These crispy vegan latkes, Jewish potato pancakes, are gorgeously simple but full of flavor. They are beautifully golden and crunchy on the outside, creamy inside, and they are ready in minutes!
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Authentic vegan latkes
Latkes are potato pancakes eaten especially during the Jewish festival of Hanukkah, although they are delicious enough to be eaten anytime of the year. I adore these crispy pancakes and I often make vegan latkes for breakfast with different ingredient combinations. Some of my favorites I've shared on the blog are these vegan apple potato pancakes and vegan sauerkraut potato pancakes. Today, however, I am going back to the basics with a simple but classic vegan potato latke recipe. It has all the yumminess of a traditional potato latke minus the eggs. And you won't be able to stop eating them!
This is an utterly simple recipe with just five ingredients. You can flavor it up with other additions (more on that later) or eat the pancakes plain.
Although these latkes are eggless, you will find they have all of the flavor and texture of classic potato latkes. They are also quick and easy to make - you need minutes to put the latke batter together and a few more minutes to fry them up.
You don't need fancy egg replacers for this recipe. I harness the natural moisture and starch in the potatoes and simple pantry ingredients like rice flour and breadcrumbs to help hold these easy vegan latkes together. They work beautifully.
The vegan latkes are soy-free and nut-free and you can easily tweak them to a gluten-free diet by replacing the panko breadcrumbs for gluten-free breadcrumbs. Everyone is guaranteed to love them!
Recipe card
Classic Vegan Latkes
Ingredients
- 2 pounds russet potatoes (peeled if using potatoes that are not organic, then grated using the large holes on a box grater or a food processor attachment.)
- 2 tablespoons fresh herbs (chopped. I used sage and chives. You can use other herbs of your choice, including rosemary, oregano, thyme, cilantro and parsley. If using dried herbs, use two teaspoons total.)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder (use two to four crushed or grated garlic cloves if using fresh)
- ½ cup rice flour
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
- Salt and ground black pepper to taste
- ¼ cup neutral oil (like avocado oil, canola oil, peanut oil or sunflower oil)
Instructions
- Place the grated potatoes in a dishtowel and wring out as much liquid as you can. Collect the liquid in a bowl.
- Let the potato liquid stand in a bowl for five minutes. Then drain out the water that has collected on top, leaving a layer of starch underneath. This is amazing for the latkes and will help them crisp up, so don't discard it.
- Add the potatoes to the bowl with the starch in it. Add remaining ingredients--herbs, breadcrumbs, rice flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
- Mix well and set aside for five minutes. The salt will help express some more liquid from the potatoes, which in turn will help bind the pancakes. After the batter has rested for five minutes, mix again. The potatoes should feel moist. Form a two-inch ball of the potato mixture and pat into a pancake in your hands to make sure it holds together.
- Heat a griddle over medium-high heat and coat the bottom generously with oil. Place the latkes on the griddle and fry until the bottom is golden-brown and crispy.
- Flip carefully and continue to cook until the other side is golden-brown. Serve immediately.
Notes
- Four finely chopped scallions for fresh, oniony flavor.
- Half a finely chopped onion.
- ½ cup sauerkraut
- 1 grated apple
- Refrigerate: Latkes are best eaten fresh. But if you have leftovers, refrigerate in an airtight container for up to three days. You can also refrigerate the batter for two days.
- Freeze: Freeze the latkes in an airtight container or freezer-safe container for up to four months. Thaw and reheat.
- Reheat: Warm the latkes on a non-stick griddle or cast-iron griddle sprayed with oil or cooking spray, or in an oven preheated to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Nutrition Information
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How to make vegan latkes
1. Peel potatoes. If using organic potatoes you can leave the skins on.
2. Grate the potatoes using the large holes on a box grater or a food processor attachment. Place in a dishtowel and wring out as much liquid as you can. Collect the liquid in a large bowl.
3. Let the potato liquid stand in a bowl for five minutes. Then drain out the water that has collected on top....
4. ...leaving a layer of potato starch underneath. This is amazing for the latkes and will help them crisp up as well as bind them, so don't discard it.
5. Add the potatoes to the bowl with the starch in it.
6. Add remaining ingredients--herbs, breadcrumbs, rice flour, garlic powder, salt and pepper.
7. Mix and set aside for five minutes. The salt will help express some more liquid from the potatoes, which in turn will help bind the pancakes. After the batter has rested for five minutes, mix again. The potatoes should feel moist. Form a two-inch ball of the potato mixture and pat into a pancake in your hands to make sure it holds together.
8. Heat a griddle over medium-high heat and coat the bottom with oil. Place the latkes on the griddle and fry until the bottom is golden-brown and crispy. Lower the heat if the potatoes brown too quickly--you want the latkes to cook through.
9. Flip carefully and continue to cook until the other side is golden-brown. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels to absorb any excess oil. Serve immediately.
Vegan latkes FAQs
You need a starchy potato for latkes, like russet potato or piper maris potato. This is because the starch will help create crispy latkes, exactly as you want them to be. Try not to use less starchy potatoes, like red or yellow potatoes.
Most cooks peel potatoes before making latkes, but I don't always do that, and the latkes don't suffer for it. Not peeling the potatoes also keeps important nutrients in the potato. However, potatoes are in the Environmental Working Group's "dirty dozen" vegetables because they can absorb high levels of pesticides. The rule of thumb I follow is to peel the potatoes if they are not organic and leave the skin on if they are.
To bake the latkes preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit/220 degrees Celsius. Spray the baking sheet with cooking spray and place the latkes on it, two inches apart. Bake for 20-25 minutes, then flip and continue to bake until both sides are crispy.
Latkes are typically served with applesauce and the sweet and savory combination is quite fantastic. You can also serve the latkes with vegan sour cream or with a hot sauce. Top the vegan latkes with fresh herbs like chives or with scallions for an extra pop of fresh flavor.
Dana says
Divine latkes! We loved them and wouldn't change a thing. ❤️
Hannah S. says
These latkes are perfect, like my mom made them. And vegan! I am going to make these for her and see if she can guess they are vegan. 🙂
Vaishali Honawar says
Awesome!
marti says
are there no onions in these lakes?
Vaishali says
You can add them if you want to--see the variations section!
Anonymous says
Look