I'm not taking part of the anti-SOPA blackout but decided to take a pass on my regular Wednesday post. Lunar New Year falls on January 23 in 2012 and I'll be making this recipe I posted last year to celebrate the occasion with family. If you want to plan ahead for a trip to Asian grocery store, now's the time to do it!
There is a dearth of Chinese cuisine-related posts at Dessert By Candy. This is no coincidence. I cook for one more often than not due to my training schedule and most Chinese dishes do not adapt well to single portion. When I do cook Chinese food, they are not glamourous. I cook comfort food with Asian flavours that I crave and they are likely to be something I throw together without thinking. However, every so often, I do enjoy cooking some very traditional dishes I grew up with. Steamed Turnip (daikon) Cake 臘味蘿蔔糕 is one dish close to my heart especially around this time of year.
For those not familiar with Chinese cuisine, turnip cake is a savoury steamed rice cake filled with shredded daikon and flavourful assortment of cured meats, shiitake mushrooms, and dried shrimps. They are often served year-round at dim sum restaurants sliced and pan-fried for a crispy exterior. The less widely-available way to enjoy them is freshly steamed which is more rustic and more likely to be found at home. When turnip cakes are pan-fried, it makes sense to start with a stiffer cake meaning more rice flour as filler and less of the expensive ingredients. When you enjoy them steamed, the quality of the ingredients really comes through and a softer texture is more desirable achieved with a higher portion of daikon.
The tradition of steaming cakes for the lunar new year celebration is akin to fruitcake in Christmas. I remember one year long ago my little brother came home from a visit to my grandparents. My aunt and grandmother were steaming batches of turnip cake in preparation for the onslaught of new year entertaining. My little brother pulled me aside and confided solemnly that my aunt was mopping up condensation on the cakes with a questionable rag. You see, my mom had always been vigilant on hygiene and even finger-licking is frowned upon at my house. For a few years after that discovery, my brother and I passed on my grandmother’s turnip cakes with all kinds of excuses.