When I worked in child care we were blessed to enjoy meals cooked by fabulous cooks from a number of different nationalities including Italian, Korean and Israeli. And I clearly remember the children’s delight when our Israeli cook, Rachel, would cook Potato Latkes as a treat at lunchtime. Potato Latkes are shredded potato pancakes that are traditionally prepared as part of the Jewish Hanukkah festival – and they are delicious!
Served hot with sour cream or applesauce, or eaten unadorned (my favourite way to eat them!), these crispy pancakes are made from the simplest of ingredients – just potatoes, a little onion and egg, and are just as simple to cook. They’re divine.
If you’ve never eaten a potato pancake, you simply don’t know what you’re missing!
Makes approximately 20 latkes.
Save RecipeIngredients
- 5 potatoes
- 1 egg
- 1/2 onion, chopped
- 3-4 cups oil, for frying
- Salt and pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Shred your potatoes using a cheese grater.
- Place the shredded potato in a square of muslin or cheesecloth and squeeze out over the sink to rid the potatoes of excess moisture (to rid the potatoes of starch, you can place them in water for 30 minutes and repeat the straining process, but this is personal preference).
- Combine the shredded potato, egg and chopped onion in a medium-sized bowl.
- Heat the oil in a large frying pan or dutch oven over medium-high heat.
- Flatten a 1/2 cup of the shredded potato mixture in the palm of your hands and carefully add to the oil. Repeat so that you have 3-4 potato latkes cooking at the same time.
- Fry for about 2 minutes (until golden) before flipping carefully using metal tongs. Fry until completely golden and remove to a paper towel-lined plate to drain excess oil.
- Repeat with remaining potato mixture.
Christie Burnett is a teacher, presenter, writer and the mother of two. She created Childhood 101 as a place for teachers and parents to access engaging, high quality learning ideas.
