Any fried form of potato seems to draw people like a magnet. What comes to mind are the big three–fries, potato chips, and potato pancakes. Of the three, the most accessible to the home cook who doesn’t have specialized equipment beyond a stove top and a frying pan is the potato pancake.
Growing up, I remember my mom standing over the stove for about an hour to serve up a batch of potato pancakes on meatless Fridays during Lent. We’d eat them all up “immediately” as recipes command. We’d eat them with a hefty glob of sour cream on them. Even better was when we ate them with freshly made applesauce that mom would make using apples from our neighbor’s huge apple tree.
When I got older, I thought making potato pancakes would take some time but otherwise would be a breeze. On my first try, the batter turned weird colors before I was ready to use it. Black comes to mind. Now I know that if left on their own for too long, peeled potatoes oxidize and turn unpalatable colors.
This recipe is for German potato pancakes. They are pretty much the same as my memory of Polish potato pancakes, except my mom would put the potatoes in a blender to pulverize them. Instead, the potatoes for these pancakes were coarsely grated.
Grating the potatoes make for crispy pancakes. Yum!
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pancakes
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- 2-3 pounds potatoes (russet potatoes recommended)
- 2 small to medium onions
- 1-2 teaspoons salt
- 3 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 3-4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ground black pepper to taste
- olive oil for frying
Ingredients
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- In a large bowl, peel and coarsely grate potatoes. In a separate bowl, finely grate onions. In another bowl, lightly beat the eggs.
- Remove any liquid that has accumulated from the grated potatoes. Add grated onions, salt, eggs, and flour to the potatoes. Mix well to make a batter.
- Heat about 2 tablespoons of oil in a large frying pan.
- Using a serving spoon or small ladle, spoon dollops of the batter onto the pan. Lightly spread batter to form flat pancakes. Be careful so that the pancakes do not touch each other.
- Fry until the edges are golden brown and the pancakes look crispy. Flip and fry the other side. When second side is golden brown and crispy, transfer with a spatula to a serving platter.
- Repeat previous 2 steps for remaining batter, adding more oil to the pan as necessary to ensure proper frying. Serve immediately or cover loosely with foil until all batches are completed.
- Can be served plain, or with sour cream or applesauce.
