Old Fashioned Shredded Potato Latkes – Oniony

Potato Latkes are traditional Ashkenazi Jewish crispy fried potato cakes made of raw potato shreds with eggs, flour or matzo meal, and onions.

Potato Latkes take less time to make than mashed potato cakes.

How do you make Old Fashioned Potato Latkes?

All you do is coarsely mix raw grated peel potatoes with sautéed diced onions, add eggs and flour, and fry spoonfuls of the mixture in the same skillet you’ve just sautéed the onions in. Yeah! No need to wash the skillet.

This recipe has one extra quick step to reach a mildly caramelized oniony flavor, but you can skip it and just add more onion chips or onion soup powder.

Dietary Restrictions

If some of your guests don’t eat glutenous food, or are vegetarians, then you can serve them hash browns instead.

Tips for Old Fashioned Potato Latkes

1. Rinse the Shredded Potatoes

After grating the potatoes, don’t let them sit in their own starchy liquid. Instead, rinse them in water. This removes excess starch and helps create distinct, defined strands — especially on the flip side of the latke.

2. Prevent Oxidation

As you grate each batch of potatoes, immediately submerge them in water. This simple step prevents them from turning gray or black due to oxidation, keeping them fresh and appealing before cooking.

The Frying Process

1. First Side: Flat and Golden

When the latke hits the skillet, the first side flattens and spreads slightly in the oil. This side ends up smooth and evenly golden.

2. Second Side: Textured and Crisp

The second side develops thick, craggy strands that hold their shape. This happens because they’ve had time to set while the first side was cooking. For the best texture contrast, avoid pressing the latkes down with a fork — unless you want both sides to be equally flat.

Choosing the Right Skillet

1. For Maximum Crispiness

A stainless steel skillet gives the best crisp, golden crust. It allows for slightly higher heat and better browning.

2. When Using Non-Stick

A thick non-stick skillet can still give good results — and I’ve used one for the latkes in the feature image — but crispiness is a bit easier to achieve with stainless steel.

Getting the Texture Right

1. Don’t Overdo the Flour

Stick closely to the recipe when adding flour. Too much will make the latkes dense and bouncy, rather than crisp and light.

2. Don’t Over-Fry

If you fry them too long, they’ll lose their internal moisture and turn into greasy, brittle crackers — not what you want in a latke.

After Frying

Use a Cooling Rack

Always transfer latkes directly from the skillet to a cooling rack, not paper towels or plates. This keeps the bottoms from steaming and getting soggy, so they stay crisp on both sides.

Storage

At Room Temperature (Short-term)

• Time: Up to 2 hours
• How: Place latkes on a wire rack or paper towel-lined tray to prevent sogginess from the time they are ready to be removed from the hot oil.
• Tip: Keep them uncovered to avoid steam buildup, which softens the crust.

2. In the Refrigerator (1–3 days)

• Cool first: Let latkes come to room temp.
• Storage method: Place in a single layer in an airtight container, separating layers with parchment paper.
• Reheating: Best in the oven or air fryer at 375°F (190°C) for 5–10 minutes until crispy. Avoid microwaving — it makes them soggy.

3. In the Freezer (Up to 2 months)

• Freeze individually: Lay latkes flat on a baking sheet and freeze until solid (about 1–2 hours).
• Then store: Transfer to a freezer-safe bag or container with parchment between layers.
• Reheating from frozen: Bake at 400°F (200°C) for 10–15 minutes, flipping once for even crispness.

For Less Oily Latkes – My Secret

Many people want their latkes to turn out nice and crisp, which usually means frying them in oil. But if you’re like me and prefer a healthier version, I add a bit of oil directly to the potato mixture (or broccoli latke mixture, or spinach latke mixture) — not to the skillet. That’s right: the latkes end up griddling instead of frying.

They don’t get overly oily, they keep longer in the fridge, and even straight from the freezer, their texture is just like when you first griddled them.

Just one important note: use a thick non-stick skillet — not stainless steel — or the latkes will stick to the bottom.

Another advantage of serving griddled potato latkes that they can be made ahead of time and simply reheated before serving. On the other hand, the crispy, oil-fried latkes are best served straight from the skillet — if they sit too long, they tend to become moist and lose that crisp texture.

A Short Anecdote on Crispy vs Non-Extra Oily Potato Latkes

One time — yes, it was on Chanukah — I made my latkes at a friend’s home and served them to her whole family. Everyone loved them and appreciated the healthier twist… well, everyone except my friend and one of her sons. Shrug. So just a heads-up: plenty of people will be totally fine with latkes that aren’t super crispy, as long as they’re not greasy — but some might miss that familiar, childhood-crunchy potato latke texture.

So, if you’re serving this to guests or fussy eaters, you could choose to make one batch crispy and another not.

Tradition

Many seem to think that potato latkes are made mostly on Chanukah but they’re charming for any meal throughout the year.

Why Do Some Jews Make Potato Latkes (fritters) on Chanukah?

Jews eat fried foods on Chanukah to commemorate the miracle of the oil that occurred during the rededication of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem over 2,000 years ago.

Here’s the story in a nutshell:

• In the 2nd century BCE, a very small ground of Jews led by the Maccabees, defeated the Greek empire (under Antiochus IV), which was a great miracle. The Maccabees then reclaimed the Temple in Jerusalem.
• But when they went to rededicate the Temple (Chanukah means Dedication), they found if had been desecrated by the Greeks. only one small flask of pure olive oil—enough to keep the menorah (Temple lamp) burning for just one day.
• Miraculously, the oil lasted eight days, which was enough time to prepare and consecrate new oil.

Why Fried Food

So, why fried food on Chanukah? To honor this miracle of the oil, Jews traditionally eat foods fried in oil during the eight days of Hanukkah. These foods are symbolic reminders of the oil that lasted longer than expected.

Related Recipes

Broccoli Latkes – For crispy cakes, fry in oiled skillet.

Potato Kugel – Dairy Free

Jerusalem Kugel – Dairy Free

I hope you’ve enjoyed reading or preparing this Potato Latkes recipe. Feel free to share your thoughts or ask questions in the comments section below.