Potato Pancakes Question

[kitchenelf]

I'm in Hickory - 40 or so minutes is about right. I had just the right wine picked out to go with potato pancakes and bacon juice too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Alix]

You still working kitchenelf? I've got a BIG glass of wine ready and I'm sitting here looking to gab.

OK, and I was thinking about the potato pancake thing. If you are putting in cheese etc then the egg is certainly a must. But a dusting of flour helps to bind things too. You just have to judge how wet your "batter" is.

 

[Callisto in NC]

Okay, pancake one was runny and burned on side two. The potatoes are definitely runnier than ever before after adding the eggs. I think I'll boil some more potatoes.

 

[Alix]

Just toss in a bit of flour. I sometimes sprinkle in some baking powder too.

 

[Callisto in NC]

Just toss in a bit of flour. I sometimes sprinkle in some baking powder too.

Not more potatoes???? I'm just so worried about adding flour. My flour smells funny.

 

[Alix]

Meh! You won't smell it in the pancakes. Just sprinkle about 1/4 cup in there. And if it is really bad then set a container of baking soda on top of the flour. It will suck up all the bad smell.

 

[Callisto in NC]

Okay ~ more potatoes AND the reluctant addition of flour seems to have worked. I think the real issue with this batch was over mashing. They taste great but definitely different this time.

 

[gadzooks]

See...the potatoes get runny when you cook them, unless you add...a bit of flour.

 

[kitchenelf]

I will have to copy this thread so I'll remember all this. There is a place here that serves them - they are chunky and garlicky and yummy!!!!

Glad they turned out Callisto!

 

[Callisto in NC]

See...the potatoes get runny when you cook them, unless you add...a bit of flour.

They never did before. I just mashed the potatoes too much this time. I just don't see how they can get runny when you cook them since they're already cooked once. I could see if they were fresh, not cooked, but it's odd to me adding flour to already cooked potatoes.

I'm still perplexed but I think my skillet could be the issue too. I'm going to use my griddle next time and less butter. Oh, if only I had a cast iron skillet. That would solve all my problems

 

[GrantsKat]

This to me sounds more like potato croquettes, which I make with leftover mashed potatoes. I dont add egg to the mixture, I just shape them into a "log", dredge in flour, then egg wash, and then in bread crumbs. Fry in butter till brown on all sides. For me potato pancakes are made with shredded raw potatoes.

 

[GB]

That is how I think of it too GrantsKat.

 

[Callisto in NC]

Okay ~ should I admit this is a Rachael Ray recipe? Does that make more sense as to why they MIGHT be named the wrong thing? LOL.

 

[pacanis]

I always thought the ones with the shredded potatoes were called hash browns

 

[GB]

Potato Latkes.

 

[Callisto in NC]

I always thought the ones with the shredded potatoes were called hash browns

Me too that's why I'm now totally confused.

 

[GrantsKat]

LOL ok heres a link to a recipe similar to what my grandmother made, I make them this way alsohttp://bigspud.com/ppancak4.txt

 

[homecook]

LOL ok heres a link to a recipe similar to what my grandmother made, I make them this way alsohttp://bigspud.com/ppancak4.txt

That's exactly how I make mine! I think I'll have to make some this week, it has been ages.

Barb

 

[kitchenelf]

The "original", potato pancake for lack of a better word, was the Latke, which is shredded potatoes, onion, egg, and flour. I grew up eating Latkes as made above (of course, there salt and pepper were added). Hash browns also use shredded potatoes but that's all! They are browned in some sort of fat without the addition of anything else except maybe some onion. They hold together due to the crust that is formed.

This "new" one is using mashed potatoes. Now that I've thought about this for awhile the addition of flour makes perfect sense. When we make mashed potatoes we add a lot of liquid to them. Even after several days in the refrigerator sometimes potatoes will separate from their liquid. So...the flour makes sense.

Callisto, I think you have the issue pegged too with the "over mashing". They were just too loose to hold together. Maybe even MORE flour would have helped but I'm with you, I can taste the flour in my mind.

As far as it being a Rachel Ray recipe it sounds like if the recipe was followed it would have turned out i.e., adding the flour. I think RR named them appropriately. I second guess recipes all the time - that's how I ruined THREE racks of babyback ribs - boy, was I ticked!

Hey, the barrel-fermented Chardonnay would have been great with these by the way I figured the Oak would have gone nicely with the bacon juice.

Boy, do I wish there were some potatoes in my house right now

 

[DramaQueen]

Me too that's why I'm now totally confused.

When the question was first posted, my first thought was Latkes. I gave you the egg and flour advice not because I thought the mixture was liquid but because the flour and egg together created the binder that makes the potato pancake stay solid and not fall apart. I guess "batter" threw you but that's what the mixture is called. You may have added too many eggs if yours were runny. Try one egg next time but DON'T leave out the flour. Stir the mixture ONLY til all of the ingredients are blended.
Fry them on medium/low heat then turn up to crisp them for a few seconds. If you do it right, you'll have beautiful potato pancakes. Top them with sour cream or applesauce for a real treat.

Hash browns are potatoes that have been previously baked or you can use them raw, dried to remove all liquid, shred, then placed in a hot pan with butter and/oil. Press the potatoes so they stay together. When they're brown on the bottom, then flip the whole thing over and plate. I never add anything to my hash browns (restaurants don't either) and I use previously baked potatoes and shred them.