It is time for latke! This simple potato dish is known in many European cuisines, in many cases thanks to the past presence of the Jewish communities who traditionally serve it during Hanukkah. In Germany they are customarily eaten with apple sauce, in Poland the most common way to serve them is with sour cream. They are also known in Korea (Gamja-jeon) where they are eaten with soy sauce (potatoes where introduced to Korea by a German missionary). In many versions the potatoes are supplemented with onion or garlic, and sometimes also other vegetables are added. Here, I present a classic Polish version of the dish, with the grating proportions that allow for the potato pancake to be crisp on the outside, but still soft on the inside. It's a nice dish to eat in company, but it has to be eaten immediately, while still hot, so most likely while you're still in the kitchen. Also, grating enough potatoes for a crowd might be quite a task.
You'll need:
5 potatoes
1 egg
1 spoonfull of flour
salt
pepper (optional)
oil for frying (sunflower oil might be best)
1. To achieve a perfect crisp to soft proportion, grate 4 potatoes on a big cheese grater and one on a finer grater.
2. Squeeze out the moisture from the potatoes, add the egg and the flour and mix. Season the mixture with a generous dose of salt (and some pepper).
3.Warm up well the oil on the (preferably non-stick) pan, you need to use quite a lot, the pancakes need to almost deep fry.
4. Take a spoonful of the mixture and spread it thinly on the pan. At first it might stick to it, but once it cooks on one side (the edges will turn golden brown), it should be easy to move to the other side.
5. Serve your placki hot with good quality sour cream.
Buon appetito!
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