Crispy German Potato Pancakes
shared by Nibblore Deutsch
These German potato pancakes are deeply golden and crisp outside while staying tender and juicy in the centre. Thoroughly squeezing the grated potatoes and saving their natural starch helps the pancakes hold together. Serve them sweet with apple sauce or savoury with herbed quark and a fresh salad. • The drier the grated potato mixture, the crispier the pancakes will be, so wring out the tea towel firmly. • A wire rack keeps the undersides crisp while the pancakes stay warm; kitchen paper can make them soften more quickly. • Do not overcrowd the pan. Too many pancakes will lower the oil temperature, making them greasy rather than crisp. • Stir the mixture briefly before each new batch so the egg and potato starch remain evenly distributed. • Floury potatoes can replace all-purpose potatoes; the centres will be softer and the mixture may need 1 additional egg. • Replace rapeseed oil with sunflower oil or another neutral vegetable oil suitable for high-heat frying. • For a savoury accompaniment, replace the apple sauce with herbed quark, smoked salmon or a green salad. Let leftovers cool completely, then refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Reheat directly on a wire rack at 200°C conventional for 8–10 minutes. To freeze, freeze the pancakes individually before packing them together; store for up to 2 months and reheat from frozen at 200°C for about 15 minutes.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Beginner-friendly
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Save recipeIngredients
- 1 kgall-purpose potatoes
- 1medium yellow onion
- 2medium eggs
- 1 ¼ tspfine salt
- ¼ tspfreshly ground black pepper
- 1 pinchfreshly grated nutmeg
- 180 mlrapeseed oil for frying, plus more if needed
- 300 gapple sauce or herbed quark, to serve
Instructions
- 1Preheat the oven to 100°C conventional. Set a wire rack over a baking tray and place it in the oven to keep the cooked pancakes warm.
- 2Peel the potatoes and onion, then grate both using the coarse side of a box grater into a large bowl. Working in batches, wrap the mixture in a clean tea towel and squeeze it very firmly over a second bowl until hardly any liquid comes out.
- 3Leave the collected liquid undisturbed for 5 minutes. Carefully pour off the liquid from the top, leaving the layer of white potato starch at the bottom of the bowl.
- 4Add the squeezed potato and onion mixture to the reserved starch. Add the eggs, salt, pepper and nutmeg, then mix thoroughly. Fry the mixture straight away to prevent it from releasing more water.
- 5Pour enough rapeseed oil into a heavy 28 cm frying pan to cover the base by about 3 mm. Heat the oil to approximately 175°C; if you do not have a thermometer, a small dab of potato mixture should sizzle vigorously at once without turning dark.
- 6For each pancake, spoon about 2 heaped tablespoons of mixture into the pan and flatten it to approximately 9 cm wide and 5 mm thick. Fry only 3 pancakes at a time so the oil remains hot.
- 7Fry the pancakes for 3–4 minutes on the first side, until the edges are deeply golden and crisp. Turn and fry for another 2–3 minutes. Reduce the heat slightly if they brown too quickly.
- 8Let each cooked pancake drain briefly over the pan, then transfer it to the wire rack in the oven. Do not stack the pancakes. Top up and reheat the oil between batches as needed, frying approximately 12 pancakes in total.
- 9Serve the potato pancakes immediately while hot, either sweet with apple sauce or savoury with herbed quark.