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Potato Pancakes Like You’ve Never Seen Before: Irish Boxty Recipe

Posted March 9, 2019 by Stephanie

I am a potato lover. I love them in all forms and formats: french fried, mashed, boiled, baked, roasted, pureed, pan-fried, pancaked, really, I could go on and on. Potatoes really are the perfect food. So imagine my excitement when I learned of a new potato dish – one that I never heard of or tried before! Maybe you’ve heard of it? Irish boxty!

I have never been to Ireland but I really, REALLY want to go. I have dreams of lush green moors, rainbows, fog rolling in, and bright sunny blue skies. I think I’d really like Ireland. Especially because they have so many potato dishes – potato dishes like boxty. I don’t know how I’ve never heard of it before, but just the other day, Mike said to me: hey, potato boxty sounds right up your alley. He knows me so well because, um yes please a potato pancake that’s made of mashed and grated potatoes and fried until crisp in butter.

According the the internet, Irish boxty are a traditional Irish potato pancake and they’re also known as Irish potato cakes. Call them whatever you will, they’re essentially a soft on the inside, crisp on the outside potato pancake. They’re nothing like latkes or any other potato pancakes you’ve had before because the potatoes are prepared in two different ways to give you a bit of textural interest.

I loved how soft, yet crispy these guys were. They are perfect with a dollop of sour cream and I served them up with some sausage and fried eggs. It was the most potato-y breakfast ever. Well, I mean, I actually contemplated a side of breakfast potatoes too but maybe that would have been too much of a good thing?

Irish Boxty Recipe | www.iamafoodblog.com

Irish Boxty Recipe | www.iamafoodblog.com

Irish Boxty Recipe | www.iamafoodblog.com

Irish Boxty Recipe | www.iamafoodblog.com

Irish Boxty Recipe
makes 6 pancakes


  • 2 Yukon gold potatoes
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 large egg
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • butter, to fry

Peel and cube one of the potatoes. Place the cubed potatoes in a pot and cover with water. Salt, then bring to a boil. Simmer until very soft, then drain well and mash. Let cool slightly.

Peel the remaining potato and use a box grater to shred. Squeeze out any excess water and toss the potato shreds in with the mashed potato. Mix well and stir in the flour, then the egg. Add just enough milk for everything to come together into a thick batter. Season with salt and pepper.

Melt a pat of butter in a non-stick pan over medium heat. Scoop up about a 1/4 cup of batter into the pan. Fry, on medium, until golden brown, crispy, and cooked through. Patience is key. Flip and fry until crisp on the other side. Repeat until all of the batter is used. Enjoy with sour cream!

4 Comments

  1. Nienke says:

    This recept is awesome! I’m also a huge potato lover. The two different textures taste perfect together! It’s great, that you need a couple of ingrediënts to make it. Just like you, I also ate it for breakfast. My day couldn’t have started better! Tomorrow I will prepare it for my best friend. I’m curious what she will think of it. It’s great to discover the differents ways of dressing, your ideas are amazing!

  2. Mikehenery says:

    5 stars
    Thank you for the amazing recipe for pancakes. I find from your blog that what I want to keep sharing with us in the future.

  3. Mary Tucker says:

    My remembrance of boxty is served with applesauce -not sour cream. It was delicious.

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