Vegan Potato Pancakes (Latkes)

5 from 5 votes

These vegan potato pancakes (or latkes)are made with russet potatoes and bound together with flour. Simple, crispy, and flavorful!

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Total Time30

Course: Appetizer

Cuisine: Jewish

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian

Servings:

Calories: 196kcal

Wash and peel the russet potatoes. Using a grater, shred the potatoes. You can also use a food processor to shred the potatoes to save yourself some time. Once all of the potatoes are shredded, place them in a cheesecloth, and squeeze out all the excess water and moisture. If you don't have a cheesecloth, use paper towels to absorb the moisture. Place the potato shreds in a medium-size mixing bowl.
Add the soy milk, flour, corn starch, baking powder, salt, pepper, and chopped scallions to the bowl. Fold together to combine. Make sure all of the flour gets incorporated. Working the flour into the potatoes will help build the gluten, which in turn helps the pancakes bind together when cooking.
Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoon of canola oil, and swirl around so that it coats the pan evenly. Using an ice cream scoop or ¼ measuring cup, pack the potato mixture, and add to the pan. Use the back of the scoop to flatten out the pancakes. Cook for about 3-5 minutes or until golden brown. Flip, and cook an additional 3 minutes or until golden brown on the other side.
Remove from the pan, and transfer to a plate lined with paper towels. Continue cooking the potato pancakes, adding more canola oil to the pan between each batch, until all of the potato mix is used. You should get about 12-15 small latkes.
Serve topped with chopped scallions, dill, and a side of sugar-free applesauce or vegan sour cream.

Tips for Making Vegan Potato Pancakes

Use russet potatoes, but if you don't have russet potatoes, use another starchy potato such as Goldrush, Norchip, or Long White.
Be sure to thoroughly squeeze the excess water from the potatoes before adding the rest of the ingredients. The potatoes give off quite a bit of moisture when shredded. Cheesecloth is the best tool for this. Add all of the shredded potatoes to the cheesecloth, place them over the kitchen sink, and ring out the water.
If you don't have cheesecloth, use heavy-duty paper towels to absorb the moisture.
Use your creativity to change the flavor of the potato pancakes, by adding different spices. Add some cayenne pepper for extra spice, paprika for a smoky finish, garlic powder, and onion powder to amp up the flavor.
Make sure the pan is on medium-high heat, and the oil has had a chance to heat up before you add the potato mixture. You want it to sizzle when it hits the pan.
Don't skimp on the oil! Usually, I use minimal to no oil in my recipes, but for latkes, you really need the oil to create a golden brown crisp on each side.
Store for 3-4 days in the refrigerator.
Freeze for 2-3 months.
Reheat in the air fryer or microwave.