Why isn’t the rest of America as crazy about latkes as we are about bagels?
After all, Hanukkah, which begins Dec. 6, is the holiday when you have permission to eat fried food. You’d think this would be the biggest event in the country by now.
Despite their exotic-sounding name, latkes are just grated potatoes or vegetables, fried and topped with tasty things like sour cream, applesauce, maybe even smoked salmon. What’s not to love?
Unfortunately, the making of a proper latke had escaped me. How do you keep the potatoes from turning dark before you can fry them? Does it have to be potato? And what’s with the applesauce?
I needed an ubermensch. So I called Amy Rogers, the contributing editor of WFAE’s food blog, WFAEats.org, and the author of “Hungry For Home,” a collection of recipes and essays on the meaning of food.
Last week, she trekked to my house bearing a small menorah, her favorite Fiestaware Hanukkah plate and a lot of thought about latkes.
“I can’t stress enough that this is not an elegant dish,” she insisted. “It’s wandering food from a wandering people.”
Rogers stripped off her rings and bracelets, rolled up her sleeves and got to work, shredding peeled white potatoes on the big holes of a box grater and tossing them onto a cotton dish towel. Each taking a side, we rolled up the towel and twisted it as tight as we could, squeezing out an astonishing amount of starchy liquid.
“I’ve probably made them a hundred times in my life,” Rogers said, tossing in egg, milk and a little matzo meal. “The goal is to make them more delicious than beautiful. Use what you have, don’t measure.”
She also doesn’t like to use a spoon to drop the batter in the oil. She used her hands to gather about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the grated potato batter, pat it into a little cake about as wide as her palm, and ease each patty into hot oil in my cast-iron skillet.
Making latkes naturally turns into a party. Since the potatoes turn brown quickly, you have to work fast. And while you can keep latkes hot in the oven, they’re best right out of the oil, when they’re hot and crisp. So people gather around.
In her opinion, Rogers said, “Latkes aren’t do-ahead any more than biscuits are do-ahead.”
Traditional potato latkes
1 to 11/4pounds russet potatoes (about 2 large potatoes)
1small onion, peeled
1/4cup matzo meal or all-purpose flour (see note)
1teaspoon baking powder
3/4teaspoon salt
1/4teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1large egg, lightly beaten
Oil for frying
Line a large bowl with a clean linen or cotton dish towel. Peel and grate the potatoes and place them in the towel. Grate the onion and add it to the potatoes. Roll up the towel lengthwise so the potatoes are enclosed. Twist the ends and wring out as much liquid as you can. Discard the liquid and dry the bowl.
Mix the flour, baking powder, salt and pepper together in the large bowl, then whisk in the egg. Stir in the potato-onion mixture and mix well.
Pour 1/2 inch of oil into a heavy skillet and preheat over medium heat. Don’t allow it to smoke.
Use your hands to form potato patties about 21/2 inches across and 1/3 inch thick. Place in the oil and cook until the edges are brown, about 3 to 4 minutes, then turn the latkes and cook the other side several minutes longer. Remove to drain on paper towels and serve hot, topped with your choice of toppings.
Toppings: Sour cream or plain Greek yogurt, applesauce, smoked salmon or caviar
Note: While it’s traditional to use matzo meal, it’s OK to use all-purpose flour instead.
Makes about 10 latkes.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
