Pickle Latkes
Updated Dec. 8, 2025
- Total Time
- 1 hour 5 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 3medium russet potatoes (2 pounds)
- 1medium yellow onion
- 12small kosher dill pickles (1 pound)
- ¾ to 1cup bread crumbs or matzo meal
- 2large eggs
- ½teaspoon ground cayenne
- 2teaspoons freshly cracked black pepper
- Kosher salt
- Sunflower seed oil, vegetable oil or grapeseed oil, for frying
- Sour cream, dill and applesauce, for serving
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)
287 calories; 23 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 4 grams monounsaturated fat; 15 grams polyunsaturated fat; 18 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 4 grams protein; 379 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Place a clean kitchen towel over a large mixing bowl. Using the coarse side of your grater, grate the potatoes and onion over the towel in the bowl. Wrap the towel around the grated vegetables, twist the top and squeeze all the liquid out. Discard the liquid, and place the grated onion and potatoes in the bowl.
- Step 2
Quarter each pickle lengthwise, then slice each piece into ⅛- to ¼-inch-thick matchsticks. (You don’t want to slice them too thin; if you do, you won’t be able to taste the pickles in the latkes.) Aim for a variety of sizes, so some get nice and crunchy and some stay more sour. Add the pickles to the bowl with the potatoes and onion.
- Step 3
Add the bread crumbs, eggs, cayenne, black pepper and a pinch of salt. Mix to combine.
- Step 4
Heat up about 1 inch of oil in a shallow pan over medium heat.
- Step 5
Test to see if the oil is hot enough by adding a bit of the latke mixture to the oil. If it sizzles, it’s ready. Grab a handful of the latke mixture and squeeze it in your palms to remove any excess liquid. After pressing, roughly shape the mixture into a patty that’s not as thick as a diner burger patty and not as thin as a smashed burger; keep it somewhere in between. Don’t press it too tightly. It doesn’t have to be a perfectly round shape: Embrace any wispy edges, as they’ll get extra crispy in the oil.
- Step 6
Place 3 to 4 latkes at a time in the oil and fry until golden brown on one side, then flip and fry on the other side until golden brown. You’re looking at 4 to 5 minutes of frying per side. As always, focus more on the visual cues. Lower the heat as needed.
- Step 7
Place a paper towel over a plate or cooling rack. Place the fried latkes on the paper towel to drain any excess oil. Season with salt.
- Step 8
Serve right away, with sour cream, dill, applesauce or any other toppings.
Private Notes
Comments
This recipe is much better if you substitute the starch from the potatoes for the crumbs suggested. Why buy bread crumbs or matzoh meal when the potatoes themselves give you what you need. Grate the potatoes into a bowl of cold water. Swish. Lift potatoes out and wring them well (my mother did it with her hands). Let the starch collect in the bottom of the bowl and gently pour off water. Voilà! The absolutely perfect amount of potato-y starch!
Or, make regular latkes and add shredded pickles to the sour cream topping.
That leftover pickle brine? Use it to make cole slaw!
These were a welcome variation to our Chanukah table this year. I think in the future I’d up the pickles (personal choice), but otherwise they were quite tasty.
We loved these for Hanukkah this year! Found it made a difference using the nicer more delicious pickles; even though they’re being fried the cheaper ones just weren’t as yummy. Enjoyed with garlic and lemon added to sour cream. Delicious!
Was good. As was previously mentioned in comments (by David Morris), I strain the potatoes, and use the starch from the bowl, after tossing the potato water... but I still add matzo meal. I added 3 tablespoons dried chives, 1/2 tsp baking powder, just a pinch of cayenne... woulda used some scallions as well as the regular onion if I had any on hand.