digest
Short Summary
Main recommendation: Make classic potato latkes by shredding peeled Idaho potatoes, binding them with beaten eggs, matzah meal, and salt, and frying spoonfuls in shallow, shimmering oil so they get crisp edges and a soft interior. The host says you cannot have a Hanukkah party without these and demonstrates the process from prep to draining.
Key Points
- Keep peeled potatoes in a bowl of ice water so they don't oxidize and turn brown before you finish peeling and shredding.
- Use beaten eggs as the binder, and add matzah meal, which the host says makes the latkes crispy and crunchy.
- Heat about an inch of canola oil before shredding so the pan is ready to move quickly once the latke mixture is made.
- Avoid overcrowding the pan, since crowding makes latkes soggy; leave space around each one for crispy edges.
- Adjust size and thickness freely, as the host says there is no wrong way to shape them.
Details Worth Noting
- Concrete instructions: Peel four Idaho potatoes, placing each peeled potato in a bowl of ice water and peeling onto a paper towel for easy cleanup. Lightly beat three eggs in a bowl. Heat a large pan on low with about one inch of canola oil. Shred the potatoes on the fine side of a box grater (or use a food processor), until almost pudding-like. Add the eggs, two tablespoons of matzah meal, two teaspoons of kosher salt, and a little coarse ground black pepper, and mix by hand. If the potatoes were small and the mixture is watery, add a little more matzah meal. Scoop about a quarter to a third cup of mixture using a third-cup measuring cup, flatten with the back of the cup, and fry in shimmering oil without overcrowding. Fry about three to four minutes per side, then drain on a paper towel-lined cookie sheet.
- If matzah meal is unavailable, the host suggests cornmeal as a substitute.
- The host's husband prefers shoestring-style potatoes, while the host's grandfather shredded to a pudding-like consistency; either works.
- Oil should be hot enough that you feel heat coming off it before adding latkes.
Bottom Line
Shredded, egg-bound potato pancakes fried in hot oil in an uncrowded pan produce the crisp-outside, tender-inside latkes the host recommends for Hanukkah.
