• Skip to main content
  • Skip to header right navigation
  • Skip to site footer
Devour.Asia

Devour.Asia

Better Asian recipes for home cooks

  • Recipes
    • Cuisine
      • Chinese
      • Japanese
      • Korean
      • Thai
      • Vietnamese
      • Taiwanese
      • Filipino
      • Indonesian
      • Malaysian
      • South Asian
      • Fusion
      • Street Food
    • Ingredient
      • Poultry
      • Seafood
      • Meat
      • Rice & Grains
      • Noodles
      • Vegetables
      • Tofu
      • Mushrooms
      • Bread
      • Eggs
      • Fruits
    • Course
      • Breakfast
      • Snacks
      • Salads
      • Soups
      • Main Courses
      • Side Dishes
      • Sweets
      • Drinks
  • Kitchen
  • Stories
  • Cuisine
    • Chinese
    • Japanese
    • Korean
    • Thai
    • Taiwanese
    • Filipino
    • Indonesian
    • Malaysian
    • South Asian
    • Fusion
  • Main Ingredient
    • Poultry
    • Seafood
    • Meat
    • Rice & Grains
    • Noodles
      • Noodle Soups
      • Noodles Stir Fry
      • Instant Noodles (Ramen)
    • Vegetables
    • Mushrooms
    • Tofu
    • Bread
    • Eggs
    • Fruits
  • Course
    • Breakfast
    • Snacks
    • Salads
    • Soups
    • Main Courses
    • Side Dishes
    • Sweets
    • Drinks
  • Street Food
  • Kitchen Tales
  • Food Tales
  • About
  • Privacy
You are here: Home / All Recipes / Deep-fried Crispy Taro Puffs (Wu Gok)

Deep-fried Crispy Taro Puffs (Wu Gok)

A beloved dim sum dish, taro puffs is illustrative of the importance of contrast in texture. The outside is crisp but the taro is soft and creamy beneath the crust. And, inside, a generous amount of well-seasoned meat.

Taro puffs (wu gok) on a plate

Why is it called a “puff”? If you will look closely at the deep-fried taro balls in the photos, the surface of the taro balls is not smooth. Rather, there is a fine lace-like pattern all over. That’s because the mashed taro puffs during frying. If you prefer a more pronounced lace-like pattern, make the taro mixture less stiff by adding more water and shortening.

Deep-fried Crispy Taro Puffs (Wu Gok)

Recipe by Connie Veneracion
A staple in dim sum restaurants, taro puffs are golden and lightly crisp on the surface, creamy underneath and bursting with moist meat at the center.
Prep Time 20 mins
Cook Time 40 mins
Total Time 1 hr
Course Appetizer, Snack
Cuisine Chinese
Servings 10 taro puffs
Taro puff cut into halves to show meat filling
Print Recipe

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams taro peeled and cut into 2-inch cubes
  • 2 tablespoons shortening lard is traditional but I used Crisco
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch dispersed in 2 tablespoons of warm water (plus more for dusting)
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • pepper
  • pinch baking soda
  • drizzle sesame seed oil
  • 2 cups cooking oil for deep frying

For the filling:

  • 150 grams ground pork
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • 2 tablespoons cooking oil
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons frozen sweet peas
  • 1 finger chili finely chopped
  • salt to taste
  • pepper to taste
  • 1 teaspoon sesame seed oil
  • 1 teaspoon sugar

Instructions
 

  • Place the peeled taro in a pan, add enough water to cover, bring to the boil, cover and simmer until very tender. How tender? A fork or knife inserted at the thickest part of the largest piece should go through easily and without resistance.
  • Mash the boiled taro. Add the shortening, starch solution, sugar, salt, pepper, sesame seed oil and baking soda to mashed taro and mix well.
  • Transfer the taro to a flat work surface and knead until pliable, about 5 to 7 minutes.
    Boiling, mashing and kneading taro
  • Place the kneaded taro in a bowl, cover with a damp towel to prevent it from drying, and let rest while you make the filling.
  • To the ground pork, add one tablespoon of corn starch and one tablespoon of water. Mix well.
  • Heat two tablespoons of cooking oil in a work, add the pork and cook, stirring, until it starts to brown. Season with salt, pepper and about one teaspoon. of sugar.
    Prepping and cooking taro puff filling
  • Add the peas and chopped chili, continue cooking for another minute, pour in the sesame seed oil then turn off the heat. Transfer the pork and peas mixture to a shallow bowl to allow to cool a bit.
  • Transfer the pork and peas mixture to a shallow bowl to allow to cool a bit.
  • Spoon one tablespoon of the pork filling at the center of the taro mixture.
  • Place about two tablespoons of the taro mixture on the palm of your hand. Flatten and spread into a circle. Curve your hand to create a “bowl”.
    Stuffing rolled taro with cooked ground pork
  • Gather the edges of the taro mixture and close to seal the pork filling.
  • You now have one taro ball with pork and peas filling.
  • Repeat until all the taro mixture has been used up.
  • Sprinkle the taro balls with corn starch then start heating the cooking oil for deep frying.
    Deep frying taro puffs until golden and crisp
  • This is the stage where the taro balls become taro puffs. As the taro balls come in contact with the hot oil, the surface puffs as it turns crisp. Fry the taro balls over high heat until nicely browned.
  • Drain on paper towels and serve immediately.

Notes

Updated from a post originally published in March 17, 2009
Keyword dim sum, dumplings, fried dumpling
More Chinese Food
Moo shu chicken rice bowl

Moo Shu Chicken

Chicken Wonton Noodle Soup

Chicken Wonton Noodle Soup

Top View of Chinese Scrambled Eggs With Tomatoes on Plate

Chinese Scrambled Eggs with Tomatoes

Published: May 21, 2020 • Last modified: November 15, 2021 ♥ All Recipes, Chinese, Meat, Snacks, Vegetables
Further Reading
Chinese-style fried rice in white ramekin

How To Cook Chinese-style Fried Rice

Fried and skewered quail eggs. Tamsui Old Street, Taiwan

Quail Eggs in Asian Cuisines

Mandarin oranges

Symbolic Food for the Lunar New Year

Sidebar

Experience Asia

Thai cucumber salad garnished with peanuts and cilantro

Thai Cucumber Salad with Sweet and Tangy Chili Dressing

Japanese sakura rice bowls

Two Reasons to Go Back to Japan

Sam Veneracion making pottery. Bat Trang Village, Vietnam.

The Authentic Bat Trang Ceramic Village Tour and Pottery Class

Thai meatballs in curry sauce

Thai-style Meatballs in Coconut Curry Sauce

San Francisco-style garlic noodles in dark blue Japanese shallow bowl

Garlic Noodles

  • About
  • Privacy
  • Archive

Inspiration

“A full belly conquers all.”

From the film Saving Face
Popular Posts
  • A Guide To Ramen Broth: Shio, Shoyu, Miso and Tonkotsu
  • 3 Soy Sauce Braised Pork Belly
  • Steamed Pompano With Ginger Sauce
  • Tofu in Oyster Sauce
  • Slow Cooker Chinese-style Beef Tendon
Not So Fine Print

Devour Asia does NOT work with “brands”.

Devour Asia does NOT accept guest posts.

Devour Asia does NOT outsource recipe development, writing, photography and videography.

Except for the occasional stock photo and blockquote, everything © Devour Asia. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.