Hanukkah Miracle Latkes: Vegan, Gluten-Free, and Delicious

I grew up in a big family that has always entertained a variety of eaters. At holiday meals, dishes would be organized buffet-style into sections labeled “kosher,” “vegetarian,” and “heathen.” Serviceable? Sure. But as I came to assume more responsibility for hosting and holiday cooking, I wanted to offer a full table that was more universally accessible for my guests — without compromising taste. It’s very important to me that my inclusive dishes aren’t second-rate substitutes for the “real” thing, but equal to or better than the original.

So I set out to create a Hanukkah miracle: latkes that all my guests could enjoy. In this recipe, chia seeds provide the binding, and the starch from the potatoes are re-integrated into the mix instead of adding flour. The potatoes are spiralized, which adds texture and a bit of flair to their appearance. They are a huge hit with my family and friends and I suspect they will be with yours as well. Happy Hanukkah and b’tai-a-vohn!

Ingredient prep for the latkes, from left: onions, seasoning, chia seeds, parsely, spiralized potato. (Photo by Nikki Gordon)

Ingredients

Makes approx. 24 latkes

3 lbs russet potatoes

2 large yellow onions

2 chia “eggs” (mix with fork: two tbs ground chia seeds with six tbs water, allow to set at least 5 minutes)

2 tbs fresh parsley, chopped

2 tsp salt

½ tsp garlic powder

½ tsp onion powder

½ tsp smoked paprika

Oil for frying, grapeseed or safflower is best

Equipment: two large mixing bowls, cheesecloth, frying pan, roll of paper towels

Method

Fill one large mixing bowl with cold water

Wash, peel, and spiralize the potatoes, submerge the potato spirals in the water

Finely dice the onions

Using a cheesecloth, wring as much water as possible out of the potatoes and onions, capturing the excess water in the original bowl of potato water (you’ll retrieve the potato starch later)

Place the wrung-out potato and onion in a fresh, dry mixing bowl

Add the chia eggs, parsley, salt, spices, and potato starch* to the potato and onions

Mix thoroughly

*To retrieve the potato starch, let the water settle for about ten minutes. Then gently drain the potato water little by little. There should be about a tablespoon of silty starch settled on the bottom of the bowl.

Cook:

In a frying pan, heat about ¼” of oil; maintain this depth of oil over medium heat throughout

Shape palm-sized latkes, roughly 2” in diameter and ¼” thick

Fry 3-4 minutes on each side, until lightly browned and slightly crispy

Place on a plate lined with a paper towel; separate layers of cooked latkes with paper towels to remove excess oil

To serve within hours:

Preheat oven to 200 degrees F

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper

Stack latkes on the baking sheet and keep them in the oven until it’s time to serve

Freeze for later:

Cool completely

Store in a freezer-safe container, parchment paper between latkes