Cover Chinese New Year turnip cakes worth making space for on the festive table (Photo: Yat Tung Heen)
Chinese New Year turnip cakes worth making space for on the festive table (Photo: Yat Tung Heen)
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From classic turnip cakes to more interesting treats to try, these are the Chinese New Year puddings that won’t end up forgotten in the fridge
Chinese New Year cakes and puddings have a reputation problem. Too often, they’re bought out of obligation, gifted with good intentions, then quietly pushed to the back of the fridge, dutifully sliced once, if at all. But when done well, these festive staples can be genuinely craveable: balanced, textural and thoughtfully made, with just enough sweetness to invite a second bite.
This year, we’re focusing on the Chinese New Year treats that earn their place on the table. Whether it’s a rich, savoury turnip cake, a refined nian gao, gently sweet water chestnut pudding or something a little more interesting, these are the ones we’d happily eat, even after the lion dances are done.
See also: The best Chinese New Year menus for celebrations in Hong Kong
Scallion-infused daikon turnip cake from Dashijie
Above Dashijie’s new daikon turnip cake with dried scallops, shrimp, Chinese sausage and scallion oil
Dashijie’s new daikon turnip cake with dried scallops, shrimp, Chinese sausage and scallion oil
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Dashijie’s new scallion-forward daikon turnip cake is built around aroma and depth. Made with sweet, water-rich daikon, it’s packed with dried scallops, premium Indonesian shrimp, Chinese sausage, cured pork and thick shiitake mushrooms, then layered with golden fried shallots, fresh scallions and fragrant scallion oil. The flavour is rich but balanced, with the onion perfume carrying through every bite. A bottle of house-made scallion oil is included for pan-frying, helping the cake crisp beautifully at the edges. The cake is made in Hong Kong with no preservatives, MSG or artificial colouring.
Water chestnut pudding from Yat Tung Heen
Above Water chestnut pudding: lightly sweet with delicate layers of texture
Above Pan-fried until golden, revealing crisp edges and bouncy texture within
Water chestnut pudding: lightly sweet with delicate layers of texture
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Yat Tung Heen offers an elegant Chinese New Year pudding made with water chestnut and coconut juice, delivering gentle sweetness and delicate layers of texture that feel light rather than indulgent. It’s the kind of festive dessert that refreshes the palate, and one you’ll actually want to slice, serve and finish.
Hokkien-inspired traditional puddings from Ming Pavilion
Above Pistachio coconut milk pudding and golden crab turnip pudding
Above Coconut taro pudding paired with XO sauce taro pudding
Pistachio coconut milk pudding and golden crab turnip pudding
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Ming Pavilion approaches Chinese New Year puddings with a Hokkien sensibility, pairing tradition with creativity. The pistachio coconut milk pudding brings a creamy, nutty sweetness, while the golden crab turnip pudding delivers rich, savoury depth. Then, there is the coconut taro pudding, which is gently sweet and soothing, set against an XO sauce taro pudding that delivers umami warmth and savoury. Each pairing is designed to be shared, mixing sweet and savoury in a way that feels considered and complete.
Roselle, rose purée and osmanthus chilled pudding with bird’s nest from Cuisine Cuisine
Above Roselle, rose purée and osmanthus chilled pudding with bird’s nest from Cuisine Cuisine
Roselle, rose purée and osmanthus chilled pudding with bird’s nest from Cuisine Cuisine
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Cuisine Cuisine’s roselle, rose purée and osmanthus pudding is lightly floral, gently tart and refreshingly restrained, with bird’s nest adding a smooth, almost silken richness beneath the surface. The pudding is finished with gold foil; it’s less about sweetness for sweetness’s sake and more about balance, texture and occasion.
Cuisine Cuisine
Chinese
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$ $
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3/F, The Mira Hong Kong, Mira Place 2, 118-130 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Hong Kong
Lotus root cake with osmanthus and preserved tangerine peel from Man Ho
Above Man Ho’s lotus root pudding with dried osmanthus and preserved tangerine peel
Man Ho’s lotus root pudding with dried osmanthus and preserved tangerine peel
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Man Ho’s lotus root cake is a quietly elegant take on a festive classic. Made with fresh, locally grown lotus root, it carries a gentle, natural sweetness that’s lifted by the soft floral aroma of dried osmanthus and the subtle citrus edge of preserved tangerine peel. Light, refreshing and deliberately restrained, it’s the kind of Chinese New Year pudding that feels cleansing rather than heavy.
Man Ho Chinese Restaurant
Cantonese
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$ $ $ $
3/F, JW Marriott Hotel Hong Kong, 88 Queensway, Admiralty, Hong Kong
Taro pudding from Grand Hyatt Hong Kong
Above Grand Hyatt Hong Kong’s taro pudding with aged sun-dried tangerine peel preserved duck liver sausage and cured duck leg
Grand Hyatt Hong Kong’s taro pudding with aged sun-dried tangerine peel preserved duck liver sausage and cured duck leg
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This limited-edition Chinese New Year taro pudding from Grand Hyatt Hong Kong combines taro with cured duck leg and a prized 30-year-aged sun-dried tangerine peel preserved duck liver sausage, developed through One Harbour Road’s collaboration with the highly acclaimed Macau-based producer of Cantonese roasted and cured meats, Long Tin. The result is rich, aromatic and deeply layered, with the aged citrus cutting through the pudding’s earthy depth. It’s a bold, umami-forward take on a festive classic.
One Harbour Road
Chinese
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$ $ $ $
7/F-8/F, Grand Hyatt Hong Kong, 1 Harbour Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong
Ancient arbor black tea pudding with brown sugar from Ming Court (Cordis, Hong Kong)
Above Yunnan Baoshan ancient arbor black tea pudding with brown sugar from Ming Court
Yunnan Baoshan ancient arbor black tea pudding with brown sugar from Ming Court
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Ming Court’s first-ever black tea pudding is made with wild Dian Hong black tea harvested from 200-year-old ancient arbor trees in Baoshan, Yunnan. It carries a refined, aromatic depth, with notes that gently echo rose, magnolia and ripe fruit. Brown sugar lends warmth and roundness, while the texture remains soft and delicately glutinous. Handmade in very limited batches to preserve the tea’s fragrance, this is a Chinese New Year pudding that favours nuance over sweetness.
Ming Court
Chinese
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$ $ $ $
6/F, Cordis Hong Kong, 555 Shanghai Street, Mong Kok, Kowloon, Hong Kong
Beetroot, sweet potato and pumpkin New Year cakes from May Chow
Above May Chow’s colourful Lunar New Year cakes, featuring beetroot, purple sweet potato and pumpkin
May Chow’s colourful Lunar New Year cakes, featuring beetroot, purple sweet potato and pumpkin
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May Chow’s Lunar New Year cakes bring colour and confidence to the festive table. The “Big Red” beetroot cake blends radish and beetroot for a gentle sweetness and earthy depth, its vivid crimson hue signalling good fortune without tipping into novelty. “Big Purple”, made from Okinawan purple sweet potato and Lipu taro, is soft, nutty and strikingly smooth, with a naturally rich colour that feels celebratory rather than showy. Then there’s “Golden Sands”, a pumpkin cake enriched with salted egg yolk, where savoury richness meets subtle sweetness in a way that’s deeply comforting. Handcrafted in small batches with natural ingredients and no artificial additives, these cakes are playful, polished and genuinely good to eat.
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A storyteller by day and a first-class food devourer by night, Fontaine is the Regional Dining Editor at Tatler Asia, overseeing dining content across all regions and shaping the brand’s editorial voice on food, chefs and culinary culture.
She is also Content Lead for Tatler Best and Co-jury Head for Tatler Best Hong Kong and Macau, guiding the awards’ editorial direction and evaluation process. With over a decade in the lifestyle and media industry spanning London and Hong Kong, she brings a cross-regional perspective to the table.
Follow her on Instagram at @fontimes.
