Taro cake

Not to be confused with Taro pastry.

Taro cake (traditional Chinese: 芋頭糕; simplified Chinese: 芋头糕; pinyin: yùtóu gāo; Cantonese Yale: wuhtáu gōu) is a Cantonese dish made from the vegetable taro. While it is denser in texture than radish cakes, both of these savory cakes are made in similar ways, with rice flour as the main ingredient. As a dim sum, it is usually cut into rectangular slices and pan-fried before serving. It is found in Hong Kong, China, and overseas Chinatown restaurants. Other ingredients often include pork and Chinese black mushroom, or even Chinese sausages. It is usually topped with chopped scallions.

Taro cake

Taro cake
Alternative names	Yam cake
Course	Dim Sum
Place of origin	Southern China
Region or state	East Asia and Southeast Asia
Main ingredients	Taro, rice flour
Variations	Fried and steamed
Media: Taro cake

Taro cake
Traditional Chinese	芋頭糕
Simplified Chinese	芋头糕
Literal meaning	taro cake
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin yùtóu gāo IPA [ŷtʰǒʊkáʊ] Yue: Cantonese Yale Romanization wuhtáu gōu Jyutping wu6 tau2 gou1 IPA [wu˨tʰɐw˧˥kɔw˥]
Alternative Chinese name
Chinese	芋粿
Transcriptions Southern Min Hokkien POJ ō͘-ké or ō͘-kóe

Variety

Regional home-style

The other version is the more home-style baked version. Usually it uses the same ingredients and steamed for long periods of time in a deep pan until it is ultra soft and pasty. The formula varies greatly depending on the family recipe or regional tastes.

Frozen taro cake

Some restaurants offer taro cakes cut into small cubes as part of a main course appetizer to a major Chinese cuisine. These are sometimes frozen to a more solid state, though it is not nearly as common as the other forms.

In other cultures

Yam cake

A similar dish is prepared in the cuisine of Vietnam, where it is called bánh khoai môn.

In Malaysia and Singapore, it is known as yam cake.

See also

• Turnip cake
• Water chestnut cake
• Nian gao
• Taro dumpling