Dim Sum Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go)

Tap an ingredient or step to check it off.

1. 1Step 1: At least 2-3 hours in advance: rinse scallops, dried shrimp and dried mushrooms under cold water quickly, then soak them all together in 1 cup of hot water until scallops are fully hydrated and can be easily shredded by hand. Scallops the size I used in the video took about 3 hours, but if not using scallops, mushrooms and shrimp will take no more than 1 hour to soften.
2. 2Step 2: Drain the dried products and reserve all of the soaking water.
3. 3Step 3: Shred scallops with your fingers into strings, removing the little piece of chewy muscle that's attached on the side of the scallops.
4. 4Step 4: Finely dice the mushrooms; if the mushrooms are big and the stems feel super tough you may remove them.
5. 5Step 5: Roughly chop the dried shrimp.
6. 6Step 6: Peel the daikon and shred into juliennes either with a knife, a julienne peeler, or you can also grate it using the largest holes on the grater.
7. 7Step 7: In a wok or a large heavy-bottomed pot, add the Chinese sausage and cook over medium-low heat to render out fat. If sausage is too lean and there isn't much fat coming out, you may need to add a bit of oil. Keep cooking until the sausage pieces are browned slightly.
8. 8Step 8: Add mushrooms, scallops and dried shrimp and saute over medium heat for about 3 minutes until aromatic. Remove from wok.
9. 9Step 9: Add daikon to wok and toss it over medium high heat until wilted slightly. Add the reserved mushroom/seafood soaking water; if there is a bit of grit in the soaking water, be sure to not pour that part in. Toss the daikon around until wilted, then cover and cook over medium heat for about 7-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until fully cooked and soft.
10. 10Step 10: Drain cooked daikon through a mesh sieve or a colander, pushing out as much liquid as possible, reserving the liquid. Put drained daikon back into the wok, off heat.
11. 11Step 11: Measure daikon cooking liquid and you want to have about 1 cup. If there isn’t enough, add cold water to make up the volume. If there is too much (there should not be that much extra), discard the excess or for max flavour reduce it until you have 1 cup. Let the liquid cool slightly just until it's warm.
12. 12Step 12: Meanwhile, add mushroom mixture to daikon in the wok (heat still off), along with sugar, salt, pepper and oil. Toss to mix well.
13. 13Step 13: Once daikon juice is warm, whisk in rice flour and tapioca starch until there are no more lumps. Add this flour slurry into the daikon mixture and toss to mix well.
14. 14Step 14: Turn the heat on medium and keep tossing, scraping the bottom, until the mixture is thickened into a paste. Remove from heat.
15. 15Step 15: Grease your pan generously with oil, and if you want the whole thing to come out easily in one big piece, line the bottom with parchment paper. Add the daikon mixture to the pan and even out the surface.
16. 16Step 16: Steam the cake for 1 hour over boiling water, making sure there is PLENTY of water in the steamer to last the hour. Tip: If your steamer has metal or glass pot lid, shield the daikon cake loosely with a piece of aluminum foil to prevent condensation from dripping onto the cake, or wrap the lid in a tea towel to help catch the drips. If using a bamboo steamer, there’s no need to do this.
17. 17Step 17: To test doneness, use a thermometer and you want a minimum of 200°F internal temp. Or you can use a wooden skewer to poke the center, and if stuff that comes up is translucent and not pasty white, it’s done. If making a bigger pan, or a larger batch with multiple pans, you may need to steam for longer.
18. 18Step 18: Let cool completely, or chilled, before cutting. You can keep the daikon cake in the fridge, for about a week, and slice it up to fry whenever you’re ready to serve.
19. 19Step 19: Run a knife around the mold to free it from the sides, then flip it out onto a cutting board and cut into desired size (preferably no more than 1-inch thick).
20. 20Step 20: Pan fry them over medium heat in a little bit of oil in a nonstick pan or a well-seasoned wok until hot throughout and browned on both sides.
21. 21Step 21: Serve with soy sauce and hot sauce (like Sriracha) on the side. A sweeter Sriracha, like a Thai style one, works better for this recipe I find. Enjoy!