Loaded Potato Pancakes

Published: 11/27/2020 | Updated: 04/03/2024

Fried potato pancakes with a crispy fried outside and a cheesy potato filling. These loaded potato pancakes are a staple around here!

I wish computer had taste-o-vision so you could all take a bite of this goodness. These mashed potato pancakes are one of my family’s favorite side dish recipes.

We’ve been making them for years and no one ever seems to tire of them! They’re cheesy and gooey and so easy to customize with your favorite ingredients.

The base is mashed potatoes so any time I make mashed potatoes, I always make sure there are extra just so I can make these the next day. I mean, I ALWAYS make extra. Usually double. Because we just have to have potato pancakes.

Ingredients for Potato Pancakes

mashed potatoes
green onions
an egg
shredded cheddar cheese
bacon bits (I took the above picture before I remembered these, but you can see them below where it’s all mixed up)
garlic powder
chives
flour
vegetable oil
extra flour

Aside from the vegetable oil and the extra flour, mix all of your other ingredients together in a large mixing bowl.

In a large skillet, heat the vegetable oil over medium heat.

Put the extra flour in a small flat dish. You’re going to dip your potato pancakes in this so make sure it’s large enough to fit an entire pancakes.

I use about 1/4 cup for each pancake. This seems to give me a nice size pancake that crisps up the whole way around and cooks the whole way through. This also gives me about 12 pancakes total.

Take your 1/4 cup of pancake batter and flatten it into a disc using your palms. Place the pancake in the flour container and flip over so both sides are coated in flour.

Place in a heated pan with oil and fry on both sides until golden brown and crispy. This usually takes me about 3-4 minutes on each side.

Cook in medium-high heat and be sure you don’t turn your heat too high or they burn quickly.

You can add more oil to the pan as you add your second batch.

These are delicious served with sour cream!

A couple of other things to note:

You can really mix and match the ingredients. The mashed potatoes, egg, and flour should stay the same. You can switch the cheese out for another flavor of cheese. You can omit the green onions or replace them with chopped yellow onions. The garlic powder and chives are optional or replace them with other spices. The bacon bits are totally optional. Play around with these ingredients to make them exactly as you like!
You can freeze these after they’re cooked. Flash freeze on a parchment-lined sheet and once frozen, remove from cookie sheet and place in a freezer bag. When you’re ready to eat them, thaw in the fridge and then reheat in the toaster oven or oven.

This potato pancake recipe is a great way to use up leftover mashed potatoes. The pancakes are easy to make and taste great. They are perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Give awesome potato recipe a try today!

Looking for Quick and Easy Side Dish Recipes:

Check out these 6 delicious side dish recipes! They’re perfect for when you don’t have time to spend in the kitchen, but still want to enjoy a tasty meal. Some of these recipes are simple and can be made in just a few minutes, while others require a bit more time but are still easy to make. No matter what your cooking schedule is, you’re sure to find something on this list that will help you out.

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