Steamed Taro Cake (芋頭糕, 芋頭糍)

HOW TO SAY TARO CAKE IN CHINESE

Taro Cake is 芋頭糕 in traditional Chinese characters and 芋头糕 in simplified characters. The Cantonese pronunciation is woo tau go and the Mandarin pronunciation is yu tou gao. Toisanese, this cake is called 芋頭糍, pronounced vu hai tay. 

LEARNING MAMA LIN’S RECIPE

For many major Chinese holidays, like the Mid-Autumn Festival, Mama Lin often prepares a taro cake. It is always a treat to eat. The cake consists of a steamed rice flour base with cubed taro suspended in the center and a layer of dried seafood and Chinese cured meats blanketing the top of the cake.

My mom started cooking this cake decades ago, when my family still lived in Toisan (or Taishan), China. Back in the village in Toisan, my mom didn’t have any kitchen scales or measuring cups at her disposal. Instead, she measured ingredients for the taro cake based on how things looked and felt, and that is how she continues to prepare the cake to this day.

When I asked my mom for her taro cake recipe, she gave me a bare bones verbal explanation of the cooking method, which I knew I’d forget. After convincing my mother that she needed to write down a more detailed recipe, she grudgingly pulled out her kitchen scale and measuring cups and developed a more streamlined recipe that I can share to a wider audience. I’ve cooked this recipe quite a few times and have a lot of tips, which I outline below.

HOW TO MAKE STEAMED TARO CAKE

TARO CAKE INGREDIENTS

Batter: To make the batter, you’ll need rice flour and wheat starch. My mom explains that wheat starch makes the cake softer. If wheat starch is difficult to find, you can replace it with tapioca starch or cornstarch. You also replace the wheat starch with rice flour, but the texture of the cake won’t be as soft.

Typically, my mom uses water-milled rice flour produced in Thailand, which comes in bags with red labels. This is not the same as glutinous rice flour, which comes in bags with green labels; do not use sweet rice flour either. If you don’t have easy access to an Asian grocer, you can use rice flour produced in the US from brands like Bob’s Red Mill. These rice flours usually aren’t ground as finely as Thai rice flour, so the texture of the cake won’t be as smooth. 

One final note about the batter: my mom doesn’t add salt to the batter, but I added some in the recipe below so that the cake is more flavorful.

Taro: You’ll need a large taro that’s white with purple veins on the inside. This variety of taro is starchy and has the earthy flavor that is best suited for this recipe. Don’t use the small fuzzy taro, as they have a slimy texture and not right for this recipe. If you need tips on how to pick taro, watch the video at the beginning of this post or in the recipe card.

To prepare the taro, slice off the outer skin. Then, slice the taro into 1/4 to 1/2-inch cubes. If you have any leftover taro, use it to make my taro waffles!

Topping: My mom always uses her standard mixture of dried shrimp, dried scallops, Chinese sausage, and Chinese cured pork for the topping. (She also uses these ingredients for her turnip cake aka lo bak go.)

In general, soak dried shrimp and dried scallops to soften them before using. Soak the dried shrimp with warm or hot water for 15 minutes and then drain the water. You can keep the water for cooking. In this recipe, you can even save the water for the batter.

Dry scallops need a longer soak for this recipe because they need to be shredded apart. Soak the scallops in warm or hot water for 45 minutes. Then, check to see if the scallops have softened. If the center is still pretty firm, drain the water and soak the scallops with more warm or hot water for another 30 to 45 minutes. If you’re using very large dried scallops, you may need to soak them for a longer period. I also like to save the water used for soaking dried scallops for cooking.

For extra flavor, Mama Lin likes to add diced shallots, scallions, and occasionally preserved salted turnip. Preserved turnip has two names in Chinese: 冲菜 (chong choy in Cantonese) or 頭菜 (hai tuoy in Toisan; tau choy in Cantonese). You can find these preserved turnips at Asian grocers, particularly ones that sell Chinese food, and they last a long time. I usually keep a small section in the fridge and freeze the rest for longer storage.

Personally, I prefer using preserved radish (daikon) instead of preserved turnip. Preserved radish is sweet, and I think the flavors complement the other ingredients in the topping better. In case you’re curious, preserved radish is called 蘿蔔乾 (萝卜干 in simplified characters) and pronounced lo bak gon in Cantonese, luo bo gan in Mandarin, and lo bak guon in Toisan. 

SAUTÉ TOPPING & TARO

My mom says sautéing the topping ingredients for a few minutes helps to bring out their flavors. To do that, heat a wok or sauté pan with some oil, add diced shallots, and sauté for a minute to get the aromatics going. Then, add the dried shrimp and cook for about a minute. Next, add the Chinese sausage and Chinese cured pork, and toss together for another minute. Next, add the shredded scallops, preserved turnip or radish (if using), scallions, and salt and toss together. Turn off the heat and dish up the topping. 

Now that the wok is seasoned with some flavor, sauté the taro for a few minutes. Heat up the wok, drizzle in some oil and toss in the taro cubes and stir for a minute or two. Then, season with garlic salt, five-spice powder, and white pepper and transfer the taro up to a plate. My mom tells me that she doesn’t add five-spice powder to the topping because it darkens the color of the ingredients. As a result, the cake will look less vibrant once steamed.

MAKE BATTER

To make the batter, whisk together rice flour, wheat starch, and salt. Then, pour 1 1/2 cups of water over the flours and whisk until there are no visible lumps of flour. I usually like to use some of the reserved liquid from soaking the dried seafood for this. 

Next, boil 3 cups of water and mix that hot water into the batter. Hot water thickens the batter so that the taro cubes can be suspended in the middle of the cake instead of sinking to the bottom of the pan. You want the batter to be the consistency of a thick chowder. 

HOW YOU BOIL THE WATER MATTERS

As I was learning how to cook this dish on my own, I discovered that the consistency of the batter can differ depending on how you boil the water. If you use an electric kettle, measure 3 cups of water and pour it into the kettle before turning the kettle on. Then, pour the hot water directly into the batter. Do not pour the hot water into a measuring cup and then into the batter, as this cools the water significantly. As a result, the batter won’t thicken properly.

If you use a saucepan to boil the water, pour that water into the batter right after it boils. Make sure to stir as you pour in the hot water. If the batter thickens too much and turns into a mashed potato consistency, don’t worry. Pour 1/2 to 2/3 cup of cold water into the batter. Stir to loosen the batter so that it’s more like a runny pudding consistency. Add more water if necessary.

WHAT IF MY BATTER IS VERY RUNNY?

If the consistency of the batter looks like the consistency of milk, cover it with a large plate, lid, or damp towel for several minutes. If the batter is still runny like milk after several minutes, pour the batter into a stainless steel mixing bowl. Then, boil some water in a saucepan and reduce the heat to medium-low. 

Place the mixing bowl directly over the saucepan. Make sure that the boiling water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl. Whisk the batter constantly for several minutes, until the batter looks like a thick chowder. Do not leave the batter untouched during this time because the flours will congeal at the bottom of the mixing bowl. 

You can probably microwave the batter at 30 second intervals and stir in between microwave bursts until the batter thickens. I haven’t tried this method though.

ASSEMBLE TARO CAKE

Add the sautéed taro to the thickened batter. You can tell if the batter is thick enough if the taro pieces don’t sink to the bottom instantly. Stir everything together.

Grease a 9×2-inch cake pan with any oil. If you don’t have a round cake pan, you can also use a 9-inch springform pan or a 9×9-inch square pan. The springform pan is great because you can release the cake a lot easier once it’s done. Pour the batter with taro into the prepared pan. Take the sautéed topping and spread it over the batter in an even layer.

There are some versions of taro cake where, instead of topping the cake with umami ingredients, you mix the ingredients into the batter. The cake will look very similar to turnip cake once it’s finished. Because I grew up with my mom’s taro cake, I prefer laying the ingredients at the top so that the cake looks more colorful. 

SYMBOLISM OF USING ROUND CAKE PANS

Mama Lin always steams taro cake in a round pan because of the symbolism of circular or round objects during Chinese holidays. The word for “circular” or “round” in Chinese is 圓, and it makes up part of the phrase that means “reunion” 團圓 (团圆 in simplified characters; pronounced toon yoon in Cantonese and tuan yuan in Mandarin). Thus, cooking food in circular pans symbolizes reunion and togetherness during Chinese holidays.

STEAM CAKE

Add a steaming rack (affiliate link) to a large wok. Fill the wok with water, until there’s about a 1/2-inch gap between the water level and the top of the steaming rack. Cover the wok and bring the water to boil.

Place the taro cake over the steaming rack, cover the wok and steam on high heat for 30 minutes. If you are using a power burner or your burner is very strong, reduce the heat slightly to medium high. 

The water likely will have evaporated considerably after 25 minutes. Using a measuring cup with a spout or a kettle, carefully pour in some water to the bottom of the wok to replenish the water levels. Steam the cake for another 20 to 25 minutes. For reference, the temperature of the cake should be about 200ºF (93ºC) when it’s done.

Remove the cake from the wok and place on a cooling rack to cool and set for 1 to 2 hours, the longer the better. I like to place the cake near an open window so the breeze can help it cool faster. Cut the cake into pieces and serve.

If you have any leftovers, refrigerate them. Reheat the cake by pan frying it. Pan frying the taro cake intensifies the earthy flavors of the taro, making the cake taste even better! 

MORE CHINESE STEAMED CAKE RECIPES

• Tapioca Thousand Layer Cake, 菱粉糍
• Turnip Cake (Lo Bak Go, 萝卜糕)
• Nian Gao (New Year’s Cake, 年糕)

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Servings: 10

Author: Lisa Lin

Steamed Taro Cake

This taro cake is something that Mama Lin makes for many Chinese holidays. In my mom’s written recipe, she listed the ingredients according to their weight. I recommend using a scale, if you have one because it’ll make measuring the ingredients much easier. That said, this recipe is very forgiving, so it’s okay if you don’t have a scale.

You can use a 9×2-inch round cake pan, a 9-inch springform cake pan, or a 9×9-inch square pan to steam the taro cake. The cake comes out very easily in one piece when you use a springform pan.

Although it’ll be difficult to resist, let the cake cool for at least 1 to 2 hours before slicing into it, the longer the better. The cake needs time to cool and set before you cut into it. Otherwise, you’ll end up with a sloppy mess.

Prep Time45 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Soaking & Resting Time4 hours hrs

Equipment

• 9×2-inch cake pan, 9-inch springform pan, or 9×9-inch square pan
• oil for greasing cake pan
• steaming rack
• large wok

Ingredients

Topping

• 1/3 cup (30g) medium-sized dried shrimp
• 2 tablespoons (20g) dried scallops
• 1 1/2 tablespoons oil, any oil works
• 1/3 cup (45g) finely diced shallots
• scant 1/4 cup (30g) finely chopped Chinese sausage
• scant 1/4 cup (30g) finely chopped Chinese cured pork
• 2 tablespoons (20g) finely chopped preserved radish, optional (see note 1)
• 3 tablespoons (15g) sliced scallions
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, 1/4 teaspoon table salt

Taro

• 1 1/2 tablespoons oil, any oil works
• 4 cups (500g) diced taro, about 1/4 to 1/2-inch cubes, (see note 2)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt, (I use Lawry's, see note 3)
• 1 teaspoon five-spice powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

Batter

• 1 3/4 cups (240g) rice flour
• 1/4 cup (35g) wheat starch
• 1 teaspoon (4g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon table salt
• 4 1/2 cups (1050g) water, divided

Instructions

Prepare Dried Seafood

• This step will take some time, so be patient. Soak the dried shrimp with warm or hot water for 15 minutes and then drain the water. You can keep the water for cooking; in this recipe, you can even save the water for the batter. If any pieces of soaked dried shrimp look larger than 3/4 inch in diameter, slice them in half.
• Dry scallops need a longer soak for this recipe because they need to be shredded apart. Soak the scallops in warm or hot water for 45 minutes. Then, check to see if the scallops have softened. If the center is still pretty firm, drain the water and soak the scallops with more warm or hot water for another 30 to 45 minutes. If you’re using very large dried scallops, you may need to soak them for a longer period. I also like to save the water used for soaking dried scallops for cooking. Once the scallops are soft, shred them with your hands.
  

Sauté Topping & Taro

• Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil in a wok over high heat. Add the shallots and sauté for about 1 minute. Add the dried shrimp and cook for about a minute. Next, add the Chinese sausage and Chinese cured pork, and toss together for another minute. Next, add the shredded scallops, preserved radish (if using), scallions, and salt and toss together. Turn off the heat and dish up the topping. Set it aside.
• Drizzle another 1 1/2 tablespoons of oil to the wok over high heat. Add the diced taro and sauté for about 1 minute. Then, add the garlic salt, five-spice powder, and white pepper and toss everything together. Turn off the heat and transfer the taro to a plate.

Make Batter

• Add the rice flour, wheat starch, and salt to a mixing bowl and whisk together. Add 1 1/2 cups water (350g) to the flours and whisk until you no longer see flour lumps. I usually like to use some of the reserved liquid from soaking the dried seafood for this.
• Bring 3 cups of water (700g) to boil. Pour the boiling hot water to the flours, stirring simultaneously. Keep stirring until you no longer see lumps of flour. If you boil the water using an electric kettle, cover the mixing bowl with a plate or towel, and let the batter sit for another 3 minutes so the batter can thicken further. If you boiled the water on the stovetop, see note 4. Thickening the batter with hot water ensures that the taro cubes don’t sink straight to the bottom when you mix them into the batter.

Assemble Taro Cake

• Add the sautéed taro to the batter. You’ll know the batter is thick enough if the taro pieces don’t sink to the bottom immediately. Stir everything together.
  
• Grease the cake pan well with oil. Pour the batter and taro into the pan. Make sure the taro cubes are evenly distributed throughout the pan. Spread the topping over the batter in an even layer.
  

Steam Cake

• Add a steaming rack to a large wok. Fill the wok with water, until there’s about a 1/4-inch gap between the water level and the top of the steaming rack. Cover the wok with a lid and bring the water to boil.
• Place the taro cake over the steaming rack, cover the wok and steam on high heat for 30 minutes. If your burner is very strong, slightly reduce the heat to medium high.
• The water likely will have evaporated considerably after 25 minutes. Using a measuring cup with a spout or a kettle, carefully pour in some water to the bottom of the wok to replenish the water levels. Steam the cake for another 20 to 25 minutes. For reference, the temperature of the cake should be about 200ºF (93ºC) when it’s done. My mom never tests the temperature; she usually stops steaming the cake after 45 to 50 minutes.
• Remove the cake from the wok and place on a cooling rack to cool and set for 1 to 2 hours, the longer the better. While the cake is still hot, sprinkle some sliced scallions over the cake for garnish.
• Cut the cake into pieces and serve. They're great with a bit of Lao Gan Ma chili crisp. If you have any leftovers, refrigerate them. Reheat the cake by pan frying it. Pan frying the taro cake intensifies the earthy flavors of the taro, making the cake taste even better!

Video

Notes

1. Preserved radish (蘿蔔乾 or 萝卜干 in simplified characters) is a sweet preserved vegetable that you can find in Asian grocers, particularly ones that sell Chinese ingredients. You can also use preserved salted turnip (冲菜 or 頭菜). You can also find preserved turnips at Asian grocers and they last a long time. I usually keep a small section in the fridge and freeze the rest for longer storage.
2. Use large taro: For this recipe, you’ll need to use large taro that are often sold whole or chopped into large sections (usually weighing somewhere between 3 to 6 pounds). When you slice into the taro, you should be able to see lots of purple veins in the center. This variety of taro is starchy and has the earthy flavor that is best suited for this recipe. If you have leftover taro, use it to make my taro waffles!
3. Substitution for garlic salt: Use 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt (3/4 teaspoon table salt) and 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic.
4. Boiling water on stovetop: If you use a saucepan to boil the water and you pour just-boiled hot water into the batter, the batter can thicken too much and turn into a mashed potato consistency. However, there is an easy fix. Pour 1/2 to 2/3 cup of cold water into the batter. Stir to loosen the batter so that it’s more like a runny pudding consistency. Add more water if necessary.
5. Why can’t I boil all the water in this recipe? If you use only boiled water to make the batter, the batter will be too thick and you won’t be able to incorporate the taro properly.
6. What if my batter is too runny? If the consistency of the batter looks like the consistency of milk, cover it with a large plate, lid, or damp towel for several minutes. If the batter is still runny after several minutes, pour the batter into a stainless steel mixing bowl. Then, boil some water in a saucepan and reduce the heat to medium-low. Place the mixing bowl directly over the saucepan. Make sure that the boiling water doesn’t touch the bottom of the bowl. Whisk the batter constantly for several minutes, until the batter looks like a thick chowder. Do not leave the batter untouched during this time because the flours will congeal at the bottom of the mixing bowl.
7. Five-Spice Powder: My mom doesn’t like adding five-spice powder to the topping because it will darken the color of the topping, making the taro cake look less vibrant overall. That’s why she chooses to season taro with five-spice powder.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 238kcal | Carbohydrates: 37.8g | Protein: 5.4g | Fat: 6.4g | Saturated Fat: 1.1g | Cholesterol: 17mg | Sodium: 483mg | Fiber: 2.9g | Sugar: 1.4g

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Cuisine: Chinese

Category: Appetizer