My mom always made potato pancakes. It was a quick way to use up all those mashed potatoes from the night before. But her method usually involved a big frying pan and lots and lots of oil.
Good? Oh yes, but healthy? Not so much.
What if I told you there was a way to make those yummy potato pancakes without all that oil? Or flour? Or even eggs?
All you need is a little appliance we've had in our house for years - but got very little use out of - until now.
The George Foreman Grill, Or Waffle Maker
You know, those little portable electric grills that have lids that close down and cook on both sides? Like the one in the picture?
Which is, by the way - an affiliate link to Amazon - just in case you want to buy one. Affiliate links are one way I make a little money on the side to keep this site up and running so if you're inclined to make a purchase - thank you.
We've had one since I don't know when, and used to grill hamburgers and steaks on it from time to time - before we switched to plant-based that is.
It did an ok job at the time, but seriously - what do Vegans need with a meat grillin' machine? Nothing - so it's sat in our storage room forever.....until I tried the potato pancake trick with it.
And it worked beautifully!
Now if you don't have one - no worries. And old Waffle Maker should do the trick too. I've used both and either way the pancakes come out ok.
The trick with either method is to prevent sticking - and the answer to that - is simply patience. Don't open the lid until you know they're nice and crispy!
Perfect Potato Pancakes
Here's what I did.
Microwave two Yukon Gold Potatoes until done. For me that was about 6 minutes. I nuked them 2 minutes at a time until they felt cooked through and soft.
Then I cut them up and added them to a bowl and mashed in Unsweetened Almond Milk - a few tablespoons at a time, until you have nice and creamy Mashed Potatoes. I left most of the skin on, (I picked out some and ate it as I was mashing - yum) - your choice.
Add a little salt and pepper for seasoning if you like, maybe a little garlic powder or onion powder?
Meanwhile pre-heat either your George Forman or Waffle Maker.
Once it's heated - carefully spoon an even layer of mashed potatoes across the surface of the grill. Make sure there's no big globs anywhere - try to keep the thickness even across the surface.
Now close the lid...... and wait.
No peeking! Seriously unless you want a huge sticky mess to clean up.
Cook your pancakes 10-15 minutes and that should do the trick. As long as there's no wet sticky spots of uncooked potatoes, the whole pancake should slide right out.
Now top it with your favorite condiment (ketchup for me but salsa's good too) and dig in!
Enjoy!
Perfect Potato Pancakes
- Prep Time: 6 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 21 minutes
- Yield: 1 big pancake 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Cuisine: American
Description
An easy way to make Perfect Potato Pancakes without oil, flour, or eggs. Just by using an old forgotten appliance you thought would never be used again..
Ingredients
- 2 Yukon Gold Potatoes
- ¼ cup Unsweetened Almond Milk
- Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your George Foreman Grill or Waffle Maker
- Microwave the potatoes until cooked through and soft - about 5-6 minutes.
- Remove skins if desired and chop potatoes into a bowl.
- Mash potatoes with your favorite potato smasher.
- Slowly add the Almond Milk as needed to make creamy mashed potatoes.
- Season to taste
- Carefully add spoonfuls of mashed potatoes to grill surface making a thin even layer.
- Try to avoid any high spots - make it as even as possible
- Close lid and cook for 10-15 minutes.
- Do not be tempted to open lid and peek - it will just make a mess. Trust me.
- Leave lid down until brown and crispy.
Monica
Just made these using my griddle. Cooked 8 minutes at 350 on each side. Tasted great!
Rachel
Just made these tonight for dinner. Topped with avocado, green onions and a vegan ranch dressing. So good!!! I cooked them for 10 minutes but will go longer next time for extra crispness!
AngieD
Thanks for this recipe. Always looking for ways to use vegetables in our diet and hubby is a vegan. I use my electric griller for all sorts of things and find a bit of baking paper top and bottom of my food saves clean up and the food cooks just as beautifully. We do a lot of vegan meat options this way ie sausages, patties, schnitzels.
Rebecca Holland
What a fantastic idea! Thank you for posting this! I was just looking for an idea to use up my leftover mashed potatoes from yesterday when this popped up. I said to myself---I know it will be good since it comes from Brand New Vegan! Cannot wait to try it 🙂
Rebecca Holland
And...they are amazing in the waffle iron! I have a 4-square Belgian iron and I set my timer for 15 minutes. Just right. Will definitely be using this technique again!