A good potato latke recipe is essential for the Jewish holiday of Chanukah. This easy and healthy recipe has potatoes, zucchini, eggs, whole wheat flour, olive oil, salt, and pepper. It’s the quintessential comfort food for a cold December day.
why we eat potato latkes:
When it comes to the holidays, it’s nice to know the meaning behind the different customs. They become more intentional this way, rather than mundane and repetitive.
The story of Chanukah is beautiful and filled with lots of miracles. Potato latkes symbolize one of those miracles. This miracle in particular involved olive oil which was able to burn for eight days, even though there was only enough oil for one.
Would it be a Jewish holiday if food wasn’t incorporated into the customs?
Probably not!
Therefore we fry our food in olive oil to remember the oil that performed such a miracle.
All jokes aside though, if you think about it, this custom is very uplifting.
Everybody needs hope and miracles at some point in their life. Turning something like frying potato latkes into an activity that gives you strength is comforting and therapeutic.
Remembering the magnitude of the miracle of Chanukah will hopefully push you to keep going and never give up.
Why do I need to make everything healthy?!
I know, I did it again. I managed to sneak “healthiness” into this potato latke recipe. But I just can’t help it.
When it comes to making food healthier, I’m like a good salesman; I see opportunity everywhere.
These latkes were just asking for some tweaks so here you have them:
- Add in a green vegetable: Zucchini is a great choice because of it’s mild taste and texture.
- Use whole wheat flour: Adding in fiber wherever you can will aid digestion and keep you feeling full for longer.
- Olive oil: A healthy fat and better for you than canola or vegetable oil.
Keep in mind that you don’t need to make these tweaks if you’re okay with regular potato latkes. You can easily skip the zucchini, use regular flour, and regular oil. These are just some helpful ways to make the latkes healthier if you desire!
what kind of pan should you use for frying potato latkes?
I wish I would have known the importance of the right pan when it comes to frying potato latkes. It would have saved me from throwing out a few batches over the years! I originally thought a non-stick pan would be the best as that would keep the latkes from sticking to the bottom. Turns out I was wrong.
Use a good stainless steel pan to fry latkes:
There were two problems with the non-stick pan when it came to frying latkes. One, the oil didn’t heat up as strongly as it did in a good stainless steel pan; potato latkes thrive when the oil is really hot. And two, the non-stick pan didn’t produce the best flavor when I fried potato latkes in them.
I found that using a good stainless steel pan solved both of these problems. The oil can heat up hotter and fry the latkes better, and the flavor comes out much better in a stainless steel pan. In addition, when you use enough oil and a good pan, your potato latkes should flip easily and not stick even if the pan is not specifically a non-stick pan.
So use your best stainless steel pan when frying potato latkes and you should be good. If you’re in the market for a new one you can check this one out. It has become a workhorse in my kitchen and I’m really happy with it.
The many ways to eat potato latkes:
Traditionally, potato latkes are dipped into something. But they don’t need to be; they’re delicious on their own.
They’re most commonly dipped into applesauce or sour cream. Those pairings always seemed quite unusual to me but I have to say they work! They balance out the oiliness of the potato latkes very well.
Potato latkes are also a great side dish and would go well with a protein and vegetables. You can add them to a meal with grilled chicken or salmon. Add a salad on the side and you have a delicious dinner. Either way, you can’t go wrong with a batch of these!
Potato Latkes: A Healthy and Easy Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 russet potatoes
- 1 onion, peeled
- 1 big zucchini; washed, not peeled
- 4 eggs
- 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Instructions
- Peel the potatoes and place them into a bowl of cold water. This will prevent them from browning as you prepare the rest of the ingredients.
- Add the eggs, salt and pepper to a bowl and mix well. Set aside.
- Blend the potatoes, zucchini and onion in a food processor using any blade you'd like. (We use the shredding blade).
- Squeeze the excess moisture out of the potato mixture. You can do this by placing a cheesecloth into a bowl, adding the mixture to it, and squeezing it.
- Add the potato mixture to the bowl with the egg mixture. Add the flour and mix well.
- Heat olive oil in a pan and once it's really hot add a quarter cup of the potato mixture to the pan. Repeat until the pan is full.
- Fry until the bottom is golden brown. Flip and repeat on the other side; around three minutes per side.
- Drain the latkes on a lined plate.
