Potato pancake secrets: How to achieve perfect crispiness every time

Potato pancakes are a straightforward dish. The list of necessary ingredients is short. However, they don't always turn out crispy and sometimes become pretty rubbery. This is often due to using flour, which is better to avoid. Fortunately, it's straightforward to replace it.

Potato pancakes have many enthusiasts. Everyone makes them a little differently, often using family recipes. They are also served in various ways. Some people love the sweet version with sour cream and sugar. For others, potato pancakes are best served with a meat sauce.

Even the best toppings won't save the pancakes if they are rubbery. Crispy, thin pancakes that don't drip with oil are ideal. Although their preparation seems incredibly simple, it's not difficult to encounter a culinary disaster. They can fall apart during frying, their texture can be unsatisfactory, and they can remain raw. How can we avoid this?

It's worth eliminating flour from the recipe, which is often responsible for the pancakes' disappointing texture. Simply replace it with a larger amount of eggs. It's also important to choose and prepare the potatoes properly. They should be starchy, with a high starch content. Then, they won't absorb too much oil and will be crispy. Many cooks claim that the older the potatoes, the better, as they have more starch.

Grating the potatoes also matters. If you do this with a fine grater, the pancakes will be soft and delicate, and most water will be removed from the mixture. Potatoes grated with a coarser grater guarantee crunchier pancakes. Many cooks advise mixing finely grated potatoes and coarser grated ones.

Ingredients:

• 1 kg of potatoes,
• 2 - 3 eggs,
• 2 onions,
• 2 tablespoons of 18% sour cream,
• salt and pepper to taste,
• oil for frying.

Preparation method:

1. Peel the potatoes and onions, then grate them.
2. Transfer the grated vegetables to a sieve and let them sit in a bowl for 10 minutes.
3. After this time, squeeze the potatoes thoroughly. Drain the water, and add the starch left at the bottom of the bowl to the mixture.
4. Add the eggs, 2 tablespoons of sour cream, salt, and pepper to taste the potato mixture, and mix everything thoroughly.
5. Heat the oil and fry the pancakes until golden on both sides.
6. After frying, transfer the pancakes to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb the excess oil.