Hanukkah may be the Festival of Lights, but we all know what this holiday is all about. It’s fried. Hanukkah is all about oil, celebrating the fated oil that kept the menorah lit for eight nights rather than its original lifespan. Sufganiyot, a fluffy donut filled with jam, is a popular Hanukkah food, but the most iconic food of the holiday has to be laqueh. French fry pancakes are usually served with applesauce, sour cream, or both.
The problem is, I hate fried food. It takes a lot of time and space, and oil gets splashed everywhere. The splatters will cover every surface on your stove, and the smell will spread to your hair, clothes, and kitchen. Needless to say, Latke has other jobs as well, such as shredding potatoes, soaking them, and squeezing the water to make lots of little pancakes. All in all, I’m scared to make latkes on Hanukkah, but I love eating them. That’s quite a challenge for chefs.
When I saw a picture of a perfect golden little latke in my daily Instagram scroll with the caption “You don’t want to know about my instant mini latke hack…” I immediately thought, Ta. Ah, that’s right. This post was written by a freelance pastry chef and recipe developer. Zoe Kanan. I reached out to Keiynan to get all the details on her genius hack, which may be the easiest ever.
How to make “Lil Latokes” easily
These potato pancakes started out as a brain explosion in the freezer aisle. Kanan saw something he’d never seen before: Ole Aida Onion Tater Tots. After researching the ingredients, she thought they were a better substitute for latkes than typical frozen hash browns. After some testing and polishing, she cracked the code on how to turn these tater tots into crispy, adorable mini latkes.
First, cook the tater tots in the air fryer and oven at 375 °F (190 °C) for about 10 and a half minutes. This will help form a “shell” and hold its shape for the second fry. Then, inspired by the internet favorite smashed potatoes, Keinan lines out a measuring cup and flattens it slightly. Aim for a thickness of about 1/2 inch, because if it’s too thin, it will be more like potato chips than a pancake.
It is then fried again to achieve a picture-perfect golden color. Shallow fry the latkes in 2 to 3 tablespoons of oil or schmaltz (chicken fat) for 1 to 2 minutes per side, or until golden brown.
If you’re like me and want to avoid frying at all costs, you can also complete the second frying process in the airfryer. Contains factory-frozen flash fry oil for crispy results. If you are using the air fryer all the way through, cook at 190 degrees (375 degrees Celsius) for an additional 5 minutes per side, being careful not to crowd the air fryer. Leaving a space in between allows air to flow on both sides, ensuring even crispy baking.
In either case, once it comes out of the second frying season, season with salt and pepper. Then add toppings as you like! Keinan likes the combination of sour cream and apple butter, which has more concentrated flavor than regular applesauce.
Typical frozen potato pancakes aren’t as good as homemade. They’re often overly processed with unnecessary add-ins, resembling more like a fried mashed potato cake than a golden nest of shredded potato pieces. But these are on another level. Crispy, light, and well-seasoned with discernible potato bits, these find the perfect middle ground between homemade and solid semi-homemade.
Whether you’re celebrating Hanukkah or looking for an easy cocktail or appetizer for a holiday party, these mini potato pancakes, also known as totkes, are sure to do the trick.
