Potato Cakes (Ukrainian Deruny or Terchenyky)

These thin potato pancakes are made of coarsely grated potatoes and are also known as terchenyky or deruny (meaning to grate). In the old days, grating a large amount of potatoes by hand was daunting and many a finger was scraped. Today the food processor makes the whole preparation very simple. To make crisp and tasty potato pancakes, you must first, soak the grated potatoes in cold water with the lemon juice in the refrigerator overnight; then press all the water out of the soaked potatoes and then add a touch of baking powder to the batter before frying. Deruny, tertyuhi, kremzliki, kiyzliki, tarchaniki. All these funny names are given to the same dish. Traditionally, the deruny don’t have any filling, but sometimes in the midst of these delicious things can be found cheese, roasted mushrooms or meat. In the territory of Ukraine, this dish has appeared relatively recently, with the spread of the potato, just 150 years ago. Having gained popularity in the north of country, where the soil is more favourable for the potatoes, the recipes of deruny spread throughout Ukraine. Now they can be found on the table of almost every Ukrainian household.

6 medium Yukon Gold potatoes (2 lbs)
1 lemon, freshly juiced
2 Tbsp. onion, coarsely grated
2 eggs
2 Tbsp. all-purpose flour, unbleached
½ tsp. sea salt
½ tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. black pepper, freshly ground
½ cup vegetable oil or half oil and half butter

To Serve:
1 cup sour cream

Preheat oven to 200°F (95°C).

Grate potatoes on a medium grater or with the grating blade of a food processor. Place in a bowl, cover with cold water and juice of 1 lemon and let stand overnight in the refrigerator.

Drain potatoes in a colander, pressing and squeezing the potatoes dry with your hands. In a large bowl, combine potatoes, onion, eggs, flour, salt, baking powder and pepper. Mix until well blended.

In a large skillet, heat 2 Tbsp. of the oil until hot. (I used a non-stick electric frying pan - temperature at 350°F.) Take a Tbsp. or two of the pancake mixture and place in pan, patting it thin and flat with a fork or spatula. Do not overcrowd them. Fry over medium-high heat until the potato pancakes are very crisp and the edges are brown. Turn and brown other side pressing down on the deruny - this should take about 6-8 minutes total. Regulate the heat so that the pancakes sizzle without burning. Place fried deruny in an oven proof paper towel lined pan and place in the oven to keep warm as you continue frying the rest of the batter, or keep them warm on a wire rack set in a shallow baking pan in oven. Add more oil to keep pan greased as you continue frying the deruny. Season with salt and pepper if you wish and serve with sour cream.

Although deruny are at their best right from the pan, they can be reheated in a single layer on a baking sheet at 400°F. for 5 minutes.

Makes enough for 6 servings or 2 Ukrainians.