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Potato pancakes (or latkes) are the most popular and traditional food served during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. Latkes are best when they're very crispy. Here are four tricks to making sure they're as crisp as possible:
1) Use a starchy baking potato such as a Russet. The starch makes for a crispier pancake and also helps bind the pancake together.
2) Once the potatoes have been shredded, as much moisture as possible should be squeezed out of them. This can be done by using either cheesecloth or a kitchen towel.
3) The oil should be good and hot. If the oil isn't hot enough, the pancakes will absorb too much and turn out soggy and greasy.
4) If you make the latkes in advance, they should be reheated in an oven on wire racks. That way the bottoms won't steam and get soggy.
Here's a recipe for wonderfully crisp latkes. Serve them with sour cream and applesauce.
Potato Pancakes
(makes approximately 15-20 latkes)
4 cups shredded potatoes, peeled
1 cup grated onion
1 egg, beaten
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons flour
Peanut oil or vegetable oil for frying
Water to soak the potatoes (optional)
1. Grate the onion in a food processor or with a hand grater and put it in a large bowl.
2. Peel and grate the potatoes in a food processor or with a hand grater. If you want lacy potaoes, use the large holes of the grater. If you want a more uniform texture, use the smaller holes.
3. If you'd like your potatoes to be lighter in color, immediately cover the grated poatoes with water (not the grated onions). This will keep the potatoes from oxidizing and discoloring, but it will make it harder to remove the water.
4. If you soaked the potatoes in water, drain them first. Then, whether you have soaked them or not, spread the shredded potatoes over a cheesecloth or kitchen towel and squeeze out as much moisture as possible. You may want to do it in two batches.
5. Add the potatoes to the bowl with the grated onion, add the beaten egg, salt, and two tablespoons of flour. Mix well.
6. Heat the oil until hot, but not smoking, at a depth of 1/4 inch. Drop a tiny bit of the potato mixture in the pan, and if it sizzles, it's ready. Use approximately two tablespoons of batter to make each pancake. Flatten each pancake with a spatula, as thin as possible. Don't crowd them in the pan. When golden on the bottom, flip the pancakes over and brown on the underside. Replenish the frying oil as needed.
7. When fully crisp, remove the pancakes to drain on paper towels.
8. If you're serving the pancakes later, reheat them on a wire rack in the oven so they can crisp on the bottom as well as the top. Heat at 350 degrees for 7-10 minutes until they're hot and crisp.
9. Serve with sour cream and applesauce.
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