Today, I want to introduce you to one of my favorite winter vegetables––the brilliant daikon radish, and an extremely easy and delicious recipe that Bill loves every time I make it, boiled daikon radish. (I’ve convinced the girls as well of how delicious it is!)
This boiled daikon requires no oil, no wok, and no extreme high heat. Since I always have a daikon radish in the fridge, it’s my go-to side dish in the wintertime. I just cut it up, boil it with a few ingredients I always have in my pantry, and a healthy meal awaits!
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the food we eat has an enormous effect on our health (well, all of medicine can get behind that one, I guess!). The term 食疗 (shi liao) loosely translates to diet, but is more about using the foods you eat to improve your health. Everyone is becoming more health conscious these days, especially when it comes to the food we eat. I think that might be why our Yam Leaf Stir-Fry made our Top 25 list of most popular recipes from 2018. In case you missed it, yam leaves are one of our new favorite superfoods!
As for daikon, it’s low in calories and high in fiber. Some reported dietary benefits include boosting your immune system, reducing inflammation, and flushing harmful toxins from your body. Daikon may also help bone strength, weight management, respiratory health, and improved digestion.
Boy, I knew daikon was good for me, but I did not know about all these health benefits until I did some research. A word of advice though, people with “cool” constitutions in Chinese medicine, should not eat too much of it. There’s a lot to say about whether your constitution is “too hot” or “too cold,” but I’ll have to save that for a rainy day!
Unless you’re a researcher, the health benefits of daikon are probably a bit of a mystery to most of us, and, at the end of the day, daikon simply tastes great and remains a staple vegetable in many Asian cultures. We’ve published a handful of delicious recipes that feature my favorite wintry radish and really highlight the taste of Chinese home cooking: Easy Braised Turnip Rice Bowls, Chinese Braised Beef and Turnips, Braised Daikon with Salted Pork and Glass Noodles, and Oxtail Soup.
But this boiled daikon recipe is by far the easiest and very tasty, I might add. It offers the purest, most delicate taste of daikon radish without being bland, and goes great with pretty much any main dish as a healthy side. I hope you give this recipe a try and add daikon radish to your meal rotation. That would mean a job well done for me! ;)
Cut the daikon into half-inch thick, bite-sized pieces.
In a pot, add 1 slice ginger, 1 cup water or stock (235ml), 1 tablespoon oyster sauce (16 g), ½ teaspoon salt (2 g), ¼ teaspoon sugar (1 g), ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper (a large pinch), and stir to combine. Add the daikon.
Cover and bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 20 minutes until the daikon is folk tender, stirring occasionally.
Right before serving, add in the chopped scallion, and a few drops of sesame oil (optional).
Mix well and serve!
Boiled Daikon Radish: A Light, Healthy Side Dish
Ingredients
- 1 pound daikon radish (about 450 g)
- 1 slice ginger
- 1 cup water or stock (235 ml)
- 1 tablespoon oyster sauce (16 g)
- ½ teaspoon salt (about 2 g, or to taste)
- ¼ teaspoon sugar (about 1 g)
- ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper
- 1 scallion (chopped)
- 1/4 teaspoon sesame oil
Instructions
- Cut the daikon into half-inch thick, bite-sized pieces. In a pot, add 1 slice ginger, 1 cup water or stock (235ml), 1 tablespoon oyster sauce (16 g), ½ teaspoon salt (2 g), ¼ teaspoon sugar (1 g), ¼ teaspoon ground white pepper (a large pinch), and stir to combine. Add the daikon.
- Cover and bring everything to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium. Cook for 20 minutes until the daikon is folk tender, stirring occasionally.
- Right before serving, add in the chopped scallion, and a few drops of sesame oil (optional). Mix well and serve!
Nutrition
Vicki says
Hello,
How do you prepare the daikon? Sometimes after it’s cooked, I still find it a bit stringy. We usually just peel the skin with a peeler. Is that correct?
Thank you!
Bill says
Hi Vicki, yes, using a peeler to take off the skin is fine. Stringy daikon means that it may be a bit old or overgrown. Try to get the smaller daikon radishes and you’ll have a better chance of avoiding a bitter taste or tough/stringy texture.
Nana Sin says
Yummy!! I substituted chinese black bean sauce for the oyster sauce and it was tasty. Did it in the pressure cooker so it was quick.
Judy says
Lovely!!!
okiegirl says
Judy, you got me again! [said with a huge smile] This was yummy yummy yummy. For years, I’ve ogled the daikons in my Asian store, but never purchased. You inspired me twice to do so within one week. First I made your braised beef and daikons recipe (awesome!) and tonight I had this with your equally awesome recipe for stir fried yam leaves. So much awesomeness in one week is almost overwhelming. Next I think I will try a scaled down version of the braised daikons without the beef. As always, thank you.
Judy says
Love it, Okiegirl! So great to hear all your successful recipe stories :-)
mability says
This is a simple delicious recipe & it’s great to know that it’s a superfood too. The daikon reminds me of tofu in that it takes on the flavor of the sauce. Now that I know how to cook daikon, I want to try adding it to stews. I made the mistake of pulling out chicken breasts from my freezer instead of thighs to make pan-roasted oyster chicken. So, I doubled the sauce for the chicken and cooked it in the oven in less time. The daikon was a great addition to our meal and balanced well with the oyster chicken. I love trying one of your recipes each week and each week our family eats healthier. This will go into the winter rotation for sure, I’m learning so much from your website. I didn’t notice any smell when cooking. Thanks for sharing.
Judy says
I am so glad to know that we can contribute a bit to your healthy eating ;-)
Yun says
May I ask where you got the pot you used in the picture?
Judy says
Hi Yun, I found it in Marshalls.
Angela says
Was cooking the recipe reminded me of the dish, but was distracted by frozen water pipe. When I looked again, a few pieces were turning brown and I thought they were starting to burn. Turned out they were caramelising and were so good I caramelised the lot! From now on, they will be caramelised.
Judy says
hahaha…this is how some of the best ideas come about, by accident. Happy dance!
Sarah Spectacular says
Just made this last night and it was so yummy! The light taste is a perfect compliment to heavier winter foods. Thank you for posting! I love medicinal cooking so if you have any more recipes like this up your sleeve please share!
Judy says
Ok, will do, Sarah!