Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go)

Although lo bak go — one of our favorite dim sum treats — is usually translated as “turnip cake,” it is actually made from daikon radish. After searching high and low for a decent workable recipe, we struck gold with an outstanding one from The Woks of Life, from which ours is adapted. It was featured in a January 2021 story about The Woks of Life.

If you’re planning a dim sum spread, consider preparing this a day in advance through the steaming step, then hold it, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator. On dim sum day, you can just unmold, slice and pan-fry.

READ: “Cookbooks We Love: ‘The Woks of Life’ brims with outstanding Chinese and Chinese American recipes”

You’ll need a loaf pan and some type of steamer set up large enough to accommodate the loaf pan; we used an average-sized wok with a cover, and raised the loaf pan slightly on a small rack.

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Ingredients

20 ounces (570 g) grated daikon (from one good-sized daikon, grated on the large holes of a box grater)

2 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil, plus additional for oiling the loaf pan and pan-frying

1 tablespoon dried shrimp, washed, dried and chopped

3 to 5 dried shiitake mushrooms, soaked in boiling water for 20 minutes, then chopped

1 Chinese sausage, diced small

1 scallion, sliced, plus additional sliced scallion green for garnish (optional)

130 g rice flour (1 1/4 cups)

1 tablespoon corn starch

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon white pepper

Oyster sauce and/or chile oil for serving, if desired

Instructions

1. Place the grated daikon in a wok or medium saucepan with 1 cup of water and bring it to a simmer over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so the daikon doesn’t brown. Saving the cooking liquid, drain the daikon and place it in a large mixing bowl. Pour the cooking liquid into a measuring cup, and if it measures less than 1 cup, add enough water to make 1 cup. Add the liquid to the daikon in the bowl. Set aside.

2. Wash and dry the wok or saucepan, place over medium heat for a few moments, then add the vegetable oil. Add the dried shrimp, shiitake and sausage, and stir-fry for about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the sliced scallion.

3. Add the rice flour to the daikon mixture, along with the cornstarch, salt, sugar and white pepper and mix well. Stir in the cooked shrimp, mushrooms and sausage, along with the oil from the pan. Mix the batter well and let it sit for 15 minutes.

4. Generously oil a loaf pan and set a kettle or pot of water to boil. Stir the batter again, and pour it into the pan. Set the pan in the wok or steamer, pour in enough boiling water to come part-way up the side of the loaf pan (or enough water to last during 50 minutes of steaming), cover the work or steamer and steam over medium-high heat for 50 minutes.

5. Remove the loaf pan from the steamer and let cool and set for 30 minutes. Run a paring knife around the sides of the pan, then use a spatula to loosen the cake, and invert it onto a cutting board. Use a knife dipped in water to cut the cake into 1/2-inch slices. You can eat them as is or pan-fry them, or cut some of it into slices to pan-fry. The rest can be kept, wrapped in plastic film, in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Alternatively, you can keep some or all of the cake in the loaf pan, covered with plastic wrap, in the fridge until ready to slice.

6. To pan-fry the slices, heat a tablespoon or two of vegetable oil in a non-stick or other sauté pan over medium heat. Add the slices and pan-fry five minutes or so on each side, until they are golden and crisp. Garnish with sliced scallion green, if desired, and serve with the oyster sauce and/or chile oil.

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