Drawing on his Brooklyn boyhood, my dear dad always said that no batch of potato latke batter was complete without blood from your knuckles. Mebbe in olden days.

But after several experiments in recent years, I learned tonight that a proper proportion of binders are what's really crucial. Supposedly classic cookbook recipes I'd used before- for reference only, mind you - were too light on flour and egg. I found I had to cook the lil' critters too much to get the desired solidity.

I inevitably ended up yearning for impeccable deli-style latkes, with just enough cakey texture to really hold together, while still yielding the proper potato-ey toothfulness and rich flavor.

Well, tonight I hit the latke jackpot. I used a good bit more binder than before - two eggs instead of one; more flour than previously, plus cornmeal, garlic and fresh green herbs. Shazzam! Turned out best ever - restaurant quality.

So here's my hard-won recipe for choice latkes, cooked up to smash reviews tonight, on the second night of Chanukah. I also discovered the cast-iron skillet was much less effective than the large Calphalon skillet, in which the latkes cooked more quickly and evenly, by far.

And you'd better have a food processor handy, not just an old-timey hand grater.

MATT'S POTATO LATKES

--Three large brown russet potatoes, skin cleansed, and soaked 30 mins. in a large bowl of cold water
--1/2 white onion, cut into eighths
--three cloves garlic
--half cup fresh tarragon, stems included
--half cup rinsed fresh parsley leaves, already chopped
--two beaten eggs
--6 T flour
--6 T corn meal
--1.5 T seasoned sea salt
--1/2 t finely ground black pepper
--olive oil
--canola oil

After soaking whole potatoes with skins on left on, cut each in vertical quarters, then cross-cut into four or five slices per quarter. Fill to two-thirds full with potato pieces the food processor bowl; then add some of the cut-up onion chunks, plus part of the tarragon and parsely, and a clove of garlic per batch. Process till chunks of potato are well-grated. Using rubber spatula, scrape out into bowl; then repeat till all potatoes, garlic, parsley and tarragon are grated. Add beaten eggs, salt, pepper, flour and cornmeal, mix well.

Heat a mixture of 2 T each olive oil and canola oil in a large Calphalon skillet till sizzling, then add three pancakes at a time, using a very large, long-handled serving spoon. Each spoonful should contain 1/4 C of batter, spread out into circle or oval, in pan. Sizzle at medium high, watching carefully and flipping when necessary with metal spatula, to brown well on each side. Drain each latke immediately on paper towels, then put onto paper-towel lined cookie sheet which has been placed in oven warming drawer, or 200-degree oven. After one layer is full (about six latkes), add another double-layer of paper towels, and add more cooked latkes, as they come out of the skillet, and are drained. Replenish oil as necessary with each new batch, or with every other batch.

When done cooking, and just prior to serving, give thanks, in your own way.

Then serve latkes with sour cream, apple sauce; and roasted meat or poultry of choice.

TECHNORATI TAGS: ROSENBLOG, RECIPES, LATKES, CHANUKAH

Posted by Matt Rosenberg at December 26, 2005 11:29 PM

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