Flavorful, loaded with plenty of garlic and marjoram, surprisingly easy. Talking about bramboráky, famous Czech potato pancakes! I don’t know a Czech who wouldn’t like them. And no one can eat just one! Find out why bramborak is one of the most popular Czech recipes around.
➜ What is Czech bramborak?
Bramborak is a Czech shredded potato pancake. It is made from raw shredded potatoes, with a lot of garlic and marjoram. An egg, flour, and hot milk ensure that the potato pancakes stick together when fried and have a nice texture.
Bramboraky pancakes are pan-fried in pork lard or vegetable oil.
MYT TIP: Want more typical Czech food? Try česnečka, a clear garlic soup oft used as hangover soup!
➜ Ingredients
To make Czech bramboráky pancakes, you will need:
- Potatoes; any all-purpose yellow potatoes like Yukon gold
- Milk; hot, for pouring over shredded potatoes to prevent them from browning
- All-purpose flour
- Egg
- Dried marjoram; a typical Czech herb!
- Garlic; fresh, peeled and pressed or mashed
- Salt
- Pork lard; or vegetable oil such as Canola or sunflower (avoid olive oil, which can affect the authentic taste)
✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.
Quick Instructions
- Peel raw potatoes and shred them.
- Strain the excess liquid.
- Pour the hot milk over potatoes.
- Add flour, egg, salt, pressed garlic and majroram. Stir well.
- Fry bramboraky in a pan to a perfect golden-brown.
➜ Detailed Instructions with Photos
STEP 1: Peel the raw potatoes and shred them finely with a box grater.
STEP 2: Transfer the grated potatoes to a colander and squeeze out the excess liquid they released.
STEP 3: Put the squeezed potatoes in a bowl, pour hot milk over them. Add an egg, flour, pressed garlic, dried marjoram, and salt. Stir. The potato batter should have a semi-fluid consistency.
STEP 4: Take a non-stick frying pan, put the lard or vegetable oil in it (1-2 Tablespoons pro pancake), and heat it up to medium heat. Always mix the potato batter evenly before frying, scoop one ladleful and carefully dump it into the middle of the preheated pan. Using a flat spoon, spread the dough into a ¼ inch (5-6 mm) thick pancake about 8 inches (20 cm) in diameter.
STEP 5: Fry each bramborak for about 2-3 minutes on both sides. Flip with a flat spatula once the edges start to turn golden.
STEP 6: Stack up the finished bramboraky on a plate. If you want to save calories and make the pancakes healthier, line them with paper towels to soak up excess fat.
➜ Serving
Serve the bramboraky pancakes immediately while still warm, when they are beautifully crispy around the edges. The colder the pancake, the chewier it will be.
Serve on its own as a snack or dinner.
TIP: Czechs sometimes fry potato pancakes as small patties about 3 (7-8 cm) inches in diameter. These are called "bramboráčky" and are oft served in Czech pubs as a side dish with meaty meals.
You can also find a dish called "cmunda". It is a well-known South Bohemian version of the classic bramborák, served folded with cabbage and smoked meat inside.
➜ What Should a Good Bramborak Look Like?
A typical Czech bramborak is about 6-8 inches wide (15-20 cm), with a fuzzy and crispy crust.
It smells distinctly of garlic and marjoram. A properly fried bramborak is golden in color, not too brown, except for the crispy edges.
➜ Pronunciation
I recorded a short audio clip on pronouncing the Czech word bramborák. The first word in the audio is "bramborák," the second is "bramboráky," which means plural (2 and more bramborák).
➜ Enhancement
Here I provide a basic traditional recipe for Czech bramboraky. Once you manage to make it, feel free to modify the potato batter to your liking.
Add smoked meat cut into cubes, mushrooms, or replace a part of the mixture with grated cabbage or zucchini.
➜ Useful Tips
- I highly recommend you fry one small test bramborak patty first, taste it, and if necessary, season the batter to your liking.
- The bramborak pancake should be about 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) in diameter. If you manage to make it bigger, the bramborak will be less easy to flip and the hot fat may splatter you.
More Czech recipes:
- Karbanátek – beef and pork ground meat patties
- Svíčková – iconic Czech cream sauce
- Beef Goulash – hovězí guláš
Authentic Czech Bramborák Recipe
Ingredients
- 6 potatoes medium, raw, yellow, e.g. Yukon gold
- ⅔ cup milk (160 ml) hot
- ½ cup all-purpose flour (65 g)
- 1 egg
- 5 cloves garlic fresh, pressed
- 1 Tablespoon marjoram dried
- 1 teaspoon salt
- pork lard for frying; or Canola/sunflower oil
Instructions
- Peel the raw potatoes and shred them finely with a box grater.
- Transfer the grated potatoes to a colander and squeeze out the excess water they have released.
- Put the squeezed potatoes in a bowl, pour hot milk over them. Add an egg, flour, pressed garlic, dried marjoram, and salt. Stir. The potato batter should have a semi-fluid consistency.
- Take a non-stick frying pan, put the lard or vegetable oil in it (1-2 Tablespoons pro pancake), and heat it up to medium heat. Always mix the potato batter evenly before frying, scoop one ladleful and carefully dump it into the middle of the preheated pan. Using a flat spoon, spread the dough into a ¼ inch (5-6 mm) thick pancake about 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) in diameter.
- Fry each potato pancake for about 2-3 minutes on both sides. Once the edges start to turn golden, flip the pancake with a flat spatula.
- Arrange the finished potato pancakes on a plate. If you want to save calories and make the potato pancakes healthier, line them with paper towels to soak up excess fat.
Notes
- SERVING: Serve the bramboraky pancakes immediately while still warm, when they are beautifully crispy around the edges. The colder the potato pancake, the chewier it will be. Serve on its own as a snack or dinner.
- Makes about 5 bramboraky pancakes in 8 inches size.
- I highly recommend you fry one small test bramborak patty first, taste it, and if necessary, season the batter to your liking.
DISCLAIMER: Because I come from Central Europe, my recipes are based on metric units such as grams or milliliters. Check out how I convert metric units to the U.S. system:
Conversion chart
Giulia
Hi Petra!
My boyfriend is Czech and I'm Italian, and before meeting him I knew nothing about Czech cuisine (and he knows all about the eating part, and nothing about the cooking part). Your website has been a godsend! The recipes are clear and easy to follow, the tips and tibdits are useful and interesting and the photography is lovely. These potato pancakes were excellent. Trying the Fruit Dumplings next.
Greetings from Italy 🙂
Petra | Cook Like Czechs
Ahoj Giulia,
thank you so much for you comment and compliments 🙂 Yep, Czech boys are usualy not very good at cooking, but they love to get served a good meal (and eat it in a company of their loved ones 😉
Enjoy the time together before Christmas!
Many greetings from the Czech Republic, Petra
pz
Very nice and garlicky!
Petra Kupská
Oh yes, potato pancake bramborák includes lots of garlic and dried marjoram! 🙂
carin cihlar
my Great Aunt used to make these i can not wait to have them again only thing better would be if i could have them with her. another keeper thank you again Dekuji
Gary Prebyl
Ahoj Petra, Thank you for the recipe.
am learning to cook for myself.
Pribyl family is from the Kralovice area.
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Gary, thank you for your kind comment, I hope you enjoy the bramboráky potato pancakes! Přibyl is a beautiful, typical Czech name. In the past, Czechs could call someone who had newly arrived or moved in by this name.
stania machacek
My Dad is from Prague. Born 1942. Bramborak was a weekend treat he would spend all.afternoon making with 3 pans on the stove. He never added milk or any liquid. Just eggs, onion, garlic, and marjoram. It was always a big deal cause he made them maybe once a month, if that. I watched him make them for almost 30 years and I still can't make them as good. We went to Prague in 1997 and my Bubichka made them...OMG. To die for.
Must have with sour cream. Some people like apple sauce, but to me, that's just weird.
Petra Kupská
Ahoj Stania, thank you for your comment. I think the recipe for Czech bramboráky potato pancakes has many variations, but the base is a lot of garlic and marjoram. The classic recipe for potato pancakes does indeed contain milk. Potato pancakes without liquid are very common in our neighbors in Germany, where they call them Kartoffelpuffer - they are crispier than Czech ones, less soft. In Germany, their potato pancakes are also typically served with Apfelmuss (apple sauce). Either way, bramboráky are usually associated with memories of our loved ones who fondly prepared them for us. P. S. My dad was also born in 1942, in Jilemnice, a small town below the Krkonoše Mountains (the largest Czech mountains). With friendly greetings, Petra
Milena Bartik
Jak prochazim tvoje recepty, tak vylozene kulim oci, jeste nikdy jsem nedala mliko do bramboraku, ale to zkusim, vypadaji moc chutne. Dekuj...
Petra Kupská
Myslím, že recept na bramboráky se region od regionu trochu liší. U nás doma přeléváme nastrouhané brambory mlékem, aby "nezmodraly". Někdo zde psal, že také bramboráky ničím nezalévají. Takhle nasucho je dělají třeba vedle u sousedů v Německu - bramboráky jsou pak spíše křupavé a méně vláčné. Asi záleží na chuti, schválně vyzkoušej s tím mlékem a dej pak vědět, jak to dopadlo! Posílám pozdrav ze severu Čech, Petra
Rose
My mom, who escaped from Czechoslovakia in 1968 always used to make these paired with cottage cheese! This recipe brought me back to the good old days when we had the bramboráky for dinner!
Petra Kupská
We also spread bramboráky potato pancakes with fresh cheese! Most often it is Czech cheese Lučina 🙂
Kevin
Absolutely fabulous. We made these with some good sausage and salad and they were excellent. Held their shape extremely well and came out perfectly crispy on the outside and soft in the middle. My kids were visiting and loved them too. Thank you again for another delicious recipe!
Kevin
I forgot to add stars on my previous review so adding here 🙂
Petra Kupská
Thank you very much, Kevin!
Petra N
Totally agree with all the comments above saying how wonderfully tasty these are! Have been looking for a recipe for a long time and this one was perfect - thanks to this website, my children are slowly being introduced to the foods my mum (who was Czech) used to cook for me when I was little, and they loved these - thank you Petra!!!!
Anashta Celovich
This is going to sound ridiculous, but I am allergic to gluten, eggs and milk.
Would I be able to sub gluten-free flour, flax eggs and almond milk? Or would that be a terrible disaster? I am a very unfortunate Czech. LOL
Petra Kupská
Hi Anashta, thank you for your comment! Hmm, since I myself don't have an allergy to the foods you mentioned, I don't dare to guess how these potato pancakes with substitutes would taste. On the other hand: the Czech potato pancake is characterized by the addition of large amounts of garlic and marjoram, so much of the identical flavor could be retained. Eggs serve as a binder when frying; if you replace it with flax eggs, be sure to pan-fry smaller potato pancakes than the recipe recommends.