Active Time:35 minsTotal Time:55 minsServings:4Jump to Nutrition Facts
Active Time:35 minsTotal Time:55 minsServings:4
Active Time:35 mins
Active Time:
35 mins
Total Time:55 mins
Total Time:
55 mins
Servings:4
Servings:
4
Jump to Nutrition Facts
Jump to recipe
How the Comfort of German Potato Pancakes Helped Me Adjust to a New Life in Rural Pennsylvania
There are few German dishes that I haven’t cooked since I set out to explore the cuisine of my native country almost 20 years ago. One recipe I keep going back to, and the main course I prepare the most often, is potato pancakes. For me, they are the epitome of German comfort food.
While most people associate German cuisine with meat and more meat, potato pancakes—called reibekuchen or kartoffelpuffer in the north of Germany, and reiberdatschi in the south—are a notable exception and a well-known vegetarian dish. It’s a humble weekday meal, dating back to the era when meat was a luxury in many households and served only on Sundays.
Vegetarian dishes like potato pancakes are also a remnant of the time when many Germans, regardless of their social status, would not eat meat during the 40 days of Lent between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday. But my grandmother mainly cooked those meatless dishes out of frugality. Frankly, I am not sure whether my grandmother’s ingenious trick of adding the starch back into the potatoes after squeezing out the liquid was to save a couple of tablespoons of flour (or rolled oats, which are sometimes used in German potato pancakes), significant in the days of shortages, or whether it was done for reasons of texture.
Courtesy Photo/Eric Wolfinger
I struggled to find my place in the void that the death of the children’s mother had left. As I became an adoptive mother to the children and settled into the vast and unknown terrain of parenting, the kitchen became my stronghold, the place where I felt the most comfortable and where I knew my way around. I started cooking some of my grandmother’s recipes. It did more than put dinner on the table for my new family; it was also a way to assert my cultural identity and heritage and introduce my new family to it.
Happily, my potato pancakes were a way we connected. My husband is Jewish, and for him and the children, latkes, which are very similar, were familiar food that even our son, who was a picky eater, would always gobble up happily. First, I only made potato pancakes for Hanukkah, but when I realized they were a hit, I started making them more often, year-round.
Cook Mode(Keep screen awake)Ingredients2poundsrusset potatoes1mediumyellow onion, roughly chopped2large eggs, lightly beaten¾teaspoonsalt¼teaspoonground pepper4tablespoonscanola oilorother neutral oil, dividedApplesauce for serving
Cook Mode(Keep screen awake)
Ingredients
2poundsrusset potatoes
1mediumyellow onion, roughly chopped
2large eggs, lightly beaten
¾teaspoonsalt
¼teaspoonground pepper
4tablespoonscanola oilorother neutral oil, divided
Applesauce for serving
DirectionsScrub potatoes well and remove any eyes and blemishes. Cut the potatoes into wedges that will fit through the food chute of a food processor. Attach the shredding disk to the food processor. Pass the potato wedges through the food chute to shred. You should have about 5 loosely packed cups. Remove the shredding disk and insert the blade. Pulse the potatoes until very finely chopped but not quite a smooth puree, 4 to 5 times.Line a fine-mesh strainer with a clean dish towel and place over a large bowl. Scrape the potatoes into the colander and set aside to drain.Meanwhile, pulse onion in the food processor until finely chopped.Press down on the potatoes a couple of times to exude remaining liquid, then pick up the corners of the towel and twist to squeeze out as much liquid as possible over the colander and into the bowl. Let the potato liquid stand for a few minutes until the white potato starch settles at the bottom. Carefully pour off the liquid, retaining the starch in the bowl. Add the potatoes to the starch, using a silicone spatula to scrape them off the towel. Add the onion, eggs, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot enough to sizzle a shred of grated potato. Mound 4 pancakes in the hot oil, using a heaping ¼ cup potato mixture each. Gently flatten the mounds to make 3-inch pancakes. Cook, flipping once halfway, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. (Reduce heat, if necessary, to prevent burning.) Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.Repeat to make 2 more batches of pancakes, using an additional 1 tablespoon oil to make each batch. Stir the potato mixture well before scooping out more pancakes.Bake the potato pancakes until sizzling, about 10 minutes. Serve with applesauce, if desired.Eric WolfingerEatingWell.com, September 2022
Directions
Scrub potatoes well and remove any eyes and blemishes. Cut the potatoes into wedges that will fit through the food chute of a food processor. Attach the shredding disk to the food processor. Pass the potato wedges through the food chute to shred. You should have about 5 loosely packed cups. Remove the shredding disk and insert the blade. Pulse the potatoes until very finely chopped but not quite a smooth puree, 4 to 5 times.Line a fine-mesh strainer with a clean dish towel and place over a large bowl. Scrape the potatoes into the colander and set aside to drain.Meanwhile, pulse onion in the food processor until finely chopped.Press down on the potatoes a couple of times to exude remaining liquid, then pick up the corners of the towel and twist to squeeze out as much liquid as possible over the colander and into the bowl. Let the potato liquid stand for a few minutes until the white potato starch settles at the bottom. Carefully pour off the liquid, retaining the starch in the bowl. Add the potatoes to the starch, using a silicone spatula to scrape them off the towel. Add the onion, eggs, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot enough to sizzle a shred of grated potato. Mound 4 pancakes in the hot oil, using a heaping ¼ cup potato mixture each. Gently flatten the mounds to make 3-inch pancakes. Cook, flipping once halfway, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. (Reduce heat, if necessary, to prevent burning.) Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.Repeat to make 2 more batches of pancakes, using an additional 1 tablespoon oil to make each batch. Stir the potato mixture well before scooping out more pancakes.Bake the potato pancakes until sizzling, about 10 minutes. Serve with applesauce, if desired.Eric Wolfinger
Scrub potatoes well and remove any eyes and blemishes. Cut the potatoes into wedges that will fit through the food chute of a food processor. Attach the shredding disk to the food processor. Pass the potato wedges through the food chute to shred. You should have about 5 loosely packed cups. Remove the shredding disk and insert the blade. Pulse the potatoes until very finely chopped but not quite a smooth puree, 4 to 5 times.
Line a fine-mesh strainer with a clean dish towel and place over a large bowl. Scrape the potatoes into the colander and set aside to drain.
Meanwhile, pulse onion in the food processor until finely chopped.
Press down on the potatoes a couple of times to exude remaining liquid, then pick up the corners of the towel and twist to squeeze out as much liquid as possible over the colander and into the bowl. Let the potato liquid stand for a few minutes until the white potato starch settles at the bottom. Carefully pour off the liquid, retaining the starch in the bowl. Add the potatoes to the starch, using a silicone spatula to scrape them off the towel. Add the onion, eggs, salt and pepper. Stir well to combine.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot enough to sizzle a shred of grated potato. Mound 4 pancakes in the hot oil, using a heaping ¼ cup potato mixture each. Gently flatten the mounds to make 3-inch pancakes. Cook, flipping once halfway, until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. (Reduce heat, if necessary, to prevent burning.) Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.
Repeat to make 2 more batches of pancakes, using an additional 1 tablespoon oil to make each batch. Stir the potato mixture well before scooping out more pancakes.
Bake the potato pancakes until sizzling, about 10 minutes. Serve with applesauce, if desired.
Eric Wolfinger
EatingWell.com, September 2022
Rate ItPrint
Nutrition Facts(per serving)350Calories17gFat44gCarbs8gProtein
Nutrition Facts(per serving)
- Daily Values (DVs) are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume each day. Percent Daily Value (%DV) found on nutrition labels tells you how much a serving of a particular food or recipe contributes to each of those total recommended amounts. Per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the daily value is based on a standard 2,000 calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. (For example, it’s recommended that people following a heart-healthy diet eat less sodium on a daily basis compared to those following a standard diet.)
(-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs.
