I grew up eating latkes, usually when my mom worked a long day and needed a quick dinner for my sister and I. She made German potato pancakes (kartoffelpuffer) but always called them latkes in English, and I don’t think she ever used sweet potato. She did sometimes mix in other veg like carrots, so this is just a slight variation on that, really.
Sweet potato latkes are a little different from those made with starchy potatoes, mostly in that the texture is slightly different. These do (optionally) use egg, which helps with the crispiness factor, but the key thing is to use a hot pan and the right oil.
You can make these really quickly if you have a large pan, or can have two pans going at once. Top with applesauce (traditional), yogurt, or ketchup if you want to go crazy. My omi does not approve of ketchup on latkes but I like it every once in a while – a side effect of growing up in Canada!
Scroll to the bottom of the post or click “skip to recipe” above to see the recipe card with full ingredient measurements and instructions.
Ingredients
- Sweet potato
- Onion
- Chickpea flour
- An egg (see substitutions)
- Olive oil
- Apple cider vinegar
- Sea salt and pepper
- Cumin
- Paprika
- Cayenne pepper
- Water, for the vegan method
Method
Shred the sweet potato and onion into a large bowl, using the large side of a box grater. You can also use the grating attachment on a food processor if you prefer.
Add the chickpea flour, egg (or water for the vegan option), oil, vinegar, and spices. Stir very well to combine, making sure no streaks of flour remain. Set the latke mixture aside while the pan heats – this allows the chickpea flour to absorb the water from the vegetables.
Heat a skillet over medium heat. Once the pan is hot, add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan fully with a thin layer of oil. Place about 2 tablespoons of the latke mixture into the pan for each latke, flattening with the back of a spoon. Don’t crowd the pan – this causes the pan to cool too quickly.
After a couple of minutes, the latkes should be golden brown on one side. Flip and flatten with the spatula again (they should be about 1.5 – 2cm (about 3/4 in.) thick). Fry for another couple of minutes, or until that side is golden as well.
Repeat until all of the batter has been used, either serving the latkes as they cook, or placing them into a warm oven to keep warm. Serve hot, with any desired toppings.
Tips and Notes
I’ve never put my latkes onto a paper-towel lined plate after cooking them. I also don’t have paper towel in the house. You shouldn’t need to do this unless your pan is too cold, as if it’s the correct temperature, the latkes shouldn’t be absorbing much of the oil and they shouldn’t be greasy.
Some readers have noted that the batter is too wet for them – this is for a couple of reasons. One, chickpea flour soaks up a lot more water than other types of flour (like wheat flour) so if any changes have been made in that regard, the batter will be wetter. Chickpea flour also varies a bit from brand to brand.
The other is sweet potato types – some are drier than others, and the water content tends to be higher when they’re out of season. If your batter is too wet – refer to the step-by-step photos – then simply add more flour.
To make these ahead of time, you have a couple of options. The batter can be made they day before and refrigerated in a sealed container to be cooked the next day.
Alternatively, the cooked latkes can be stored in the refrigerator and reheated in a frying pan (don’t microwave them!). I’ve never tried freezing them but I don’t see why it wouldn’t work, they’d just need longer to reheat from frozen.
Substitutions
To make these vegan, simply leave out the egg and add the water instead. They’ll still hold together and fry well without an egg (thanks to the chickpea flour) but they’re not as crispy without it. These options are noted in the recipe card.
If you don’t have chickpea flour, you can use wheat flour (whole wheat is best) or buckwheat flour. You will need a little bit more to balance out the absorbing factor, so go by look. The cooking time will change slightly.
The obvious substitution is regular potatoes, of course. You can do half-half if you prefer a more traditional tasting latke.
More Sweet Potato Recipes
Chickpea Sweet Potato Burgers
Sweet Potato Lunch Bowls
Sweet Potato Hummus
Chickpea, Sweet Potato, and Kale Curry
Coconut Milk Chili with Sweet Potato and Chickpeas
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Sweet Potato Latkes
Ingredients
- 160 grams sweet potato, shredded (a medium sweet potato)
- ½ small yellow onion shredded
- 25 grams chickpea flour
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ teaspoon paprika
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper to taste
- Coconut oil for cooking
- Water for the vegan option see note
- Apple sauce or yogurt for topping
Instructions
- Shred the sweet potato and onion into a large bowl. Add the chickpea flour, egg (or water), oil, vinegar, salt, pepper, cumin, paprika, and cayenne pepper.
- Use a wooden spoon to mix very well, making sure no streaks of flour remain. Set aside to rest while the pan heats.
- Heat a large pan over medium-high heat. Add enough oil to coat the bottom of the pan. Make sure the pan is hot before starting to cook the latkes or they won’t crisp.
- Spoon about 2 tablespoons of the latke mixture into the hot pan, flattening slightly with the back of the (metal) spoon.
- Cook for 1-2 minutes, until the bottoms are golden, then flip and flatten with the spatula. You may need to add more oil at this point. Cook for another 1-2 minutes, or until both sides are golden and crisp.
- Cook three or four latkes at a time, but don’t crowd the pan. Repeat until all of the batter has been used.
- You can place the finished pancakes into a warm oven to keep warm until they’re finished cooking. Serve hot with your desired toppings.
Notes
Nutrition
Newsletter
This post was originally published in January 2018. It has been updated with new step-by-step photographs, changes to the text, and some slight alterations to the recipe, as of September 2020.
Joan says
These were tasty, but the mixture was absolutely sopping. I had to wring out the water. That was after adding additional flour to try to dry them up a bit. I’d highly advise against adding water to them!
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Hi Joan, it sounds to me like you had a very juicy sweet potato! Usually they’re quite dry but of course it varies from vegetable to vegetable and it’s good when you can do some intuitive cooking like you have here and add more flour to make up for a wet potato. I make these a few times a month and have always needed to add the water. Thanks for your comment : )
Jo says
Thanks for the recipe – my husband liked them even though he hates sweet potato!
I used wheat flour instead of chickpea and it was fine.
Cooking time was definitely more than 1-2 min each side for me! I probably gave them 5 min each side all up – took a while for them to crisp up.
Very tasty with some chèvre spread on top.
Dee says
Hi there,
Might these latkas be made in advance to be reheated, or possibly the batter made a day in advance and then fried the next day?
Thank you,
Debbie
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Yes, no problem! I make them in advance all the time and then just pop them in a frying pan to reheat. It’s also possible to make the batter in advance and refrigerate, covered, overnight to cook the following day.
Lidia says
Is it possible to have measurements in grams? If not is it UK or US cups?
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Hi Lidia, sorry this one isn’t in grams – I’m working my way through to update any that were written without. This is UK cups and it will be updated with grams in the near future.
Jenn P says
These turned out way too spicy for me! I also had quite a bit of moisture, but not enough to wring out. I will cut spices in half next time.
nesreen says
Hi can I use coconut flower instead as er have food intolerance to pea flour
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Hello, I’m afraid coconut flour won’t work in place of chickpea flour in this recipe. Something like buckwheat, or a wheat flour, would be a fine substitute.
Lacey says
Cooked or uncooked sweet potato?
Alexandra | Occasionally Eggs says
Uncooked – I think you’d have a hell of a time grating cooked potato!
Alexandra Daum says
I'm so happy to hear it 🙂 Aha, I use Boskoop apples too! I live very close to Holland, in Oldenburg, and my grandmother has a Boskoop tree in her garden. It's my favourite variety. The peanut butter cookies are nice because they're made with coconut flour but still taste like normal cookies. Hahaha I need to bind a blog-book and send it to you! I'm sure you're a very talented cook – and it never hurts to try, I think, that's how we improve. Thanks so much, Yvonne!
Yvonne says
I am positively going to try the sweet potato pancakes again omitting the additional water and just following your advise to look at the 'batter' to determine if it needs more chickpea flour. Sweet potatoes can differ in moistness I guess.
Glad you mentioned the apple crumble bars because I made them not long after you posted the recipe and I loved them! I made the apple puree using the (famous) Dutch variety Boskoop that we use here in the Netherlands to make apple pie. I have to make these again – always trying out new recipes out of curiosity and this
way delicious recipes that I have already made and loved end up further below of my enormous and ever growing pile of printed recipes!
I am not sure if I have made your peanut butter cookies, I have made a lot of peanut butter cookies from the internet, so I will just have to make them to refresh my memory (just printed the recipe, so I will probably end up finding a duplicate of it if I ever find the courage to organize that pile of recipes).
I rarely make soup but the carrot, red lentil and spinach soup you suggest makes me think why I don't make soup more often (printing it .. )?
The vegan holiday pie looks very impressive; the day you posted it I remember thinking how proud I would be if I would serve this to my family; but I think I am a little bit of a coward: seeing it looking so impressive I am afraid I would mess up the recipe because I think I am not talented enough for impressive dishes 🙁
This insecurity certainly applies to baking with yeast: I only baked bread a handful of times (years ago) so I am still a bit scared of it. But looking at the pictures of the babka again and reading one of the comments 'This is the most amazing bread I have ever tasted' has made me push the print button immediately – it must be my next project (has to be quickly because there are bananas blackening here at home)!
Thank you for taking the time to advise me,
as always looking forward reading your blog posts!
Alexandra Daum says
Sorry I missed the note on water before – try not adding it, and see if it's wet enough without! Then if you need to add a splash you can.
Alexandra Daum says
Goodness, Yvonne, I'm so happy you're making my recipes! I haven't had any issues with it being too wet at all – usually it's really quite dry, more so than regular latkes. You could wring it out or try adding a little bit more chickpea flour. The batter is slightly wet but not overly goopy, it should be pretty easy to shape with your hands! It might be different variety of sweet potato to what I can get here. The end result should be somewhere in between – crispy outside, soft inside, but quite light. I'm happy you like the flavour and I hope you make them again with the suggestions 🙂
That's lovely. Ooh it's a bit tricky to pick! The ultimate peanut butter cookies are always a big hit, and I love the apple crumble bars (I make them every week in the fall!) – I'll give you two that I've been making consistently for the past few years as they've become fast favourites in my house. The carrot, red lentil, and spinach soup is great for everyday, and when I'm looking for something special I make the vegan holiday pie. But more than anything else, I think my all-time favourite is the chocolate banana babka! I love bread and it's so fun to make. Sorry you asked for one and I gave you several; there are almost 250 recipes on the blog so it was a little difficult to narrow it down!
Yvonne says
Hello Alexandra, yesterday I made these sweet potato pancakes (I have also made two of your granola recipes and a chocolate recipe and more- all so very delicious!). The pancakes were very delicious but I was wondering if I should wring out the moisture from the shredded potato and onion or just leave out the added water because my 'batter' was very wet and I couldn't make the pancakes looking nice like yours. Should they be dense and soft or light and crispy?
The flavor was deliciously spicy and sweet! Thank you for sharing your recipes and stories. I Have just printed out the chocolate snack cake you made for your sisters birthday.
May I ask, what is one of your favorite recipes – what recipe from your site would you recommend I really should make?