Placki Ziemniaczane

Placki ziemniaczane are grated raw potato, onion, egg and a little flour, fried in fat until the edges are dark and crisp, and they are among the most common home dishes in Poland - the plain version is eaten with sour cream, or with sugar, which divides families. The variation worth seeking out is placki po zbojnicku, robbers' pancakes: the pancakes laid flat and covered with a thick pork or beef goulash, usually with paprika and sometimes mushrooms, so the potato soaks it up. It is associated with Lower Silesia and the mountain karczmas and it is a substantial plate. Milk bars, the subsidised canteens that survive from the communist period and still serve very cheap food in cities, are a good and unpretentious place to eat the plain version. The dish is closely related to the versions found across Central and Eastern Europe.

What you actually see

• Grated raw potato fried - crisp at the edges, with onion, egg and flour.
• Sour cream or sugar - the two standard plain accompaniments.
• Placki po zbojnicku - the pancakes buried under a thick goulash.
• Milk bars - the cheap canteens where the plain version is best value.

When to go

All year. An hour.

Honest expectations

They must be eaten straight from the pan - reheated pancakes are limp. The goulash version is very heavy. Milk bars have short hours, close early and often take cash only.

Nearby

Available everywhere; the Lower Silesian karczmas do the goulash version best.