Sour Cream: Just because it’s a classic doesn’t mean it’s the right decision. You’re probably pretentious AF and painfully stubborn about your opinions. You’re the Mom Friend, and you make sure everyone knows it.

Applesauce: Your sweet tooth is indicative of your childlike tendencies. You’re creative and fun, often called the funny one in your friend group. You love pop music, and you’re not afraid to show it. You like what everyone likes, and what’s wrong with that?

Plain: Why mess with perfection? Real recognizes real. Plain latke lovers don’t try to mask the taste of latke with extraneous, unnecessary toppings, and I love that for you. Either you aren’t American, or your parents weren’t, and you make a point to play the dreidel game annually. I just know.

Garlic Mayo: Ok, self-proclaimed ‘foodie,’ I see you. It’s a bold choice, but I can’t call you wrong. If you cook your own latkes, you have a secret ingredient you swear by, maybe caramelizing the onion before mixing it with the potato, or some elaborate potato-soaking process. You disregard others’ approval, either living life for yourself or actively trying to trigger them. Good.

Ketchup: This is what assimilation’s done to you?! Get help. Latkes are not hash browns. You’ve never made your own latkes, and you probably eat sufganiyot without filling.

BBQ Sauce: You’re definitely the Dad Friend of your friend group. You probably also do the Sufganiyah Challenge annually.

Chrein (Jewish horseradish-beet sauce): Topping latkes with chrein seems like it would be better than topping gefilte fish with it, but let’s not beat around the bush here; we know you eat gefilte fish. You probably also eat chopped liver. And cat food.

Vanilla Ice Cream: You pride yourself on being different. Quirky, one might say. It’s time to let go of the past, Vanilla. We get it, you were the weird kid on the playground and no one wanted to play with you and now you’re trying to reclaim your weirdness. Reassess, Vanilla. There are better (and less insane) ways to stand out.

Lox and Cream Cheese: Ok, grandpa, we get it. You’re very Ashkenazi, very New York, and very Old Jewish Man. It’s not Pesach, dude. You can just put that on a bagel.

Deli Meat: You’re just as Ashkenazi and as much of an old soul as Lox and Cream Cheese, but, like, quirkier. Not quirky in the try-hard, wannabe Vanilla Ice Cream way, though. You’re genuine as it comes, acting irrespective of others’ judgements.

Guac: You’re definitely a millennial, and painfully passionate about which Hogwarts house you’re in. (Hufflepuff, probably.) Get with the times. You do not need to put guac on everything… especially on a latke? Please stop. Enough.

Cheese: You’re hot. And probably lactose intolerant, so, um, maybe stop topping things with cheese.

All these factors considered, all the potential potato pancake toppings in mind, choosing a favorite should be a deeply personal decision. With that being said, though, I would argue that there’s only one correct latke topping:

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Kimchi latkes— exactly what they sound like. And they sound delicious.

I first got the idea years ago when I was living in Tel-Aviv. Word got around that a Korean restaurant had opened in town, albeit in some far-flung industrial area towards South Tel-Aviv.

One day while I happened to be in the area I went to check it out and ordered a scallion pancake as an appetizer. A lightbulb went off in my head: This is basically a latke! Why don’t I try and make these for Chanukah?

The problem was that in Tel-Aviv the Asian food stores (they do exist, particularly a notable on in the Shuk HaCarmel) didn’t carry kimchi so I attempted to make it myself. It sufficed in Israel because neither I nor my friends knew any better. Once I got back to New York and I was able to buy real kimchi, I got somewhat better at making latkes and a new Jewish tradition was born!

These amounts are an estimation, and I tend to make the recipe in an intuitive way. Trust your gut— it’s what’s about to receive the finished product here. If you insist on more exact proportions, Anh’s Food Blog has a similar, more scientific recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1lb of potatoes
• 2 eggs
• 2 tbsp. of flour
• Approximately 2 – 3 cups of (vegan!) Kimchi from an Asian food store
  NOTE: Kimchi often comes with shrimp paste in it. Look carefully at the ingredients to be sure it does NOT have this. One can find kimchi without shrimp paste but it will be harder to find and possibly more expensive.
• Oil for frying

Directions: 

• Boil the potatoes and mash them (or grate them, if you have the patience) as if one is making mashed potatoes. Take the skins off after the potato is cooked.
• Add the eggs, flour and kimchi. What you want is to put in enough kimchi that it tastes like a Korean pancake and not spicy fries or hash browns. That said, given the heavy potatoes plus the eggs and flour I’d put in more kimchi than less as long as the latkes aren’t too red or runny.
• Form the potato – kimchi mixture into patties as if making hamburgers – not too think but maybe not super thin – and fry. Or, you could bake them if you want to be extra healthy, but these are latkes, after all.
• Dip in soy sauce! Forget the sour cream or applesauce here; it completely changes the attitude.

I hope you find these as delicious as I do! Enjoy!

Malaika Martin is a New York area Real Estate consultant who likes to add her own twist to Jewish tradition.

Image by Craig Nagy via Flickr.

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