Equipment
Ingredients
Potato Base
- 300 g russet potatoes, peeled and left whole
- 300 g mashed potatoes, cooked, cooled, and unseasoned
Batter and Seasoning
- 60 g all-purpose flour
- 60 ml buttermilk, room temperature
- 3 g baking powder
- 5 g fine sea salt
- 2 g black pepper, freshly ground
Frying
- 30 g unsalted butter
- 15 ml canola oil
Toppings
- 200 g smoked salmon, sliced
- 120 g sour cream
- 10 g chives, finely chopped
- 1 lemon, cut into wedges
Nutrition (per serving)
Method
Grate the raw russet potatoes using the coarse side of a box grater onto a clean kitchen towel.
Gather the corners of the kitchen towel and wring the grated potatoes over a sink or bowl to extract as much liquid as possible. The potato shreds should feel exceptionally dry. Let the extracted liquid sit for 5 minutes, then pour off the water, keeping the white potato starch at the bottom of the bowl.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the dry grated potatoes, mashed potatoes, reserved potato starch, flour, baking powder, salt, and black pepper. Mix thoroughly until evenly distributed.
Pour the buttermilk into the potato mixture and stir until a thick, cohesive batter forms. It should drop heavily from a spoon.
Heat a non-stick frying pan or cast iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of the butter and half of the canola oil, allowing it to melt and begin to sizzle slightly at roughly 180C (350F).
Drop heaping spoonfuls of the batter into the hot pan, leaving space between each. Flatten them slightly with the back of a spatula to a thickness of about 1 centimeter. Cook for 4 to 5 minutes until a deep golden brown crust forms.
Carefully flip the pancakes and cook for another 4 to 5 minutes on the second side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Repeat with remaining batter, adding the rest of the butter and oil as needed.
Transfer the warm boxty to serving plates. Drape a generous fold of smoked salmon over each pancake, dollop with sour cream, and scatter finely chopped chives on top. Serve immediately with lemon wedges on the side.
Chef's Notes
- Using a 50/50 blend of starchy raw potatoes and cooked mashed potatoes is the secret to authentic boxty texture.
- Do not discard the potato starch that settles at the bottom of the squeezed potato liquid; adding it back to the batter provides excellent natural binding power.
- Frying in a mix of butter and neutral oil prevents the milk solids in the butter from burning while still delivering a rich, buttery flavor to the crust.
- Leftover mashed potatoes from the night before are ideal for this recipe, as they are drier and hold their shape better than freshly mashed warm potatoes.
Storage
Refrigerator: 3 days — Store boxty and toppings separately. Keep cooked boxty in an airtight container.
Freezer: 1 month — Freeze cooked boxty pancakes separated by parchment paper. Do not freeze smoked salmon or sour cream.
Reheating: Reheat boxty in a lightly oiled skillet over medium heat for 3-4 minutes per side, or in a 200C oven for 8 minutes to retain crispness.
