Lo Bak Go (Chinese Turnip Cake 萝白糕)

Lo Bak Go is a classic dim sum favorite! Aunty’s recipe for her Lunar New Year Turnip Cake is the only one you’ll need because it’s so simple to make and perfectly balanced with Chinese sausages, shrimp and mushrooms. Serve it straight as is or pan fry each piece for that golden crunch!

A dim sum dish we can’t go past

Whenever my family heads out to get some yum cha (extended family included), there are a few classics we ALWAYS have to get. Ham Sui Gok, Steamed Pork Ribs with Black Bean Sauce, Century Egg and Pork Congee, Braised Beef Honeycomb Tripe and Lo Bak Go are some of the dishes we can never wave away.

The Chinese Turnip Cake is always carted around in special carts because it’s the type of cart that has the frying option. That means you can get your Chinese Turnip Cake pan seared right before your eyes and served crisp.

What. A. Treat.

But this exciting experience doesn’t have to end there. Aunty’s recipe for her Lo Bak Go is one that can bring that same excitement home.

It’s incredibly simple, full of daikon strips and bejewelled with all the classics!

Why do we eat turnip cake on Chinese New Year?

There are many foods in Chinese cuisine that become symbols because of how similar they sound to other words or how they look. For instance, dumplings are often associated with prosperity and wealth because of how they resemble the look of gold ingots.

A similar concept applies to Lo Bak Go. The last character ‘糕’ (pronounced ‘goh’ in Cantonese) sounds very much like the word for going higher, which represents going up higher and rising up. As such, this dish is often associated with wishing good fortune and prosperity to anyone who eats it.

More reason to enjoy a plate of Chinese Turnip Cake, I say!

Why this recipe works

• Blanching the daikon helps to remove the odor that generally comes with the vegetable.
• Aunty’s Lo Bak Go is very lightly seasoned, which allows the ingredients and texture to shine.
• Using warm water to mix the dry ingredients helps them activate sooner.

What you’ll need

For the cake

About the liquid

Aunty recommends using warm water for the flour mixture because it helps with activating the starches. We simply boil some water and combine it with cold water for a 70:30 or 60:40 ratio in favor of cold water.

For the toppings

About the ingredients

Traditionally, Lo Bak Go is made using shiitake mushrooms, Chinese sausages and dried shrimp. You can add as much or as little as you like. Mum is a vegetarian, so we would only add mushrooms for hers.

Also note that all of these toppings come dehydrated. You can rehydrate the mushrooms and shrimp for a minimum of 20 minutes in hot water or overnight in cool water.

For the sausages, Aunty likes to steam them so they’re softer and easier to work with. At home, we simply run them under hot water and let them soak for 20 minutes.

If you find that your shrimp is on the larger side, you can roughly chop them into smaller pieces.

Cutting the daikon

About the utensils

It’s ideal to turn the daikon radish into thin strips. We use a cheese grater with larger holes, however some mandolins also have a similar-sized blade insert.

If you don’t have any of those, simply use a knife to cut the vegetable into thin strips.

How to make this recipe

Use a cheese grater/mandolin/knife to cut the daikon into thin strips.

Bring 2L of water to a boil and add the sugar in.

Quickly blanch the daikon strips for 30 seconds to help remove the odor.

Pour the contents into a colander to let it drip dry.

Meanwhile, combine the rice flour, tapioca starch, wheat starch, corn starch, chicken bouillon powder and salt in a bowl. Mix them together, then pour half of the warm water in while slowly mixing.

Stir well until combined into a wet mixture, then mix in 2 tbsp of oil. Let it rest for 20 minutes for the flour to rise.

While the mixture is resting, dice the shiitake mushrooms and Chinese sausages about 1/2cm (0.8″) wide. You can cut them bigger if you prefer.

Heat up a pan on high heat and add 1 tbsp of oil. When hot, pour in the shrimp and toss for 30 seconds. Then throw in the chopped Chinese sausages to cook for another 30 seconds before adding in the mushrooms for another 30 seconds.

Transfer the contents onto a plate to cool while you work on the cake.

After the 20 minutes of resting, pour the remaining warm water into a pot and bring it to a boil. Turn the heat down to the lowest heat and add the daikon strips in to cook for 3 minutes or until soft.

Turn the heat off, then pour the flour mixture in. Stir everything until combined and add the diced shiitake mushrooms and Chinese sausages. Mix well.

Line a deep steam-safe dish with a light layer of oil, then fill the dish 3/4 full with the Lo Bak Go mixture. Cover the dish with foil to prevent water drops from dripping onto the surface as it steams.

Note: We used 2 round metal dishes roughly 20cm (8″) in diameter, but Aunty had a rectangular dish with the dimensions 10 x 25 cm (4″ x 10″). You can also use disposable foil or plastic containers.

Pro Tip: Use an oiled spatula to smooth out the surface.

Set your steamer up on high heat, then when it’s ready, place the dish in to steam for 1 hour or until cooked.

Take the cooked Chinese Turnip Cake out and let it rest for 30 minutes. Alternatively, once cooled, keep it in the fridge overnight to completely firm up.

Cut the Chinese Turnip Cake into rectangular prisms to the size of your preference.

Serving suggestions

You can enjoy your Chinese Turnip Cake as is after resting from being steamed, however it’s also commonly served pan fried until just crispy on the outside.

Simply cut it into pieces and fry each piece in some oil.

Eat as is or dip it in red vinegar, soy sauce, chili sauce and/or XO sauce!

Recipe FAQs

Aunty’s tips for the best results

• Save yourself from clumps. Make sure the flour is mixed in well with the daikon on the lowest heat setting, otherwise the heat will cook the flour and quickly form clumps. These become difficult to remove.
• Press down the air bubbles. When putting the mixture into the steam-safe dish, use an oiled spatula to press everything down so there are no gaps as it steams.
• Reserve some shrimp and chopped Chinese sausages. For presentation purposes, you can press a few pieces into the surface before the dish has been steamed.

More Lunar New Year Classics

Every year, my family enjoys a banquet with the relatives. Here’s one of our favorite ways to celebrate:

• Start off with some Steamed Oysters with Ginger and Shallots.
• Dad and Aunty will have pre-ordered a ceramic soup bowl of Buddha Jumps Over The Wall Soup (佛跳墙) for each person.
• Together, we’d all share Braised Sea Cucumber with Mushrooms, Ginger Scallion Lobster (蔥薑龍蝦), Cantonese Steamed Fish with Ginger and Shallots (清蒸鱼) and Stir Fried Pea Shoots with Garlic.
• The side dishes would be served alongside E-Fu Noodles with Roast Duck and Dried Scallop and Egg White Fried Rice (瑤柱蛋白炒飯).
• Dessert would be up to the restaurant chef, but it’s often Red Bean Dessert Soup (红豆汤) or Black Sesame Tang Yuan (黑芝麻汤圆)!

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