How to cook your potato latkes to perfection

The absolute best part about Hanukkah is the potato latkes (AKA potato pancakes). That’s right. I said it. Potato latkes. They are quintessentially Jewish, and very much a once-a-year kind of treat since they are a labor of love and a require a shit load of oil.

Which is what makes them a traditional Hanukkah treat.

Back to the labor of love that is latkes. Every year, I mess up at least one batch and/or burn one batch. Somehow the oil is not hot enough and also too hot at the same time.

BUT NOT THIS YEAR.

This year, I cooked them to utter perfection. Every. Single. Batch. They were the perfect size, shape, and not a single one got burned to a crisp. There was also minimal splattering and mess. AHHHHH.

I made three very specific changes this year and I’m going to share them below. I used the same recipe that I’ve always used, so I can confidently say that the things I did differently made all the difference.

First, here’s he recipe that I follow:

Potato Latkes

emily

There is something magical about deep fried potatoes. Latkes are no exception. These deep fried potato pancakes are perfect for Hanukkah or any other day of the week that you feel like putting in the effort.

Print Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr

Course Sides

Cuisine Jewish

Servings 16 latkes

Ingredients

  

• 4 medium russet potatoes peeled and cut the long way into quarters
• 1/2 cups onion chopped
• 1/3 cup flour all-purpose or gluten-free
• 2 large eggs
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 cups oil for frying

Instructions

 

• Using the grater attachment for your food processor, grate the potatoes. Once the potatoes are grated, transfer to a large bowl and swap the grater attachment for the regular blade. Put grated potatoes back into the food processor and add your chopped onions. Pulse 5-6 times or until your mixture gets a little smaller in size and the onions are incorporated. You may have to stop and stir halfway through for that to happen.
• Transfer the potato and onion mixture into a nut milk bag (or cheese cloth, or kitchen towel) and squeeze the living daylights out of it. You want to get as much liquid out of the potatoes as possible. Return potato mixture to your large bowl.
• Add in remaining ingredients (flour, eggs, and salt) to the mixing bowl and stir until everything is incorporated fully.
• Heat a large frying pan (or two) over medium heat. Add enough oil so that you have about 1/4 inch or oil in the bottom. Add a raw baby carrot (or larger carrot) to the pan.
• Once hot, using a large cookie scoop or ice cream scoop, spoon potato mixture into the pan and cook for 4-5 minutes, or until light brown and crisp. Flip and repeat on the other side.
• Transfer latkes to a paper towel lined plate or baking sheet and continue cooking the latkes until the potato mixture is gone. I like to place my finished latkes on a baking sheet in a 200°F oven to keep them warm while I finish cooking everything.
• Serve with homemade applesauce, sour cream, or enjoy plain with a sprinkle of salt.

Notes

This recipe is dairy-free and can be made gluten-free by choosing a suitable flour. 

Keyword dairy-free, potatoes

Now for the hot tips to make the most perfect latkes ever:

1. I used a nut milk bag to squeeze the extra liquid out instead of my hands. Every year I squeeze the liquid out with my hands and every year I hate myself for making latkes. This year, I used a nut milk bag and it was seriously the best thing ever. Not only did it not annoy me to have to squeeze the liquid out, but it was actually something my kiddo and I could do together. Dare I say we had fun doing it?!
2. I put a raw carrot in the oil and it stopped the splattering. Thank you IG for that nugget. It kept the cooking oil at the right temperature for the duration of the cooking process. I didn’t have to adjust the burner temperature once (which I normally do), and not once did a latke burn or overcook. It. Was. Amazing.
3. I used a large cookie scoop to drop the potato and onion mixture into the pan. In years past, I’ve used a 1/4 cup measuring cup and it worked fine. Mostly. There would always be some latkes that weren’t packed in tightly enough and would just fall apart. Not this time. They were all the same size thanks to the scoop and they held together beautifully. That could also be because of the nut milk bag squeezing out every last drop of liquid, but who cares. I’m sticking with the cookie scoop technique. Because I liked it.

And there you have it. The three things I did differently this year when making potato latkes, which in turn, gave us the best latkes ever this Hanukkah.

Happy latkes making!

And a very happy Hanukkah to those who celebrate. 🕎