Grilled Smoked Kielbasa with Latkes

If you’ve not made latkes, it’s time to do so. This simple potato dish packs more flavor than its few, common ingredients (potato, onion, egg) may indicate. The secret is in the preparation: dry the grated potato as much as possible and fry the latkes very thin.

Don’t think of latkes as potato cakes—those puffy, pillowy-on-the-inside, golden-on-the-outside round cakes usually made from leftover mashed potatoes. Latkes are golden brown too, but very thin so the creaminess inside isn’t as pronounced. And don’t worry about making perfect circles. Irregular shapes with bits of grated potato jutting out here and there make latkes as rustic and visually appealing as they are delicious. 

Not all latke recipes call for any kind of onion. I chose to include shallot for its mild oniony flavor. If you do use onion or shallot, be sure to chop it very finely so that it will blend in well with the potato and egg.

A box grater makes shredding the potatoes easy and fast. Use the largest holes for ultra-thin shreds of potato about half an inch long. If you use a flat, hand-held grater, make long, slow strokes down the blades. Short, quick cuts result in a mound of mushy potato.

Box Grater

Lastly, place the grated potato in a bowl of cold water for a couple minutes to remove some of the starch. Take the shreds out of the water one fistful at a time and squeeze as hard as you can to remove as much water as possible. Scatter the dried shreds in a bowl and repeat with the remainder of the soaked potato.

Latkes are often served with a little sour cream or applesauce as a condiment. Here, I accompany them with soft, buttery fried apples for more of a sweet side than a creamy topping.

Serves 4 (makes 8 latkes)

Ingredients

For the Latkes

• 3 large russet potatoes (about 1 3/4 lbs), peeled
• 1 large shallot, very finely chopped
• 1 large egg, whisked
• sea salt
• 1/4 cup plus 3 tbsp olive oil
• fried apples, apple sauce, or sour cream, for serving (optional)

For the Kielbasa

• olive oil, for brushing
• 2 smoked kielbasa sausages, about 1 lb total, each cut crosswise into 3 pieces, then each piece cut lengthwise in half (12 pieces total)
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Sliced Smoked Kielbasa

Preparation

For the Latkes

1. Preheat the oven to its lowest temperature setting.
2. Place 2 medium bowls on a work surface and fill 1 about 3/4 full with very cold water. Shred the potatoes on the large holes of a box grater and transfer the shreds to the bowl of cold water. Soak 2 minutes.

Potatoes Shredded with a Box Grater

Grated Potatoes Soaking

1. Remove the potato shreds from the water 1 fistful at a time and squeeze hard to eliminate as much liquid as possible. Place the dry shreds in the clean bowl and repeat with the remaining soaked potatoes.
2. Add the shallot and whisked egg to the bowl with the dried potatoes and season with salt. Stir gently until well combined.

Grated Potatoes Squeezed Dry

Potato, Shallot, and Egg Mixture

1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add 1/4 cup of oil, swirling to coat. Working in batches of 4 latkes, spoon 2 heaping tablespoons of the potato mixture for each latke into the skillet. Flatten each gently with the back of the spoon, spreading into ragged rounds, about 3 inches at the widest part.
2. Cook until the potato mixtures hold together and are golden brown on the bottom, 7-8 minutes. Carefully turn the latkes over and cook until golden brown on the other side, about 5 minutes.

Latkes Beginning to Fry

Fried Latkes

1. Remove to a plate and season with salt. Place the plate in the warm oven and add about 3 tablespoons (as needed) of oil to the skillet. Repeat with the remaining potato mixture for a total of 8 latkes.

For the Kielbasa

1. Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat and brush with oil. Add the kielbasa in a single layer and season with salt and pepper.
2. Grill, turning several times, until slightly charred in places and fully cooked throughout, about 10 minutes total. (If the sausages are finished before the latkes, remove them to a plate and keep warm in the preheated oven.)

Kielbasa Beginning to Grill

Grilled Kielbasa

To serve, place 3 kielbasa pieces of each of 4 plates. Place 2 latkes each alongside the sausages and serve with fried apples, applesauce, or sour cream, if desired.