Potato pancakes are

shallow-fried Shallow frying is a hot oil-based cooking technique. It is typically used to prepare portion-sized cuts of meat, fish, potatoes and patties such as fritters. Shallow frying can also be used to cook vegetables. Technique It is a medium-high to ...

pancake A pancake (or hotcake, griddlecake, or flapjack) is a flat cake, often thin and round, prepared from a starch-based batter that may contain eggs, milk and butter and cooked on a hot surface such as a griddle or frying pan, often frying wit ...

s of grated or ground

potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Un ...

, matzo meal or

flour Flour is a powder made by grinding raw grains, roots, beans, nuts, or seeds. Flours are used to make many different foods. Cereal flour, particularly wheat flour, is the main ingredient of bread, which is a staple food for many c ...

and a binding ingredient such as

egg An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...

applesauce Apple sauce or applesauce is a purée (not necessarily served as a true sauce) made of apples. It can be made with peeled or unpeeled apples and may be spiced or sweetened. Apple sauce is inexpensive and is widely consumed in North America and ...

, often flavored with grated

garlic Garlic (''Allium sativum'') is a species of bulbous flowering plant in the genus ''Allium''. Its close relatives include the onion, shallot, leek, chive, Welsh onion and Chinese onion. It is native to South Asia, Central Asia and northe ...

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the oni ...

and

seasoning Seasoning is the process of supplementing food via herbs, spices, salts, and/or sugar, intended to enhance a particular flavour. General meaning Seasonings include herbs and spices, which are themselves frequently referred to as "seasonings". H ...

. They may be topped with a variety of

condiments A condiment is a preparation that is added to food, typically after cooking, to impart a specific flavor, to enhance the flavor, or to complement the dish. A table condiment or table sauce is more specifically a condiment that is served separat ...

, ranging from the savory (such as

sour cream Sour cream (in North American English, Australian English and New Zealand English) or soured cream (British English) is a dairy product obtained by fermenting regular cream with certain kinds of lactic acid bacteria. The bacterial culture, w ...

cottage cheese Cottage cheese is a curdled milk product with a mild flavor and a creamy, non-homogeneous, soupy texture. It is made from skimmed milk by draining the cheese, as opposed to pressing it to make cheese curd—retaining some of the whey and keepi ...

), to the sweet (such as apple sauce or sugar), or they may be served plain. The dish is sometimes made from mashed potatoes to make pancake-shaped croquettes. Some variations are made with

sweet potato The sweet potato or sweetpotato ('' Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant that belongs to the bindweed or morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its large, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable. The young ...

es.

In different cultures

Potato pancakes are associated with various

European cuisine European cuisine comprises the cuisines of Europe "European Cuisine."Boxty)

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

and Austrian (as ', ', ', ' and '), Dutch (as ', ', '),

Belarusian Belarusian may refer to: * Something of, or related to Belarus * Belarusians, people from Belarus, or of Belarusian descent * A citizen of Belarus, see Demographics of Belarus * Belarusian language * Belarusian culture * Belarusian cuisine * Byelor ...

(as '), Bulgarian (as '), Czech (as '','' ' or ''vošouch''), Hungarian (as ', and other names),

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

(as ', yi, לאַטקע, he, לביבה ', plural '), Latvian (as '),

Lithuanian Lithuanian may refer to: * Lithuanians * Lithuanian language * The country of Lithuania * Grand Duchy of Lithuania * Culture of Lithuania * Lithuanian cuisine * Lithuanian Jews as often called "Lithuanians" (''Lita'im'' or ''Litvaks'') by other Jew ...

(as '),

Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small land ...

('), Polish (as '), Romanian (as ''tocini'' or ''tocinei''), Russian (as '), Slovak (as '), Ukrainian (as ') and any cuisine that has adopted similar dishes. It is the national dish of

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

and

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

. In

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

, potato pancakes are eaten either salty (as a side dish) or sweet with apple sauce, or blueberries, sugar and cinnamon; they are a very common menu item during outdoor markets and festivals in colder seasons. In Swiss cuisine, is a variation that never contains egg or flour. American hash browns are also without eggs and flour. Potato pancake is a traditional favorite in the southern parts of

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

during holiday festivities. Kartoffelpuffer

Swedish ', ', ' and '

There are four Swedish versions of potato pancakes. * ' are prepared with a pancake batter of wheat flour, milk and egg, into which shredded raw potatoes are added. They are fried in butter and look like crêpes (i.e. thin pancakes). * ' are also made of pancake batter and shredded potatoes, but the potatoes are cooked before they are shredded. * ' are a variant more akin to hash browns and '' rösti'', i.e. shredded raw potatoes formed as thin pancakes, but without any batter, which are fried in butter. * ' are rather thick pancake-like patties of mashed potatoes and eggs, which are turned in breadcrumbs and then fried in butter. Can be bought ready-made in Sweden. All four variants are traditionally served with fried

bacon Bacon is a type of salt-cured pork made from various cuts, typically the belly or less fatty parts of the back. It is eaten as a side dish (particularly in breakfasts), used as a central ingredient (e.g., the bacon, lettuce, and tomato sa ...

and lingonberry jam.

British potato cakes

Potato cakes are common in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. In the

North-East of England In modern contexts Northumbria usually refers to the region of England between the Tees and Tweed, including the historic counties of Northumberland and Durham, but may also be taken to be synonymous with North East England. The area corre ...

(particularly County Durham), there is a dish known as ''tattie fish'', because the pancake resembles a deep fried piece of fish. The pancake consists of flour, eggs, shredded potatoes and onions. Some people add

tomato The tomato is the edible berry of the plant ''Solanum lycopersicum'', commonly known as the tomato plant. The species originated in western South America, Mexico, and Central America. The Mexican Nahuatl word gave rise to the Spanish word , ...

cheese Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During product ...

to the mix, depending on taste. The British also brought the potato pancake to former colonies such as Zimbabwe. They are still eaten today, where they are an affordable dish.

Irish ''boxty''

A form of potato pancake known as '' boxty'' ( ga, bacstaí) is a popular traditional dish in most of

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, particularly north Connacht and southern

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label=Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

. It is made similarly to the British type, with more starch and often with

buttermilk Buttermilk is a fermented dairy drink. Traditionally, it was the liquid left behind after churning butter out of cultured cream. As most modern butter in western countries is not made with cultured cream but uncultured sweet cream, most mod ...

and

baking soda Sodium bicarbonate ( IUPAC name: sodium hydrogencarbonate), commonly known as baking soda or bicarbonate of soda, is a chemical compound with the formula NaHCO3. It is a salt composed of a sodium cation ( Na+) and a bicarbonate anion ( HCO3� ...

. It has a smooth, grained consistency.

Jewish ''latke''

Latkes (, sometimes spelled ''latka'') are potato pancakes that

Ashkenazi Jews Ashkenazi Jews ( ; he, יְהוּדֵי אַשְׁכְּנַז, translit=Yehudei Ashkenaz, ; yi, אַשכּנזישע ייִדן, Ashkenazishe Yidn), also known as Ashkenazic Jews or ''Ashkenazim'',, Ashkenazi Hebrew pronunciation: , singu ...

have prepared as part of the

Hanukkah or English translation: 'Establishing' or 'Dedication' (of the Temple in Jerusalem) , nickname = , observedby = Jews , begins = 25 Kislev , ends = 2 Tevet or 3 Tevet , celebrations = Lighting candles each nigh ...

festival since the mid-1800s, when a series of crop failures in Poland and Ukraine led to mass planting of potatoes, which were easy and cheap to grow. The potato dish is based on an older variant made with cheese instead of potatoes that goes back to at least the Middle Ages. Latkes need not necessarily be made from potatoes. Prior to the introduction of the potato to the Old World, latkes were and in some places still are made from a variety of other vegetables, cheeses, legumes, or starches, depending on the available local ingredients and foods of the various places where Jews lived. Numerous modern recipes call for the addition of ingredients such as onions and carrots. Daily variations on a simple potato latka might include

zucchini The zucchini (; plural: zucchini or zucchinis), courgette (; plural: courgettes) or baby marrow ('' Cucurbita pepo'') is a summer squash, a vining herbaceous plant whose fruit are harvested when their immature seeds and epicarp (rind) are s ...

, sweet onion and gruyere (for French onion flavor) and some variations made with sweet potatoes. The word itself is derived (via Yiddish) from the East Slavic word , , a diminutive from (), "small pancake". The word (), the Hebrew name for latke, refers in the

Book of Samuel The Book of Samuel (, ''Sefer Shmuel'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Samuel) in the Old Testament. The book is part of the narrative history of Ancient Israel called the Deuteronomistic history, a series of books (Josh ...

to a dumpling made from kneaded dough, as part of the story of

Amnon Amnon ( he, אַמְנוֹן ''’Amnōn'', "faithful") was, in the Hebrew Bible, the oldest son of King David and his second wife, Ahinoam of Jezreel. He was born in Hebron during his father's reign in Judah. He was the heir apparent to the ...

and Tamar. Some interpreters have noted that the homonym () means "heart", and the verbal form of l-v-v occurs in the Song of Songs as well. In the lexicon of Ashkenazi Jews from

Udmurtia Udmurtia (russian: Удму́ртия, r=Udmúrtiya, p=ʊˈdmurtʲɪjə; udm, Удмуртия, ''Udmurtija''), or the Udmurt Republic (russian: Удмуртская Республика, udm, Удмурт Республика, Удмурт � ...

and

Tatarstan The Republic of Tatarstan (russian: Республика Татарстан, Respublika Tatarstan, p=rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə tətɐrˈstan; tt-Cyrl, Татарстан Республикасы), or simply Tatarstan (russian: Татарстан, tt ...

there are recorded versions of the kosher-style appellation of latkes (''

draniki Potato pancakes are shallow-fried pancakes of grated or ground potato, matzo meal or flour and a binding ingredient such as egg or applesauce, often flavored with grated garlic or onion and seasoning. They may be topped with a variety of condime ...

'', ''dranki'', ''krezliki'', ''kremzliki'', ''kakorki'', etc.) during the eight-day

holiday.

Korean ''gamja-jeon''

Gamja-jeon ''Gamja-jeon'' * () or potato pancakes is a variety of '' jeon'', or Korean style pancake, made by pan-frying finely grated potato on a frying pan with any type of vegetable oil until golden brown. History Potatoes may have been introduced ...

'' () is a

Korean pancake ''Buchimgae'' (), or Korean pancake, refers broadly to any type of pan-fried ingredients soaked in egg or a batter mixed with other ingredients. More specifically, it is a dish made by pan-frying a thick batter mixed with egg and other ingredie ...

made by pan-frying in oil the mixture of grated potato and potato starch. It can be made without additional ingredients, but is sometimes mixed with onion, chilli and perilla leaf. Generally, it is seasoned with a small amount of salt and served with soy sauce.

Polish '

Potato pancakes, literally translated in Polish as ', are often served in Poland topped with meat sauce, pork crisps or goulash, as well as

, apple sauce, mushroom sauce,Krzysztof Kucharski
"Nie wszyscy pewnie wiedzą.." (Not everybody knows).
''Gazeta Wrocławska'',

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, , is a country in Central Europe. Poland is divided into Voivodeships of Poland, sixteen voivodeships and is the fifth most populous member state of the European Union (EU), with over 38 mill ...

, 2008-08-22. and cottage or sheep's

or even fruit syrup. ''Placki ziemniaczane'' was a food staple at the 17th-century Polish monasteries according to written recipe from Stoczek Warmiński with one onion, two eggs and a spoonful of wheat flour per each kilogram of potatoes, served only with salt and pepper. In the 19th century,Krzysztof Kucharski
"Nie wszyscy pewnie wiedzą.." str. 3 (Not everybody knows, p. 3).
''Gazeta Wrocławska'',

, 2008-08-22. especially in times of economic difficulty during the foreign partitions, potato pancakes often replaced missing bread among the peasants. The lower-quality crops given to field laborers were sometimes turned by them quickly into pancakes to improve taste and prolong freshness.Different recipes for "placki ziemniaczane" at Onet.pl
Also, their popularity is closely associated with the historic presence of one of the largest Jewish communities in the world flourishing in Poland. The largest potato pancake (possibly in the world), measuring 2 meters and 2 centimeters, was made during the annual two-day celebrations of ' (Plinza Dawn festival) in Rzechta, Poland (
see photo
'). The tongue-in-cheek games in Rzechta include the throwing of bad potato pancake, with the record of 29 meters.

Brigand's pancake

A derived dish consists of thick goulash laid on a potato pancake. It has origins in or near

Tatra mountains The Tatra Mountains (), Tatras, or Tatra (''Tatry'' either in Slovak () or in Polish () - '' plurale tantum''), are a series of mountains within the Western Carpathians that form a natural border between Slovakia and Poland. They are the h ...

, on either Polish or Slovak side. The dish bears a variety of names: * ''placek zbójnicki'' (brigand's) — most common * ''placek cygański'' (gypsy's) * ''placek węgierski'' (Hungarian) — despite being unknown in Hungary; but goulash (the topping) itself comes from Hungary * ''jadło drwali'' (lumberjacks' food) * ''placek góralski'' (mountainmen's)

Czech '

A Czech potato pancake is called ' (from ', potato) and it is made of grated potatoes with egg, breadcrumbs or flour and seasoning (salt, pepper, most importantly garlic and marjoram; sometimes ground, cracked or whole caraway seeds) and is served as it is
see recipe
. Some regional versions blend in dough,

sauerkraut Sauerkraut (; , "sour cabbage") is finely cut raw cabbage that has been fermented by various lactic acid bacteria. It has a long shelf life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid formed when the bacteria fe ...

or sliced smoked meat. The same potato dough is used also as coating of fried pork chop called '. It is sometimes deep fried.

Iranian

Iranian cuisine Iranian cuisine () refers to the culinary practices of Iran. Due to the historically common usage of the term " Persia" to refer to Iran in the Western world,Yarshater, EhsaPersia or Iran, Persian or Farsi, ''Iranian Studies'', vol. XXII no. ...

, ( glk, کوکو سیب زمینی, 'potato ') is made with shredded potatoes, eggs, onion, saffron, sometimes garlic chives and sometimes cinnamon. Frequently, potato kuku is cooked as smaller patties, but it is also cooked in a larger pancake-style or baked. This dish has been compared to the , and ( Spanish omelette).

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Potato Pancake Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine Belarusian cuisine Czech cuisine Czech snack foods German cuisine Hanukkah foods Latvian cuisine Lithuanian cuisine Polish cuisine Russian cuisine Slavic cuisine Slovak cuisine Ukrainian cuisine