Air Fryer Latkes

By
Leah Maroney
Leah Maroney
Leah Maroney
A recipe developer and food photographer, Leah Maroney is an ardent home cook and food blogger who has written over 300 recipes for The Spruce Eats.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 11/28/22
Tested by
Noah Velush-Rogers
Noah Velush-Rogers
Tested by Noah Velush-Rogers
Noah Velush-Rogers works on food prep for several area caterers. He has worked with a team of prep chefs for a private school group. He was an assistant cooking teacher for children and teen group cooking classes. Noah was hired as an intern and was then trained as a recipe tester for Fine Cooking Magazine. 
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
air-fryer-latkes-4775892-13

The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

Prep: 20 mins
Cook: 30 mins
Total: 50 mins
Servings: 4 servings
Yield: 12 latkes
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
286 Calories
13g Fat
36g Carbs
7g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 4
Amount per serving
Calories 286
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 13g 16%
Saturated Fat 2g 11%
Cholesterol 93mg 31%
Sodium 366mg 16%
Total Carbohydrate 36g 13%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Total Sugars 3g
Protein 7g
Vitamin C 13mg 66%
Calcium 42mg 3%
Iron 2mg 12%
Potassium 784mg 17%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)

No Hanukkah celebration is complete without crispy golden latkes, but frying up a big batch can be messy and very time consuming. Enter the air fryer, which gives you perfectly cooked potato pancakes with a lot less oil. Of course, there is some oil involved—as there should be for the tradition and flavor of this recipe—but it's significantly reduced. This means fewer calories and grams of fat so you can enjoy more latkes without the added guilt.

The latkes are prepared in the traditional way by grating the potatoes and onions, squeezing out the liquid, and preparing the binding ingredients. Then the cooking is simply done in the air fryer. The basket of the air fryer and the top of each latke is brushed with olive oil for flavor and extra crunch.

Serve these crispy latkes with sour cream and applesauce and a few chopped chives for a little color and zing. You can enjoy potato latkes year-round as a side for your favorite roast or as part of a vegetarian meal.

“If you’re really that averse to frying but still need the delicious crisp taste of a latke, then this will serve you well. I really enjoy something like smoked salmon on my latkes the most so if you’re feeling ritzy try it.” —Noah Velush-Rogers

Air Fryer Latkes/Tester Image
A Note From Our Recipe Tester

Ingredients

  • 2 medium or 3 small russet potatoes

  • 1 medium yellow onion, peeled and quartered

  • 2 large eggs

  • 2 tablespoons matzo meal, or plain breadcrumbs

  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt, more as needed

  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

  • Olive oil, as needed

  • Sour cream, for serving, optional

  • Applesauce, for serving, optional

  • Thinly sliced chives, for serving, optional

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Preheat the air fryer to 400 F.

    Ingredients for making air fryer latkes

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  2. Scrub the potatoes and grate them on the large holes of a box grater. You can also use the grating blade in your food processor.

    Grating potatoes using the large holes of a box grater

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  3. If you prefer, you can chop the shreds into smaller pieces. This will help make the latkes into more compact rounds.

    Chopping the potato shreds into smaller pieces
     The Spruce Eats / Leah Maroney

  4. Grate or chop the onion. Combine the potatoes and onion in a colander. Rinse the shredded mixture with cold water.

    Grated potato and onion in a colander

     the Spruce / Leah Maroney

  5. Place the mixture onto a few layers of cheesecloth and squeeze the liquid out over a medium bowl. Twist and squeeze as hard as you can until almost all of the liquid has been removed. Put the potato and onion shreds into a large separate bowl.

    Liquid squeezed from cheesecloth-encased potatoes and onion

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  6. Let the liquid settle. Pour off and discard most of the liquid, leaving behind the thick potato starch gathered at the bottom of the bowl.

    Thick potato starch in a bowl

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  7. Whisk together the eggs, matzo meal, salt, pepper, and reserved potato starch. 

    Whisking eggs, matzo meal, salt, pepper, and potato starch

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  8. Add the egg mixture to the potato and onion shreds. Mix together to combine. 

    Mixing egg mixture with potato and onion shreds

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  9. Generously grease the bottom of your air fryer with some of the olive oil. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 200 F. Set a cooling rack over a rimmed baking sheet.

    Dollop 1/4-cup portions of the latke mixture onto the greased air fryer basket. Make them as thick or as thin as you would like. Sprinkle them with more salt. Brush the top of each latke with more olive oil. 

    Air frying latkes

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  10. Cook in the air fryer for 8 minutes.

    Latkes browning in an air fryer

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  11. Flip and cook until golden brown and crisp, an additional 5 minutes.

    Cooking until both sides of latkes are golden brown and crisp

     The Spruce / Leah Maroney

  12. Transfer to the rack and keep warm in the oven while you make the remaining batches. Re-grease the air fryer with olive oil and cook in batches until all of the latke batter is cooked.

  13. Serve hot with applesauce, sour cream, and chopped chives, if desired, and enjoy.

Creative Latke Toppings

Although sour cream and applesauce are traditional toppings, these crispy potato pancakes are the ideal base for a wide range of ingredients.

  • Smoked salmon and crème fraîche
  • Guacamole
  • Pomegranate seeds and Greek yogurt
  • Caramelized onion and sour cream
  • Thinly sliced apple and honey
  • Poached egg