Gluten Free Latke Recipe
Today we are making an easy Gluten Free Latke recipe! Potato latkes are thick, golden brown crispy potato pancakes made of shredded potatoes, with egg as a binding agent. They are a Jewish dish, traditionally made for the celebration of Hanukkah as a symbol of its miracle, when the oil of the menorah in the Temple of Jerusalem was able to stay lighted for eight days (even though the oil in it would only have allowed a day’s worth of light). So latkes, along with other fried foods, are eaten as a way to symbolize this miracle.
Origins of the Latke
Along with fried foods, dairy foods were used to celebrate the miracle of Hanukkah too. Potatoes became popular during the mid-1800s in Europe when failing crops in the East led to mass potato crops being planted. They were cheap and easy, so why not? After that, potato became the main ingredient used to make latkes instead of dairy.
Although potatoes are associated with Hanukkah, they actually come from Italian pancakes that consist of ricotta cheese. The connection between Hanukkah and pancakes came from a rabbi in Italy, which has its own backstory. However, using potatoes instead of the original dairy ingredients in traditional latkes is more recent. Click here to read more on the origins of the latke!
Why You’ll Love This Delicious Gluten Free Potato Latkes Recipe
Hanukkah Celebrations: These gluten-free latkes are a traditional Jewish recipe for the Hanukkah holiday season. Although, the traditional recipes use eggs, flour or matzo meal. Matzo meal, if you’re unfamiliar, is made by grinding Jewish bread called matzo. This recipe is now dairy-free, gluten-free and egg-free, covering many top allergens to make it a family favorite for everyone!
Hearty Potato Snacks: Potatoes are so versatile that they are the key ingredient in a variety of dishes. I love finding new ways to use up a good old potato! These make for a crispy snack to serve as an appetizer or to picky children.
Substitutions
Chia Seeds: Chia seeds with a few tablespoons water form a “chia egg” when set aside for 15 minutes to thicken. If you don’t have chia seeds on hand, then you can also try chia meal or flax meal. This is ground chia seeds or ground flax seeds which you can buy in powder form. Flax seeds make a flax egg, a chia seed makes a chia egg! However, they work in the same way.
Potatoes: I used a box grater for this (you can also use a large hole hand grater or the grating attachment on the food processor), then used paper towels, a clean kitchen towel or a cheesecloth to squeeze out the excess moisture.
Russet potatoes are very starchy so they work the best for this. You can try to substitute with Yukon gold potatoes, or make your own twist with sweet potatoes!
Oil: I used canola oil and it made very crispy latkes. You can try to substitute with refined coconut oil (the one that doesn’t smell like coconuts – it should smell neutral), avocado oil or olive oil. Trying this out in the air fryer can be an option as well, without any oil. However, I haven’t tried it.
Besan: This is otherwise known as chickpea flour or gram flour, which is a key ingredient in many Indian dishes. You can try to use whole wheat flour or all purpose flour for versions with gluten.
Or a gluten-free flour, such as 1:1 gluten-free all purpose flour, white rice flour or sweet rice flour.
Onion: I used white grated onion, but you can also use red onion which will make it more bitter.
Troubleshooting
How do I avoid soggy latkes?
- Make sure to really squeeze out all the extra water from the potatoes. There should not be much liquid in this recipe.
- Make sure you are using a large nonstick pan where you can lay the latkes side by side to cook them with enough room in between, so the hot oil can really get into all parts of the latke.
Serve This Recipe With
To serve, traditional potato latkes add sour cream / yogurt, apple sauce and green onions on top. I never would’ve thought to serve these with applesauce of all things, which mixes up the sweet and savory palette.
You can check out this link for more ideas on how to dress up your latkes.
Gluten Free Latke Recipe Notes
- If you have excess potatoes, then make hash browns, french fries or the Summer Potato Salad recipe below!
- Pat the latkes with a paper towel to remove excess oil after pan frying.
More Recipes You’ll Love
Summer Potato Salad: This summer salad is great to bring along to picnics or a summer BBQ. There’s no mayonnaise in it though – it uses a cashew base for the mayo!
One Pot Vegan Mac N’ Cheese: This recipe uses nutritional yeast for a cheesy flavor blended with sweet potatoes for a creamy sauce.
Oats & Black Bean Burgers: Black beans and oats form the base of these pan-fried burgers. Slide these into a burger and make a protein-filled meal!
Avocado Macaroni Salad: Creamy avocado sauce coats macaroni in a corn and tomatoes green summer salad!
Coconut Milk Sweet Potatoes: These sweet potatoes are soft and full of flavor after cooking in coconut milk!
If you make this Gluten Free Latke Recipe, then leave a comment and star rating! Don’t forget to tag your photos @peanut_palate on Instagram. Enjoy!
Gluten Free Latke Recipe
Equipment
- Stovetop Pan
Ingredients
- 1½ cups peeled and shredded raw Russet potatoes
- 1 tbsp white onion shredded
- 7½ tbsp water
- 3 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 tsp pink salt
- 2 tbsp besan (chickpea gram flour)
- canola oil, for pan frying
Instructions
- Mix together the chia seeds and water and set aside in a small bowl. Leave this for 15 minutes. It should thicken up to form an "egg."
- In the meantime, peel and shred the raw potatoes. You can use a box grater, a large hole hand grater or the grating attachment on the food processor. Then drain the excess moisture from the shredded potatoes using a cheesecloth or towel.
- Once the chia egg is done, mix together all ingredients (chia egg, shredded potato, and all the other ingredients) into a large bowl.
- Heat up a stovetop pan over medium-high heat. Pour some oil on the pan to allow the latkes to fry – more oil means it'll be more crispy, but you can add more as you see fit. I used about one spoon of oil on both sides of each latke.
- Once the oil is hot, scoop up about two spoons of the mixture and form a pancake. Spread it out onto the pan and allow it to cook. Mine were a little more than 1/4 inch thick.
- It takes a few minutes for each side to cook (could be 4-5 minutes per side, but you can check the color to see how brown it's getting and remove it when you think it's done). I had about 3 latkes at once on the pan, which saved time so I would flip them all over together once each side had cooked. I also had a paper towel on a plate, ready to put the hot latkes on when they were done. This helps drain the excess oil.
- Once they are all done, turn off the stove and serve them with vegan sour cream/yogurt or applesauce, which is what they are traditionally served with.
Notes
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Storage
- Store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to one week, or in the refrigerator for three days.
