Cook Time: 2hr 30 minutes
Servings: 8
Ingredients
- 20 ounces daikon radish (grated)
- 1 to 1 1/2 cups water
- olive oil
- 3-5 dried shiitake mushrooms (washed, soaked, and chopped)
- 3 ounces vegan meat (I like Verisoy ginger chicken or whatever you find comparable to Chinese sausage) (diced)
- 1 scallion (chopped)
- 1 1/4 cups rice flour
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- Sichuan pepper (to taste)
- Oyster sauce (for garnish, optional)
Directions
Inspired by the turnip cakes I love at Cafe 33!Add the grated turnip and 1 cup water to a wok or large pan, and bring to a simmer. Simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally so the turnip does not brown. The turnip will produce liquid, some of which will evaporate. You will have liquid left in the wok with the radish that you will also use. Scoop the cooked turnip into a large mixing bowl to cool. Squeeze the liquid out of the turnip into a measuring cup, along with any remaining liquid in the pan. Add water if needed until you have a total of 1 cup of liquid. Add it to the mixing bowl with the cooked turnip.
Clean your wok or pan and place it over medium heat. Add a couple tablespoons oil. Add the mushrooms and sausage, and cook for about 5 minutes. Stir in the chopped scallion and remove from the heat to cool. Add rice flour, cornstarch, salt, sugar, and white pepper to the mixing bowl with the radish and cooking liquid. Mix well until the dry ingredients are well-incorporated. Add in the cooked mushrooms and sausage. If the batter feels too thick, add 1/4 cup or more boiling water until satisfied. If you feel the batter is too thin, return it to the wok on low heat to thicken the batter while stirring. Mix well and let sit for 15 minutes.
Give the batter a final stir, and pour it into a well-oiled loaf pan. Place the pan into a steamer with plenty of water and steam over medium-high heat for 50 minutes.
Remove the pan from the steamer and let your turnip cake set for about 30 minutes. Once cooled, loosen the sides with a spatula and turn it out onto a cutting board. It should come out quite easily.
Use a sharp knife dipped in water to slice ½-inch thick pieces. Eat as is, or pan-fry (which I prefer). Add oil to a pan over medium heat. Fry the cakes on both sides until golden and crispy. Serve with oyster sauce!
Note: You can also refrigerate the uncut loaf, then cut pieces as desired to pan fry. This is how I prefer to eat them, as they can sometimes be too soft/difficult to cut if they only set for 30 minutes.