Potato latkes

Peel the potatoes and onion, then grate coarsely. Wrap in cheesecloth and squeeze out the excess moisture over a bowl; the drier the mixture, the better.

Keep the liquid in the bowl, allowing a few minutes for the starch to settle to the bottom. Carefully pour the liquid away but keep the potato starch.

Mix the well-dried potatoes and onion with the egg and potato starch and some seasoning. Drop spoonfuls - 2 tbsp for each latke - into hot oil, spreading and flattening with a fork. Shallow-fry over a medium heat until crisp and golden brown - about 3 minutes a side. Drain on kitchen paper. Serve immediately.

Cook's note: Crisp and hot out of the pan, latkes are addictive and perfect as is but are often served with apple sauce and sour cream. Sometimes they're sprinkled with cinnamon sugar. But for a real treat, serve them with ribbons of smoked salmon and sour cream.