Taiwanese Turnip Cake (Luo Bo Gao)

About This Recipe

Taiwanese Turnip Cake is a real, traditional Taiwanese dish, known as Luo Bo Gao. A steamed and then pan-fried cake of shredded daikon radish and rice flour studded with dried shrimp and shiitake, crisp outside and soft within.\n\nLuo bo gao is a traditional Lunar New Year food across Chinese communities, with 'turnip' being a homophone for good fortune in Cantonese, and Taiwan developed its own beloved version served year-round at breakfast stalls.\n\nThe result is a dish worth making on its own merits: it rewards patience with the technique and delivers real, specific flavor rooted in Taiwanese home cooking, not a generic stand-in for a search term.

Ingredients

Serves 8

• 800 gdaikon radish(peeled and shredded)
• 300 grice flour
• 50 gcornstarch
• 500 mlwater
• 3 tbspdried shrimp(soaked and chopped)
• 4dried shiitake mushrooms(soaked and diced)
• 2Chinese sausages (lap cheong)(diced)
• 3 tbspneutral oil
• 1 tspwhite pepper
• 1 tspfine sea salt
• 3 tbspneutral oil(for pan-frying)

Instructions

1. 1

   Cook the daikon

   Simmer shredded daikon in a splash of water until softened, about 10 minutes, then drain, reserving the liquid.

2. 2

   Fry the aromatics

   Fry dried shrimp, shiitake and Chinese sausage in oil until fragrant, about 5 minutes.

3. 3

   Make the batter

   Whisk rice flour and cornstarch with water until smooth, then stir in the reserved daikon liquid.

4. 4

   Combine

   Mix the softened daikon, fried aromatics and batter together with white pepper and salt until evenly combined.

5. 5

   Steam

   Pour into a greased pan or cake tin and steam over high heat for 45 minutes until firm and set; a toothpick should come out clean.

6. 6

   Cool, slice and fry

   Let cool completely, ideally overnight, then slice into rectangles and pan-fry in oil until golden and crisp on both sides.

Variations

• •

  A vegetarian version omits the dried shrimp and sausage, relying on shiitake and white pepper for flavor.

• •

  Serve with a dipping sauce of soy sauce and chili oil for extra punch.

• •

  A version with taro instead of daikon (yu tou gao) is a related Cantonese-influenced variation.

Storage

Refrigerate leftovers in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop or in the microwave with a splash of water or stock to loosen the texture.

Frequently Asked Questions