Sourdough Mashed Potato Pancakes

25th March 2013

Sourdough Potato Pancakes

I thought I would contribute this small brunch dish to the ‘what shall I do with my old starter’ conversation.

Not everything in life needs a recipe and these are a prime example.

I had some old starter in the fridge from when I had been away and when I stirred it up it had a bit of life in it still. I dipped a finger in and had a taste, sour but not unacceptable.

It was so cold yesterday that I thought we had better have something warm for lunch.

So I dry fried a couple of slices of Lindsays of Cockermouth’s best dry cure middle cut bacon, no nasty white stuff coming out of this like the supermarket rubbish, and not very salty either, a little black pudding for Brian and a few tomatoes with a splash of balsamic vinegar to give them a bit more taste than they have at this time of year.

I then found a small bowl of mashed potatoes from last night’s supper in the fridge and thought oh why not…

So here is the method. Forgive the quantities.

In a large bowl

  • Pour in your old starter
  • Add a couple of large spoonfuls of cold mashed potato
  • A glass or two of milk (skimmed is fine)
  • A couple of spoonfuls of flour
  • Two large eggs
  • A pinch of salt
  1. Whisk it all up, but don’t worry too much about the little lumps of mashed potato.
  2. Heat a small pan on the hob.
  3. Put the oven on a keep warm setting and pop a plate in.
  4. Chase a fingernail’s worth of butter round the pan once it is hot.
  5. Tip little ladles of mixture into the pan and swirl them round.
  6. Cook on one side, till nice and golden brown,  flip and cook the other side.
  7. Stack on the warm plate in the oven.

Sourdough Mashed Potato Pancakes with Brown Sauce

Serve your sourdough mashed potato pancakes with optional brown sauce and toppings and a large mug of tea.

That’s it. No added sugar, no added fat. I can’t believe that this is particularly bad for you, but the food police might say it is. I don’t care.

Soft and fluffy and just the thing for a hungry gap.

30 thoughts on “Sourdough Mashed Potato Pancakes”

    1. Joanna Post author

      Yes, you should, but maybe wait till it gets a little warmer… Just made these again as realised there was yet more cold mash in the fridge, added some herbs. The sourdough just means they are marginally more digestible and adds a little tang to the whole thing.

    1. Joanna Post author

      The only constraint is the time, but I like making pancakes, never understand why the English only eat them once a year as a rule.

  3. heidiannie

    Looks very good ( except for the black pudding which I cannot like) I made my leftover potatoes into oven baked Duchess potatoes last night; I might post last nights meal – it was really good, as well.
    Tell me about brown sauce- is it more like a gravy or a barbecue sauce? Is it meat flavored or vegetable base? Or like a steak sauce? It looks like a ketchup sort of condiment- but I’m totally unfamiliar with it and thinking that it would fill that gap in my condiment range.
    I like the addition of sourdough with the potatoes- I wonder what sourdough latkes would taste like?
    I’m off to make some sourdough hot cross buns- I really like Celia’s sourdough- Thing Two- I can make so many more items because there is hardly any sour flavor.
    Keep warm- we just got 4 inches of snow with a promise of more on the way- but hopefully it will all melt by the end of the week.

    1. Joanna Post author

      HP brown sauce is made from tomatoes, vinegar, molasses, tamarind, spices and other stuff. It is sharp and strong and is the sauce of tradition for bacon sandwiches, though I suspect many younger people would use tomato k these days. It is poss to buy in the US and Canada but I think the formula is more fruity from what I can find out. I haven’t made any buns yet, I suppose I should get a move on. but I am quite sluggish with the cold, like an overdressed elderly reptile. We have no snow, just wind from Siberia. xx

  4. sallybr

    Genius! I love the way you improvise without fear… I am trying to be more adventurous and “dare” a little more in the kitchen.

    great use for old sourdough starter… Lovely meal!

    1. Joanna Post author

      As this costs pennies to make and it is only me and B eating them it is a fairly low risk thing to do. I offered them up with the comment, ‘it’s ok if you don’t like them.’ So as he did, everybody wins !

  6. carla tomasi

    ha.ha..Italian food police says: really lovely! Will make when Andrzej is back from Poland.XX

    1. Joanna Post author

      Thanks, would be good with some fine Polish sausage too! We had more today with grated cheese and Black Forest smoked ham :)

  8. Celia @ Fig Jam and Lime Cordial

    Love the sound of them, and the look of your delicious lunch! Over here we call your brown sauce “HP sauce”, and whilst I’ve never been a huge fan, I do have a bottle in the pantry. I am, however, a huge fan of black pud, and would happily eat yours and Heidi’s portions when we go out for lunch. :D xx

    1. Joanna Post author

      Thanks! It isn’t my favourite sauce either.. you are right, it is of course called HP sauce here too, it is just my eccentricity that I call ketchup red sauce and HP brown sauce… Brian now chips in that HP stands for Houses of Parliament…. welll… who knew? I do now. :) http://www.heinz.co.uk/Sauce-Partners/HP-Sauce/Story

      Edit : am just slinking back here because, ahem, oh this is embarassing, well if you turn the photo of the HP bottle upside down you will see a picture of the Houses Of P on the label. …and I have never noticed it… slinks off again…

    1. Joanna Post author

      Thanks Claire – I have taken to reading the travel supplements of the newspapers and weeping gently at pictures of golden sands and blue skies ;)

  10. Ann

    My father was a great fan of HP sauce and I remember being told about the Houses of Parliament when I was very small – not a great fan myself.
    I would not have thought of putting sourdough into pancakes, nor mashed potato. What a good idea and they do look delicious. I really don’t know why one doesn’t make them more often. I suppose it is like only eating mince pies at Christmas or hot cross buns on Good Friday.
    I can’t believe the weather you are having – global warming?? Actually we are having a little foretaste of winter here today – wet and windy, so I have chickened out of golf and Spot will have to wait for his walk.

    1. Joanna Post author

      I don’t know whether it is marketing or just that men seem to enjoy HP sauce more – it is too funny that there is a pic on the bottle itself and I just never noticed it. But then if you are not that keen on something maybe you don’t pay much attention to it. Putting the sourdough into the pancakes is really just a way of using it up. I also make those round puffy ball ones – the aebelskiver – with sourdough starter. And I have been known just to add it to a yeasted bread as well in small quantities. It just adds flavour when used like that. Yes, global warming – I think it is unusually cold, normally by now we have milder air streams. I was looking at the news last night and worrying about all the sheep being dug out of the snow drifts and people without heat, power and water for days on end. The average temperature for March has been just over 3 C. Love to you and Spot!

    1. Joanna Post author

      We made them again yesterday, I added some herbs and we had them with grated cheese – I think they could become a regular fixture :)

    1. Joanna Post author

      Oh ho! This will be something to look forward to. I can’t wait to see what you come up with on the baking front Barbs :)

  14. cityhippyfarmgirl

    I haven’t thought of HP sauce for a long time. My grandfather was a big fan, (along with something called Father’s Favourite) and anything that conjures up his memory always puts a smile on my face…thank you.

    These look delicious Joanna. The no recipe ones are the best kinds.

    1. Joanna Post author

      I love the idea of Father’s Favourite, it could stand on a buffet table with Gentleman’s Relish !
      Nostalgia condiments connecting us to our ancestors. Mine would be horseradish and beetroot relish I suspect…

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