Potato pancakes

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Potato pancakes, also known as Latkes or Latkas (Yiddish: לאַטקעס) are shallow-fried cakes of grated potato and egg often flavoured with grated onion. Potato pancakes may be topped with a variety of condiments, from savoury (sour cream, various cheeses) to sweet (apple sauce, sugar with or without cinnamon) but traditionalists prefer them ungarnished.

Although commonly associated with the Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine of Eastern Europe they are not necessarily Jewish in origin. Areas like northeast Poland for instance, know many varieties. A favorite Polish dish is placki węgierskie (placki po węgiersku) — potato pancakes stuffed with a thick spicy Hungarian goulash. Latkes are traditionally eaten during the Jewish Hanukkah festival although they play no fundamental part in Hanukkah ritual. The custom probably evolved due to the preference for eating fried foods during the festival that celebrates a miracle involving oil in the Temple of ancient Israel. Variants include: cheese, apple, zucchini, spinach, leek and rice latkes.

The potatoes can be roughly grated, cut, or julienned to give a textured cake bearing a distinct resemblance to American hash browns. Some chefs prefer to finely mince the potatoes and drop a form of griddle cake. The French dish commonly known as "potato galette" is also similar, but in it the sour cream is an ingredient rather than a topping.

Popular in Europe is the Rösti; potato pancakes of Swiss origin. Rösti are distinct from latkes in that they generally contain no egg or binding ingredient and may be flavoured with thyme.

The Swedish version of unbound potato pancakes are called rårakor. Prepared with a batter of wheat flour, milk, egg and potatoes and fried like thin pancakes, they are called raggmunk, which literally translates to "hairy doughnuts" (the grated potatoes make them look hairy). Both kinds are enjoyed with fried bacon and/or lingonberry jam.

The commercial brand Hungry Jack Potato Pancake mix (formerly French's Potato Pancake Mix) most closely resembles the Swedish style of the dish. (Page for the product on MyBrands)

Potato pancakes, or just potato cakes (also known as potato scallops in some shops), are very common in fish and chip shops in Australia. This variant is normally a thick slice of potato, dipped in batter, with no additional flavours added except salt.