Potato pancakes
A great recipe for very crispy, traditional potato pancakes. They're golden brown and fragrant. They're irresistible, so I suggest frying a double batch right away and serving them in a few different ways.
Preparation time: 20 minutes Frying time: 30 minutes Number of servings: 25 large pancakes Per 100 g: Energy value 172 kcal Carbohydrates 21 g - Of which sugars 2 g Protein 4 g Fat 8 g Diet: low-sugar.
- 1 kg of peeled potatoes - about 10 medium potatoes
- 2 medium or small eggs
- small onion - about 120 g
- 2 flat tablespoons of wheat flour - 20 g
- a small bunch of chives
- spices: a flat teaspoon of sugar, salt and pepper
- frying oil or lard
Recipe for potato pancakes
Grate the peeled potatoes finely, or use a food processor/grinder with the appropriate attachment.
Squeeze out excess water from the potato mass. I use a cotton cloth for this. I drained about 100 ml of liquid into a separate bowl (sometimes I drain up to 150 ml of water). The mass should be wet, but there shouldn't be any standing water in it. The photo below shows the potato mass after squeezing out the excess water into a separate bowl.
Don't throw away the squeezed-out water. Let it sit in a bowl for 10-20 minutes. After this time, the potato starch should have collected at the bottom of the bowl.
Pour out all the water. You'll have at least a tablespoon of starch at the bottom, which I recommend adding back to the grated potatoes.
Finely chop the chives and onion. These are optional ingredients and can be safely omitted when making potato pancakes, but I highly recommend adding at least a little chives.
Add the starch that has collected at the bottom of the bowl (after draining off excess water) to the bowl of grated potatoes. Beat in two eggs. Add two level tablespoons of all-purpose flour and a level teaspoon each of sugar, salt, and pepper. Don't forget the chopped chives and onion.
Mix the entire mass very thoroughly.
Prepare a medium or large, heavy-bottomed frying pan. Heat it. Add 2-3 tablespoons of lard (I used goose fat, but good pork lard or vegetable oil for frying will also work).
Using a large spoon, spoon in portions of the potato mixture. Flip the potato pancakes over when they begin to brown on the bottom. If they brown too quickly, reduce the heat. If they are still pale after a few minutes, increase the heat. How long they will fry depends on the pan, the heat setting, and the thickness of the pancakes. As a guide, it shouldn't take longer than three minutes per side. Fry all the potato pancakes in this manner.
You should get at least 20-25 pancakes.
After removing from the pan, you can place the pancakes on a plate lined with a paper towel to absorb excess fat.
Finally, a few more interesting facts about making potato pancakes. If you'd like to experiment with them, I recommend a few tricks. You can grate some of the potatoes very finely, and the other half coarsely. You can also separately beat the egg whites until stiff and gently fold them into the potato mixture when you're ready to fry. These potato pancakes will be fluffy and crispier.
What to serve potato pancakes with: Potato pancakes taste delicious sprinkled with sugar and dipped in sour cream or thick plain yogurt... but not only that. Besides classic Hungarian pancakes, they taste great with scrambled eggs or cottage cheese. Potato pancakes are sometimes good with pan-fried vegetables. Wild mushrooms in a sauce or onions sliced and fried in oil are best. Do you have any other delicious ways to serve potato pancakes? Enjoy.
