Chai Tow Kway (Singapore Fried Carrot Cake)

Method

1. Peel the radish and shred it finely on a grater. Put it in a 20 cm pot with a third of the water, the salt and half the white pepper and cook over medium heat for 10 min, stirring, until translucent and soft.

   Add in this stepWhite radish (daikon), finely shredded 300 gWater 66 mlSalt ½ tspGround white pepper ¼ tsp

   medium heat

2. Whisk the rice flour with the rest of the water in a bowl until smooth with no lumps. Turn the heat down to low heat, pour the slurry over the radish and stir constantly for 3 min. When it is as thick as stiff porridge and holds the trail of the spatula, take it off the heat.

   Add in this stepRice flour (not glutinous) 100 gWater 154 ml

   low heat

3. Lightly oil a 15 cm square or round tin, pour in the batter and smooth the top. Steam it in a steamer over high heat for 35 min. It's done when it turns translucent and a chopstick pushed in comes out without wet batter. Top up the steamer with boiling water if it runs low.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil 0.4 tbsp

   high heat

4. Let it cool in the tin, then cover and refrigerate for at least 3 h, ideally overnight. It must be firm and cold or it will crumble when you cut and fry it. Turn it out and cut into 2 cm cubes.

5. Heat a 30 cm · 1× wok over high heat until smoking, add most of the oil and swirl to coat. Spread the cubes in a single layer and leave them untouched for 5 min, turning when the undersides have a golden crust. If there's too much for your wok, fry in the batches shown and repeat the next steps for each batch.

   Add in this stepVegetable oil 2.4 tbsp

   high heat

6. Push the cubes to the sides, add a little more oil in the centre and fry the chai poh and garlic over medium heat for 1 min until fragrant, then toss with the cubes. Don't let the garlic burn.

   Add in this stepChai poh (sweet preserved radish), chopped 20 gGarlic cloves, minced 3Vegetable oil 1¼ tbsp

   medium heat

7. Beat the eggs with the fish sauce, light soy sauce and the rest of the white pepper and pour evenly over the cubes. Leave untouched over medium-high heat for 1 min 30 sec until the underside is set and golden, then flip in large pieces and break up lightly. Stir in the sambal, scatter with spring onions and serve at once.

   Add in this stepEggs 3Fish sauce 1 tspLight soy sauce 1 tspGround white pepper ¼ tspSambal or chilli paste (optional) 1 tspSpring onions 2

   medium-high heat