That said, let's talk about spuds! I'm a big fan. I just can't get enough of any relation to deadly nightshade! They are especially delicious fried! In that spirit I decided to try to make potato pancakes. I've tried before with mashed potatoes with bad results. I may try that again at some point, but in the spirit of trying new things I started doing research on various types of potato pancakes, and came across latkes. I found a recipe that seemed simple and delicious, and it was off to the store! (I also picked up some stuff for a couple other projects... stay tuned!)
Potatos, onions, and some sour cream. No problem!
Following the recipe, I grated the potatoes and put them in water. Then drained them and mixed in the onion. Next was the towel!
I was surprised at how well the towel technique worked. It didn't just remove the water the potatoes were soaking in, it also make the potatoes dryer in general, so they fried better.
I mixed in the single egg. I read a few other recipes that required more eggs but they almost all had comments about how "eggy" they ended up being. As it turned out, one egg was plenty. The latkes held together well.
The recipe calls for using "two tablespoons" of the mixture, but I guesstimated. I used a large spoon and heaped it on. I dumped it into the skillet which contained about 1/4 cup of olive oil. That was about the perfect amount for two latkes to cook easily. I could have fit more, but I wanted to make sure they were separated. Over the course of cooking them all I added about another full 3/8 cup of oil. After dumping I pressed them down into more of a cake, but not too thin. You want them to have enough of a "weave"to help it all hold together.
I cooked them over medium heat after first taking the pan up to medium high. Cooking for about 5 minutes browned one side, after which I flipped them and cooked the other side for about the same amount of time. That was about perfect for this size. Then I took them out and set them on paper towels to dry.
This one was the first. Later ones were a little more cooked and crispy, but this gives a good idea of what they are like.
Results: Delicious! A+++ Will make again!
Plain, they are pretty much hash browns (which I love) but only the crispiest parts of the hash browns (which I love.) They have a nice onion flavor which you can sometimes get in good hashbrown places (which I love.) The olive oil also gives them a slightly different flavor, which I liked.
I also tried them with the traditional topping of sour cream. It tasted a lot like a good potato chip with some French onion dip. In other word, delicious!
I did not go so far as to try them with applesauce (another traditional topping,) but that was largely because I was enjoying them the other ways so much, and because I didn't have any.
I was very sorely tempted to try them with ketchup and hot sauce, though. Maybe next time.
I will be making these again, for sure, soon.
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