Classic Potato Latkes Recipe (2024)

By Melissa Clark

Classic Potato Latkes Recipe (1)

Total Time
45 minutes
Rating
5(5,710)
Notes
Read community notes

This recipe is for a classic, unadorned latke; no kohlrabi or cumin here. Serve them hot and make more than you think you need. They go fast.

Featured in: How to Make Classic Potato Latkes

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Ingredients

Yield:About 3 dozen

  • 2large Russet potatoes (about 1 pound), scrubbed and cut lengthwise into quarters
  • 1large onion (8 ounces), peeled and cut into quarters
  • 2large eggs
  • ½cup all-purpose flour
  • 2teaspoons coarse kosher salt (or 1 teaspoon fine sea salt), plus more for sprinkling
  • 1teaspoon baking powder
  • ½teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • Safflower or other oil, for frying

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Preparation

Make the recipe with us

  1. Step

    1

    Using a food processor with a coarse grating disc, grate the potatoes and onion. Transfer the mixture to a clean dishtowel and squeeze and wring out as much of the liquid as possible.

  2. Step

    2

    Working quickly, transfer the mixture to a large bowl. Add the eggs, flour, salt, baking powder and pepper, and mix until the flour is absorbed.

  3. In a medium heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat, pour in about ¼ inch of the oil. Once the oil is hot (a drop of batter placed in the pan should sizzle), use a heaping tablespoon to drop the batter into the hot pan, cooking in batches. Use a spatula to flatten and shape the drops into discs. When the edges of the latkes are brown and crispy, about 5 minutes, flip. Cook until the second side is deeply browned, about another 5 minutes. Transfer the latkes to a paper towel-lined plate to drain and sprinkle with salt while still warm. Repeat with the remaining batter.

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Private Notes

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Cooking Notes

Lisa Romantum Schwartz

This looks identical to my ol' (Russian-American) Pops' recipe. But you've gotta use a box grater because I think knuckle skin is the secret ingredient that makes this recipe transcendent.

Debbie

I’ve used this recipe for years, but with one trick: brush each side with oil, flatten and bake in a 425 oven until crisp on both sides. You can do all of them at once and not have used oil to deal with later. They come out crispy and perfect each time!

Fiona

A good friend, her husband always makes the latkes, gave me this tip. After grating (whether in food processor or box grater), rinse and spin dry in a salad spinner.I have done this every since, it makes The crispiest latkes.

DrPat

Over many years of delicious latke-making, I always grate twice - using a food processor to coarsely grate the potatoes, then putting them quickly back through with the propeller-like chopper blade, before draining and squeezing out the excess liquid. Eliminates the hashed-browns look and feel, makes it more like finely hand grated. Yum!

Also, I use matzoh meal, not flour. Unpeeled potatoes work fine.

Yum!

Benjamin Ben-Baruch

All purpose flour? Safflower oil? Where did your bubbe come from?Hanukah latkes have to be made with left-over matzah meal. This is critical! All of the left-over matzah meal must be used before next Passover because that is the tradition! More importantly, using matzah meal in the latkes connects one holiday of freedom to another holiday of freedom giving the latkes extra special taste!

Matt Miller

I have made many, many potato pancakes in my day, and I can assure you, no matter how hard you have tried, you haven't yet squeezed enough water out of the potato shreds. That is all.

Katie Olmstead

I think I made this up but it is very helpful. After the batter is all put together (with or without bloody knuckles), put it in a colander and put the colander in a bowl. By doing this, there are no soggy latkas at the end. All the potentially pooled liquid has slipped through the colander holes.

Deborah

.Absolutely delicious but no way this recipe makes 36 latkes. My first batch yielded 12. Even making tiny ones that would have produced 24. For 36 fairly small latkes, double the recipe. I had 40 people to my hanukkah party. I made them in the afternoon and stood them on their sides in rows in an aluminum pan so they didn't get soggy. Popped the pans in the oven at 350 for around 15 minutes before serving. 130 latkes gone in maybe 20 minutes. Next year I'll make more!

Roc Rizzo

I have used a box grater on the coarsest side to make these before there were food processors! I am sure that many a Jewish grandma did the same. BTW- I am only Jewish by osmosis. I grew up in Brooklyn in an Italian-Jewish neighborhood.

Setenaya

A good, classic recipe. I'm in the matzoh meal camp myself. As to the grated knuckles, I firmly believe that if my grandmothers had had access to food processors, you can bet they would have used them and would have thought foolish anyone who didn't.

Kathleen

I use Yukon gold potatoes. They have less starch so they don’t turn color on you and they fry up to a delicious brown.

Judy

Please no flour or baking powder. It makes them gluey. Matzoh meal or dry bread crumbs.

Brad

I followed the recipe except I baked them at 350 for 30 minutes, then broiled each side for 2 minutes using a light brushing of evoo.They were perfect, not oily and the house wasn’t overwhelmed by the hot oil bath smell. Try it, you’ll like it!

Erin

Can I prep these so that all I have to do is fry at dinner time?

Adah

I use matzah meal instead of flour, and put everything in the food processor. It is a little simpler, and just as good.

John McAward

anybody tried panko breadcrumbs instead of flour or matzoh meal?

agw

really good this timeused russets, squeezed out watermed to med low

Erin

Can I prep these so that all I have to do is fry at dinner time?

Andrea

DO NOT SKIP OUT on sprinkling with salt!!!! Really brought them to the next level.

Claudia

Hand-grate with a box grater, use matzo meal instead of flour, and fry in schmaltz. These were amazing! My family went bonkers for them.

s y

Matzo meal

Joanna Sherwin

I made them medium sized I got about a little less than 2 doz.

Joby

These were delightfully crisp and light, made with gf flour blend and grated onion/potato without using the grater but processing until achieving a course mince. Such a marvelous way to translate a family tradition to my college age daughter! Many thanks!

Jmk

Warning: makes only about 20 latkes if you like them medium sized. Good recipe though.

Lisa S

I used matzoh meal instead of flour and it was perfect! I'm making them again, bite-sized, for a Christmas party, topped with sour cream and a strip of lox. Latkes at Christmas? Who knew!

Deborah

.Absolutely delicious but no way this recipe makes 36 latkes. My first batch yielded 12. Even making tiny ones that would have produced 24. For 36 fairly small latkes, double the recipe. I had 40 people to my hanukkah party. I made them in the afternoon and stood them on their sides in rows in an aluminum pan so they didn't get soggy. Popped the pans in the oven at 350 for around 15 minutes before serving. 130 latkes gone in maybe 20 minutes. Next year I'll make more!

Suki

I thought these were perfect -- best latkes I ever had or made

Loving/Living Cooking

I've made this terrific, basic recipe several times this past year. Nothing like Latkes for breakfast with a little sliced apple or sour cream and cranberry sauce on the side! For the flour, I generally substitute a combo of sprouted whole grain spelt and teff flours--anything to up the iron and micronutrient content in a recipe my kids will gobble up, regardless!

Candace Lieberman

Only 2 potatoes? For 36latkes? Also, you have to run them through the processor twice or the it not sufficiently grated.

Melissa

These are small - only 1 tablespoons of batter per cake. But you can make them bigger if you like.

Judith

How could two russets (however large) possibly make three dozen latkes (however small)?My father, who made the world's best potato latkes, never, ever added baking powder and used matzo meal instead of flour.Squeezing grated potatoes/onions in cheesecloth works beautifully. Have never tried a salad spinner, but next chance I will.

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Classic Potato Latkes Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What is the difference between potato pancakes and latkes? ›

Potato pancakes have a creamy, almost mashed-potato-like center, with a thin, golden, crisp exterior. Latkes, on the other hand, should have a deeply browned crust, with wispy, lacy edges. Latkes also aren't hash browns.

What were the original latkes made of? ›

Historically, Jews in Central and Southern Europe cooked kaese (cheese) latkes, and Jews in Eastern Europe made latkes from buckwheat or rye flour.

What kind of potatoes are best for latkes? ›

Russet potatoes: Russet potatoes, or baking potatoes, are high in starch and have a dry, mealy texture. This type of potato is best for latkes because the dryness of the potato is partially responsible for that desirable, crispy texture. Yellow onion: Yellow onion adds a savory flavor to the latkes.

What's the difference between hash browns and latkes? ›

Hash browns are shredded potatoes, fried (or air-fried), til golden brown. They typically remain loose, or in shreds. Latkes, a.k.a potato pancakes, are grated or ground potatoes that are mixed with egged, flour, or other binding agents. They are one piece, like a pancake.

Why do Jews make latkes? ›

These potato pancakes (called latkes) are meant to symbolize the miracle of Hanukkah, when the oil of the menorah in the ransacked Second Temple of Jerusalem was able to stay aflame for eight days even though there was only enough oil for one day. The symbolism comes in the form of the oil in which latkes are fried.

What oil is best for latkes? ›

Vegetable oil or canola oil is usually best, because of its high smoking point. Latkes were traditionally made with schmaltz, or chicken fat, so if you have access to it, you should certainly add it in, because it does contribute to the flavor.

Why are latkes served with applesauce? ›

The sweet tang of applesauce adds a contrasty punch to the potatoes and green onions, which make up latkes, while also cutting the grease from frying them. On the other hand, sour cream, while also adding its own version of tartness, can weigh the fried potato cakes down with dairy.

What do you eat latkes with? ›

Applesauce and sour cream are the traditional accoutrements for latkes. Some load their potato pancakes up with both toppings, while others have strong feelings about one over the other. (I'm Team Applesauce, all the way.) However, this Hanukkah, don't feel constrained by these standard-bearers.

What is the difference between Boxty and latkes? ›

Boxty is different from other potato pancakes or latkes, and you'll see that once you bite into one and notice the crispy hash brown-like outside and soft, dough-like inside.

What grater to use for latkes? ›

Grate them by hand using the large holes on a cheese grater. Or, for the greatest ease, use the grater blade on a food processor: place the potato in the large feed tube, lock into place, turn on, and push through. Repeat with the other potatoes.

What can I substitute for matzo meal in latkes? ›

But, corn meal is a great substitute for matzoh meal and will also make your latkes gluten-free and nice and crispy.

Are latkes sephardic or ashkenazi? ›

Latkes are consumed by Ashkenazi Jews (those from eastern Europe) to celebrate Hanukah.

What are Yankee potatoes? ›

In the 1800s “Yankees” in the Northeast enjoyed large. cut potatoes roasted- with crispy pan marks on the. outside and a luscious earthy center. Guests near the. kitchen could hear the slang “yanks” being yelled to.

What ethnicity is latkes? ›

A latke (Yiddish: לאַטקע latke; sometimes romanized latka, lit. "pancake") is a type of potato pancake or fritter in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine that is traditionally prepared to celebrate Hanukkah. Latkes can be made with ingredients other than potatoes such as cheese, onion, carrot, and zucchini.

What does latke mean in Hebrew? ›

Rabbi Lapidus: A latke is a pancake and the word itself comes to us via Yiddish, likely from a Russian word meaning “pancake.” Yiddish is a language which was used by Jews in central and eastern Europe for several centuries before the Holocaust.

Why do they make potato pancakes on Hanukkah? ›

Kolatch, Jews eat potato latkes during the eight days of the Hanukkah holiday “because they are fried in oil, and oil symbolizes the miracle of the cruse of oil which lasted for eight days instead of one. Latkes are called fasputshes or pontshkes by some Ashkenazim.

What's another name for a potato pancake? ›

A latke is a small pancake usually made with grated potatoes. Latkes are traditionally eaten during Hanukkah. Most latkes are crispy little potato pancakes that are served with apple sauce or sour cream during the eight days of Hanukkah.

What do potato latkes taste like? ›

"The flavor is potato, really just salty in a good way, maybe a little hint of onion. It's really just a nice fried, crispy soft potato with a little salt." This, of course, is the simple and traditional latke. As a cookbook author and food blogger, Kritzer gets creative with her latkes, too.

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