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Latkes Get a 2025 Makeover as Chefs and Home Cooks Push Hanukkah Staple in New Directions

New riffs multiply as cooks honor the oil-focused custom with creative flavors and techniques.

Overview

  • Fresh roundups published today spotlight wide-ranging latke experiments, from everything-bagel and ramen potato pancakes to caprese and dirty martini riffs.
  • Restaurants are elevating the classic with distinct profiles, including masala-spiced latkes with oyster mushrooms and caviar at FOLK and truffle-accented versions with lemon sour cream at City Roots Hospitality venues.
  • Savory spins include celery-root latkes engineered for a gratin-like center at Sungold and repurposed as an Eggs Benedict base at NoMad Diner, plus a latke–pastrami–egg–and–cheese bagel at a New Orleans shop.
  • Alternatives to potato are gaining traction, such as gluten-free chickpea latkes at Miriam, zucchini-and-potato cakes with labneh at Motek, and air-fried leek patties (keftes de prasa) finished with pomegranate–honey sauce.
  • Coverage reiterates that frying marks the Hanukkah oil miracle, notes that potato latkes rose to prominence in the 19th century after earlier cheese-based versions, and shows both traditional toppings and modern sauces in play.