daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 - part 4

With the momentum of my first serious attempt to make daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 only a week ago, I want to improve upon the firmness and density that I had in mind. I like my daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 firm and dense. When it is firm it cut easier and has less drags on the knife blade. It is also easier to lift the cut slice out of the steaming container which tends to be deep and has steep near vertical sides. So I went and bought 3 pounds worth of daikon. I even made a point to buy a pack of Chinese sausage.

shopping mission accomplished; the Dollar brand Chinese sausage 臘腸 is one decent brand that I can find around me

I would only use 2 links for this batch of daikon cake 蘿蔔糕

the daikons were on sale and these are the only passible ones left

two links of sausage and one piece of cured pork belly; the pork belly is very dense and took a lot of effort to dice into tiny cubes

serious cooks don't like to use food processors as hand cutting is results in uniform dimensions

all the lap may 臘味 diced

next is to dice the dried shrimps

each of the dried shrimps got about 10 cuts so this too took some effort

the dried shrimp liquid is saved and added to the mixture later

I didn't want to introduce too much liquid so I used the peppers sparingly

I put these extras away - the Serrano pepper adds some elegant heat and fragrance

all the peppers diced

next are chopped scallions and cilantro; and followed with shiitake mushroom; the liquid from the braised mushroom was also used in the mixture later

I used mostly plain rice flour but added a little glutinous rice and corn starch

I mixed the flours with the liquid as it is easier; however I would add much more rice flour later in the process when I could judge the flour to liquid ratio by the effort return to mix the mixture

for seasoning I used a bit of oyster sauce, some salt, some Thai fish sauce, and some white pepper

unlike store bought or restaurant daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 home made by cooks like me do not skim on the ingredients

the best way to determine when you added the right amount of flours is by the effort that requires to stir mix the mixture; it should be quite stiff when you added enough

to ensure I have it right before committing to steaming a big batch I first made a test coupon in a tiny stainless steel dish; this is after steaming

I oiled the dish but still the daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 sticks tenaciously to the metal dish; I would discover later that it sticks to metal harder than virtuous material like glass and glazed ceramic

followed by pan frying to brown the surfaces

 the test coupon passed inspectiion

I like the shape of the rectangle loaf baking pan but I decided not to use them for the fear that it would be difficult to remove without breaking the daikon cake 蘿蔔糕

this round cake baking mold can be opened to separate the side from the bottom

the bulk of the mixture went into this round pan

with the little bit of leftover I put into this glass butter dish

I steamed the large portion for one hours and the middle was 165 F, go I steamed it for another 15 minutes; for a total 75 minutes

there is about four pounds of daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 here

It was too late to wait for the steamed daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 to cool and taste them so I let them cool overnight in the laundry room that has 50s (F) ambient.

as soon as I open my eyes in the morning I rushed to fry a couple of small slices

this was when I found out the daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 sticks less in virtuous containers

I wet the knife blade with water to reduce the drag while cutting

the lid comes in handy to store the rest in the refrigerator

the moment of truth with a breakfast snack serving size

a dust of white pepper is a ritual to eat daikon cake 蘿蔔糕

the salinity and seasoning are quite spot on, but I am so used to having a hint of fresh soy sauce for dipping

I achieved the goals of making a decent daikon cake 蘿蔔糕. The key takeaway is no one can tell you the right ratio of liquid to flour ratio. The best way is to determine it by feel when stirring the mixture with a wooden spoon. The quality and the amount of admix ingredients determine the flavor of the final product so do not skim. The daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 has significant thermal mass so it will take considerable time to cook through.

The seasonings of this batch are just about perfect as is the firmness and texture that I am after. If made right, you can still feel and see the grated daikon the in the final product. My next attempt would be to make taro cake 芋頭糕, which is a sister duality to daikon cake 蘿蔔糕.

here is another sensible serving portion

Despite the daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 is retrieved from the refrigerator and cut, I don't use the microwave oven. I never use it for cooking except to warm the serving vessel or simple reheating of mostly watery liquid without oil. The reheating of the daikon cake 蘿蔔糕 is done with simple cast iron skillet with the proper use of a lid placed at different coverage to control both the moisture and temperature.

I like eating them with a sharp knife and fork which I can cut into precise small savory bites

there are so many different textures and a complexity of flavours; the Serrano chili peppers bring some subtle yet elegant heat

a symphony of textures, flavours, and sight is the best way to describe it ;-)

another serving fried under medium low heat first with lid on; no sticking with this cast iron skillet

they are piping hot once both sides are browned