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Rikikur
Sherpa potato pancakes
रिकिकुर (rikikur): Sherpa grated-potato pancakes cooked on a hot stone, eaten with butter, cheese and chilli
Potatoes are the backbone of Sherpa cooking in Solukhumbu, and in the kitchens of Namche Bazaar, Khumjung and Phaplu, rikikur is the treat: raw potatoes grated on a flat stone, seasoned with salt and cooked as thick, crisp-edged pancakes on a hot griddle or a heated slab of slate by the fire. They arrive smeared with yak butter and served with a crumble of tangy cheese and a fiery chilli paste, and trekking lodges now offer them for breakfast with tea. The outside is crunchy and golden, the inside soft and slightly chewy. Traditional Himalayan cheeses, and many hard cheeses sold elsewhere, are made with animal rennet, so choose one labelled vegetarian. Mushy, grey pancakes are what you get if you skip squeezing out the potato liquid. Chef's tip: let the squeezed liquid settle for a few minutes, pour off the water and stir the white starch at the bottom back into the potato, which binds the pancakes without any flour.
- Total time
- 35 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ lb potatoesfloury (baking) type, peeled
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 small onion (optional)finely grated
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 ⅜ oz butter
- 2 ⅛ oz crumbly vegetarian cheese (or a tangy hard cheese, grated) (optional)
- 2 tbsp chilli achar or chilli paste (optional)
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Method
0/5 doneStep 1: Finely grate 1 ¾ lb potatoes into a bowl of cold water, then tip into a clean cloth and squeeze out as much liquid as possible into a bowl underneath.
5 minStep 2: Let the liquid stand for 3 minutes, pour off the water and stir the starch left at the bottom back into the potato with 1 tsp salt and 1 small onion.
3 minStep 3: Heat a heavy frying pan or griddle over a medium heat and add 1 tbsp of 1 tbsp vegetable oil.
3 minStep 4: Spread a quarter of the potato in the pan into a round about 1 cm thick, press flat and cook for 4–5 minutes until the underside is deep golden and crisp. Flip, add a little more 2 tbsp vegetable oil around the edge and cook another 4 minutes. Repeat with the rest.
18 minStep 5: Spread each hot pancake with 1 ⅜ oz butter and serve with 2 ⅛ oz crumbly vegetarian cheese (or a tangy hard cheese, grated) and 2 tbsp chilli achar or chilli paste.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 330 kcal
- Protein
- 8 g
- Carbs
- 42 g
- Fat
- 15 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does rikikur take?
- About 35 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 20 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of butter?
- The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).
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