Steamed Radish Cake

This dish is a popular dim sum offering that normally contains dried shrimp, chinese sausage or bacon. The mixture is first steamed to set it and then can be cut into slabs and fried to a golden brown crust.  I think it is best served with spring onions/scallions, sliced chills or chilli sauce and sweet soya sauce. 

Here I have added mushrooms and onion but have kept it fairly plain but if you want a more varied filling for these cakes then you could try this recipe at Just Bento. I wanted it plain and authentic as I am looking forward to making the oddly named carrot cake (chai tau kway), which is a popular hawker dish here in Singapore. Needless to say it most definitely is not related to the classic British carrot cake

Once again this is a recipe that can be frozen in slabs after the steaming process although they will need defrosting for a few hours before frying to ensure that they cook through.

Radish Cake - Lo Bak Gou (Makes at least 6 large slabs)

Vegan, vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free, meat option

Ingredients
250g White radish (also called daikon, mooli or oriental radish), peeled and roughly grated
100g Rice flour
50g Cornflour
4 Dried Chinese mushrooms
500ml Water
1tsp Chopped garlic
1tbs Onion, finely chopped
1tsp dairy and gluten free vegan stock bouillon powder 
Black pepper
meat option: 1-2 Rashers bacon, finely chopped

Method

• Rehydrate the mushrooms in 100ml of hot water. Once they are plump, remove from the liquid, destem and chop finely. Retain the mushroom liquid. 
• In a saucepan add the 100ml mushroom water, stock powder, grated radish, mushrooms, onion, garlic and bacon(optional) and simmer for 5-10 mins until the radish is soft and the water evaporated.
• In a bowl add the rice flour and cornflour and mix. Next add the radish mix and stir. Slowly add the remaining 500ml of water until you form a thick batter. You may not need all the water if your radish was watery. 
• Pour mixture into a baking tin, I used a cake tin approximately 15cm by 15cm, and smooth down mixture. Place tin on a wire rack in a saucepan of gently simmering water and top with the saucepan lid. Alternatively use a bamboo or metal steamer if you have one big enough. 
• Steam for 30-40 mins and make sure the steamer has enough water in throughout the steaming process. The dish is cooked through when a sharp knife comes away clean from the middle of the cake.
• Either serve warm in slabs or allow to cool and then cut into slabs and fry in a small amount of oil until golden brown on both sides. Top with a range of topping from crispy fried shallots, spring onions, sesame seeds or chilli.
• Alternative cut into slabs and freeze, otherwise this dish will keep for several days in the fridge and is much easier to slice after cooling overnight.