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Turnip cake is a Chinese cuisine dim sum dish. The less common name radish cake is more accurate, as Western-style turnips are not used in the dish but rather shredded radish (typically Daikon) and plain rice flour. It is traditionally called carrot cake in Singapore.
Turnip cake is commonly served in Cantonese yum cha, usually cut into rectangular slices and sometimes Pan frying before serving. Each pan-fried cake has a thin crunchy layer on the outside from frying, and is soft on the inside. The non-fried version is soft all over. It is one of the standard dishes found in the dim sum cuisine of China as well as in overseas Chinatown restaurants. It is also commonly eaten during Chinese New Year, since the word for radish (labels=no) is a homophone for "good fortune" (labels=no) in the Hokkien language. In Taiwan, turnip cake is also commonly eaten as part of breakfast.
Additional ingredients that provide umami flavouring can be also added. They include diced or minced pieces of:
These flavoring ingredients may first be stir-fried before being added to the radish and flour/starch mixture. Somewhat more luxurious cakes will add larger amounts of these ingredients directly to the mixture. Cheaper variants, especially those sold in dim sum restaurants, will often have just a sprinkling on the top, to keep costs down.
This combined mixture is then poured in a steamer lined with greased aluminum foil or cellophane, and Steaming at high heat for 40 to 60 minutes until it solidifies into a gelatinous mass.
For those with allergies to radishes, some recipes substitute turnip for radish. Taro or pumpkin cakes are other variants to it.
Turnip cake can also be stir-fried and made into the dish chai tow kway.
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