A latke has three main elements: potato, onion, and a binder . The potato part is easy. Don’t get anything fancy—russet potatoes are all you need. Russets, often called Idaho potatoes, brown the best and produce tender interiors, thanks to their high starch content.
What is the main ingredient in latkes?
Latkes are pan-fried potato pancakes made from grated potatoes and onion, an egg, and a binder, such as matzo meal or breadcrumbs . In their ideal form, they have a crispy exterior and a light, creamy inside.
What kind of potatoes do you use for latkes?
The Potatoes
There’s no question about it: Russets are hands down the best spuds for making latkes. They have a high starch content, which means your latkes are less likely to fall apart and you don’t need flour to bind them.
What are latkes from?
The latke, it turns out, has its roots in an old Italian Jewish custom , documented as early as the 14th century. That, it seems, is where Jews first fried pancakes to celebrate Hannukah. Only back then, they were made of cheese.
What is the difference between potato pancakes and latkes?
Latkes are usually made with eggs, a little milk, flour or matzo meal and baking powder. Potato pancakes turn up in most European cultures, from Polish placki to Swedish rarakor, German kartoffelpuffer and Irish boxty. ... Most have egg as a binder, but not all have flour or baking powder.
Are latkes always potato?
Latkes are similar to fritters and can be made from all sorts of vegetables. But potatoes are the most common . Latkes are usually made with eggs, a little milk, flour or matzo meal and baking powder. ... They range from smooth cakes of leftover mashed potatoes to crispy shredded potatoes that resemble hash browns.
What is similar to latkes?
Potato pancakes, raggmunk, draniki, deruny , latkes or boxties are shallow-fried pancakes of grated or ground potato, matzo meal or flour and a binding ingredient such as egg or applesauce, often flavored with grated garlic or onion and seasoning.
Should you peel potatoes for latkes?
For best results, use russet potatoes . They are high in starch, which is necessary to form pancakes that don’t fall apart. If you peel the potatoes before making latkes, put them in water between peeling and shredding to prevent oxidizing and discoloring.
Are latkes just hash browns?
As in, when making the delightful potato pancakes called latkes, start with shredded hash brown potatoes. ... Because it is hard to top freshly made, golden brown, deliciously crispy potato latkes — unless we are talking a slice of smoked salmon, a dollop of sour cream and a sprig of dill.
What do latkes taste like?
The savory latke tastes heavenly with a touch of cool, tangy cream combined with the subtle sweetness of applesauce . If you want to make your own applesauce, go for it! Easy stuff.
What oil is best for latkes?
Stick to canola or peanut oil , which both have high enough smoke points to fry up a mess of latkes.
How do you keep latkes crispy?
The trick to latkes that stay crispy? Let them dry on a rack , instead of a pile of soggy paper towels. They cool quickly, so if you’re serving them the same day you can place them on a baking sheet and keep them warm in the oven at 200 degrees while you fry the next batch.
Why are my latkes falling apart?
If they’re falling apart while you’re shaping them, they either need a little more flour to hold them together (QueenSashy recommends saving the potato starch that gathers at the bottom of the liquid you squeeze out of the grated potatoes and mixing that back into the potato mix) or they’re too wet and need to be wrung ...
Why are latkes fried?
Crispy, fried, slightly oniony potato pancakes with decadent (that’s a euphemism for fattening) toppings. Why latkes? The simple answer is that they’re meant to remind Jews of the miracle of the oil associated with Hanukkah . But this story is anything but simple.
What does latkes mean in Hebrew?
A latke (Yiddish: לאַטקע; sometimes romanized latka, lit. “ pancake “) is a type of potato pancake or fritter in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine that is traditionally prepared to celebrate Hanukkah.
Why do we eat fried food on Hanukkah?
Why fried? ... Fried foods, like potato pancakes and jelly doughnuts, are prepared and eaten throughout the holiday to celebrate the miracle of Hanukkah: oil that kept the menorah (an ancient lamp) lit for 8 days instead of the 1 day it was supposed to last.
