Crispy flourless potato pancakes: Grate 1 kg of potatoes and squeeze in a towel

Tip: tap a step to mark it as done.

1. Grate the potatoes

   Peel and wash the potatoes, then grate them on the coarse side of a grater. A fine grater would turn them into a mush that is harder to squeeze dry and would make softer pancakes.

2. Squeeze them in a towel

   Working in batches, place the grated potatoes in a clean kitchen towel and squeeze firmly over a bowl to extract as much liquid as possible. Keep the juice in the bowl and transfer the squeezed potatoes to a larger bowl.

3. Let the starch settle

   10 min

   Let the juice stand for 10 minutes, until a white layer of starch settles at the bottom of the bowl. Carefully pour off the water above it, leaving the starch in the bowl.

4. Combine the mixture

   Scrape the settled starch into the squeezed potatoes. Add the egg, pressed garlic, marjoram rubbed between your fingers, and black pepper, then mix thoroughly.

5. Fry the pancakes

   25 min

   Heat about 3 mm of oil in a wide skillet over medium-high heat. Add the salt to the potato mixture only now; adding it earlier would draw more water out of the potatoes. Spoon the mixture into the oil and flatten it with a spatula into pancakes about 5 mm thick.

   Fry the pancakes for 3–4 minutes per side, until golden brown. Pour off any liquid that collects at the bottom of the mixing bowl between batches.

6. Serve

   Drain the cooked pancakes on paper towels and serve immediately while crisp.

Tip: Arrange the cooked pancakes side by side on a rack in an oven heated to 100 °C (210 °F). Stacking them on a plate would trap steam, softening them and making them lose their crispness.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Chrumkavé zemiakové placky bez múky: 1 kg zemiakov nastrúhate a vyžmýkate v utierke