Potato Pancakes

Potato Pancakes

Potato pancakes are shallow-fried pancakes of grated or ground potato, flour and egg, often flavoured with grated onion or garlic and seasoning. Potato pancakes may be topped with a variety of condiments, ranging from the savoury (such as sour cream or cottage cheese) to the sweet (such as apple sauce or sugar), or they may be served  without any garnish. Potato pancakes are sometimes made from mashed potatoes to produce pancake-shaped croquettes.

Maybe I am doing a disservice by posting potato pancakes under Germany, in my trip “Around the World in 30 Days”, for they are associated with cuisines of many European and Middle East.

Potato pancakes are an old traditions in  Austrian ,  Belarusian ,  Czech,  German ,  Hungarian ,  Iranian,  Jewish , Yiddish,  Hebrew,  Latvian ,  Lithuanian , Luxembourg ,  Polish,  Russian,   Slovak ,  Ukrainian  and any other cuisines.  It is the national dish of Belarus.

In Swiss cuisine, the Rösti differs as it never contains egg or flour. It is a traditional favourite in southern Indiana during holiday festivities.

In the North-East of England (particularly County Durham), there is a popular dish known as tattie fish, because the pancake resembles a deep fried piece of fish. The pancake consists of flour, eggs, shredded potatoes and onions. You may add tomato or cheese to the mix. A form of potato pancake known as boxty is a popular traditional dish in most of Ireland. It is made in a similar way but using more starch. The British also brought the potato pancake to Zimbabwe, Africa when Zimbabwe was a colony of Britain. They are still eaten today too.

The Swedish version of unbound potato pancakes is called rårakor  When prepared with a batter of wheat flour, milk, egg, and shredded potatoes and fried like thin pancakes, they are called  raggmunk,  the word "ragg" means crispy and "munk" derives from the Swedish "munkpanna", which is literally translated as donutpan. Both kinds are enjoyed with fried pork and  lingonberry  jam.

 In Germany, potato pancakes are eaten either salty (as a side dish) or sweet with apple sauce, blueberries, sugar and cinnamon; they are a very common menu item during outdoor markets and festivals in colder seasons.

Baharat ~ A Spice Powder from Middle East

Let's make Baharat a spice mix, we Indians never seem to get enough of  spice mixtures ;).

According to Wikipedia,

 "Bahārāt   is a spice mixture or blend used in Arab cuisine, especially in the Mashriq area, as well as in Turkish and Iranian cuisine. 

Bahārāt is the Arabic word for 'spices' (the plural form of bahār'spice'). The mixture of finely ground spices is often used to season lamb, fish, chicken, beef, and soups and may be used as a condiment."

I loved the aroma of the spices in it. 

Baharat

Cuisine: Middle Eastern

Recipe Source: The Daring Gourmet

Ingredients:

• 1 tblspn kali mirch/ pepper corns
• 1 tblspn jeera/cumin seeds
• 2 tsp dhania/ coriander seeds
• 1 tsp laung/cloves
• ½ tsp elichi/cardamom seeds
• 1½ tblspn chilli powder
• 1 tsp dalchini/cinnamon, ground
• ¼ tsp jaiphal/nutmeg, ground

Method:

• Heat a small kadhai/wok over low  heat and dry roast stirring   the pepper, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cloves, cardamom  till  you get a delicious aroma.( technically the stirring has to be occasionally but I prefer to do it continuously).
•  Once you switch off the gas add the dry powders and let the mixture stand till the spices cool completely.
• Grind in the chutney bowl of the mixer or spice or coffee grinder to a fine powder.
• Store in an airtight glass jar.

This goes for the August Week 3, Cooking from Cookbook Challenge  Group

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