What Can We Cook/Eat with Preserved Radish?

Preserved radish or choy poh/chai poh comes in two types.....one version is salty while the other is sweet.  So far, I've only cooked with the salty version but recently experimented with a few recipes using the sweet kind...and they turned out mighty fine, I might add.

That's when I realised you can actually cook and eat preserved radish in more ways than I initially thought....and here are some of them.

#1 - Preserved Radish Omelette

I think most of us would have gotten our first introduction to chai poh probably in one of the most commonly cooked dish....choy poh omelette.  I've made it countless times at home myself, usually with the saltish kind of radish.

But you can also make it with sweet preserved radish (according to my dry goods vendor), so I gave that a try (and liked it with the sweet kind more + you don't have to presoak to get rid of saltiness like you need to with the salty kind).  You can choose to add long, snake or french beans to the mix too, if you wish.

#2 - Fried Radish Cake

Who can deny that one of the most popular way to eat radish is in a plate of fried radish/turnip/carrot cake (or char koay kak).  A commonly ordered item from a street stall or dim sum restaurant, it's great for breakfast or any time of the day.

These cakes are steamed first before being cut into small cubes and fried with choy poh, egg, beansprouts, chives and soy.  It's the salty choy poh that adds crunch and gives the rice cakes its flavour.

#3 - Stir-Fried Prawns with Preserved Sweet Radish

Well, I bought this sweet preserved radish for the first time solely for one purpose...for a stir-fry prawn dish that my sister-in-law mentioned.  I didn't even ask her how the dish was supposed to be cooked...I just 'winged' it!  After all, how difficult can it be, right? ;)

This turned out rather well, so I'll share the recipe in a separate post. ^_~

#4 - Steamed Woon Chai Koh (Rice Flour Cake)

These steamed rice cakes, known as woon chai koh (literally small bowl cake) or chwee kueh would be something I'd eat for breakfast if I come across them (but this hawker favourite is harder to find nowadays).

Topped with a generous mound of sweet chai poh (which gives it its sweet-salty flavours), the bland rice cakes are best eaten with some chilli and sweet sauce.

#5 - Preserved Radish Topping


In its simplest form, preserved radish dry-fried with shallots, garlic and green onions is a great condiment with plain congee.

#6 - Steamed Chee Cheong Fun Roll

I bought this tasty steamed chee cheong fun with a popiah filling of softened jicama finished with a topping of sweet preserved radish at the morning market.  Simple but a yummy start to the day.

#7 - Stir-Fried Green Beans

Probably the best vegetable to go with preserved radish is stir-fried green beans.  Blistered, charred green beans dry-fried with chopped dried prawns, garlic, red chillies and finished with oyster sauce seasoning sounds yummy, doesn't it?  This is the dish I cook the most at home coz we really like the hint of smoky flavour in the green beans as a result of the dry-frying which is kind of similar to grilled vegetables.


Or choose to add minced pork and dried chillies...and you've got yourself a dish of Sichuan Dry Fried Green Beans...like this dish from Esquire Kitchen (minus the dried chillies) although I was given inside information that it's cha choy (Sichuan pickled mustard stem/root) instead of preserved radish.  Whatever it is, it's very good. ^.^

#8 - Wonton or Sui Kow (Soup Dumplings)


I heard that some recipes for wonton or sui kow may contain preserved radish in their meat or prawn fillings.

#9 - Minced Pork with Choy Poh Tofu

A dish that's probably available at many tai chow places is fried beancurd with a topping of minced pork and preserved radish.

You can have it in a non-fried version too with silken tofu (without minced pork) that's finished with just fried garlic bits and chopped spring onions.  Just as tasty.


This dish can be easily replicated at home to great success.  You can also put it on top of steamed eggs though it's less common.

#10 - Sei Tai Tin Wong (Four Seasons of Vegetables)

Sei Tai Tin Wong, literally translated as Four Heavenly Kings (not the singers!), is a stir-fry of four kind of vegetables (usually brinjal, long beans, ladies finger & petai or four angle beans) fried with dried prawns and a chilli/belacan mix...and possibly maybe even some preserved radish (at least some versions of this dish).

#11 - Oh Ku Kuih

This oh ku kuih, with a ramie leaf glutinous rice skin has a filling of savoury-sweet chai poh in it, is one of the kuihs you might find at a Nyonya kuih stall.  I'm rather fond of this kuih.

#12 - Chai Poh Tao (Diced Preserved Radish & Long Beans Stir-Fry)

This is a medly of diced vegetables with long beans, carrot, fried firm tofu, pickled cubed sweet radish, peanuts and sometimes red bell pepper (or fresh red chillies)...a dish that you might come across in a chap fan stall.  It goes by a cute name too...char liap liap.  Its sweet-salty flavour goes very well with plain congee.  I don't make this at home coz I don't quite like preserved radish in such big chunks. >.<

#13 - Steamed Fish with Choy Poh Topping


The sweet preserved radish topping, besides being great with porridge, can also be paired with steamed fish.


I recently found out just how great this combination was as the chai poh condiment works extremely well as a topping for steamed fish to bring extra texture and flavour to the otherwise bland tasting fish.

#14 - Pad Thai


It seems some pad thai versions even have preserved radish (the sweet type) among its ingredients.  I can believe that since Thai cuisine revolves around sweet-salty-sour-spicy flavours all in one dish.

#15 - Chai Poh Sambal

Finally, there's evan a choy poh sambal made with a mixture of preserved radish and dried prawns (I first had this at a Chinese nasi lemak stall).  Best eaten with rice...and you'll need lots of it coz it's so good! ^o^

Which type of preserved radish do you prefer...the sweet or salty kind?  I like the sweet kind better primarily because it's not so salty...plus it's more versatile as you can cook it in more delicious ways (other than just a radish omelette).

So, what's your favourite dish to eat with preserved radish?  Mine are fried carrot cake and woon chai koh...and if it's a dish I cook frequently at home, it'd be stir-fried green beans and as a topping for silken tofu.  Is there any other way of eating this that I missed out? ^_~