jalapeno latkes

Golden Crispy Jalapeño Latkes with avocado sour cream

Shatteringly crisp with pops of spicy jalapeno, these latkes are a Texan twist on a Hanukkah favorite (but I reckon they should be eaten all year round!).

Take note – these are not hashbrowns. Though hashbrowns have their place at the breakfast table, they just can’t be compared to the almighty latke. Hashbrowns are griddled, which gives you a hint of crispness but a whole lotta floppy potatoes. Latkes are pan fried and they’re ALL about the crunch. Really you could argue they’re like a flattened tater tot.

Generally, the ingredient list is very simple – potato, onion, S&P, egg and some kind of binder. Traditionally, that binder will be powdery fine matzo meal, but that can be a tricky ingredient to find, so you can substitute with fine breadcrumbs as I have in this recipe (to make it a little more user friendly to those without mm access). Of course, being that I live in Texas, it’s not unusual to add Jalapeño peppers to lots of classic recipes and Texa-fy them (just check out these jalapeno cheddar sausage rolls, for example). Thin slices of jalapeno pepper are a great compliment to the crispy latkes, adding the right burst of heat, which is perfectly offset with a scoop of the cooling avocado sour cream.

There’s a trick to getting extra crispy latkes and it involves getting as much of the water out of the potatoes as possible. It really is a crucial step that shouldn’t be missed, but I have come up with a great hack – a potato ricer. If you don’t already have one, a potato ricer (which ironically has nothing to do with rice) is a press for making the creamiest and smoothest mashed potatoes. But because it’s a press, it’s also perfect to use for squeezing every last drop of moisture out of the shredded potato. That’s what I use on both my potato and onion to remove the water, but if you don’t have a ricer you can simply put the shredded veg into a dish cloth, twist them up into a ball and squeeze to get the moisture out.

crispy latkes with jalapeno

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jalapeno latkes

Golden Crispy Jalapeño Latkes with avocado sour cream


  • Author: Jess Pryles

Ingredients

Units Scale

2 x large russet potatoes (about 1.5 – 2lb total)
1 x onion
3 x jalapeno peppers
2 x teaspoons kosher salt
1 x teaspoons ground pepper
1 x egg
2 x tablespoon matzo meal or breadcrumbs
12 cups vegetable or canola oil
1 x ripe avocado
1 x cup sour cream


Instructions

  1. Peel the potatoes and then grate on a large box grater. Place the grated potatoes into a kitchen towel to form a bundle or potato ricer, and squeeze to extract as much moisture as possible. Dry potatoes will get you crispier latkes. Place the dried potato shreds in a large bowl.
  2. Peel the onion, grate and then also repeat the same moisture-removal as with the potato, then add to the bowl.
  3. Slice the jalapeno peppers into thin rounds (between ⅛ and 1/16th of an inch), discarding the stems. Add the peppers to the bowl.
  4. Add the salt, pepper, egg and breadcrumbs to the bowl, and stir to combine the ingredients well.
  5. Place a large skillet over high heat, and add the oil. When the oil reaches 350f, drop in spoonfuls of the mixture, about 2 tablespoons at a time, but do not overcrowd the pan. You will need to cook the latkes in batches. Cook for 2-3 minutes until deep golden brown, then flip and cook the latkes on the other side for a further 2-3 minutes.
  6. Remove the latkes from the pan using a fish spatula or flipper, and place onto paper towel to drain. Repeat until all latkes have been cooked. Allow the latkes to cool 2-3 minutes before serving.
  7. Combine the avocado and sour cream in a blender, and blitz until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.
  8. Serve the hot latkes immediately with the cool avocado cream.

1 thought on “Golden Crispy Jalapeño Latkes with avocado sour cream”

  1. WOW! I’ll definitely make this again. I have kids so I toned the heat down a bit and added a little more potato and a little less jalapeño. I also used some crème fraîche I made a couple days ago instead of sour cream and the sauce was excellent. Simple to make and delicious. Must add Bacon…

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