In this recipe, I am happy to feature a local dish from South Bohemia called "Cmunda po Kaplicku". The dish consists of a folded, garlic-scented potato pancake with smoked meat and sauerkraut nestled inside.
We Czechs love fried potato pancakes (bramboraky) with the rich taste of garlic and dried marjoram. In the second half of the 20th century, a wise cook invented a dish that combines potato pancakes with other typical Czech delicacies: smoked meat and sauerkraut.
It happened in the town of Kaplice in southern Bohemia, where the dish got its name: Cmunda po Kaplicku. So that you know, cmunda is one of the many beautiful Czech words used for potato pancakes!
The dish is served as satisfying comfort food and is best accompanied by a chilled Pilsner-style beer.
MY TIP: Try out this chicken stuffed potato pancake, a Czech dish called "Rizek Ondras"!
➜ Ingredients
To make Cmunda po Kaplicku, you will need the following:
- Smoked pork; fully cooked, such as ham or pork chops. Ideally boneless, one slice pro pancake
- Sauerkraut; if you don't have access to Czech sauerkraut, I recommend buying German or Polish sauerkraut in a European deli. These are the most similar in taste to Czech fermented cabbage.
For potato pancakes:
- Raw potatoes; Yukon gold or Russets if you are based in the US. Any potatoes with a medium to high starch content are fine. Waxy potatoes are not very good for making Czech potato pancakes.
- Whole milk; hot
- Eggs
- All-purpose flour; or plain flour if you are in the UK
- Fresh garlic; peeled and crushed or pressed cloves
- Dried marjoram; a typical Czech herb!
- Salt and black pepper; to taste
- Lard (Sadlo); or sunflower/rapeseed oil, to fry pancakes
✅ You’ll find the exact amount of ingredients below in the recipe card, which you can also print out.
➜ Instructions with photos
STEP 1: First, make a batter for potato pancakes.
Peel the potatoes and shred them finely. Squeeze out excess water.
TIP: Learn how to shred potatoes in my detailed article!
Put the potato shreds in a large bowl and pour the hot milk over them. Add peeled and pressed garlic, eggs, salt, dried marjoram, ground pepper, and flour. Stir until combined and a semi-fluid batter forms.
STEP 2: In a non-stick frying pan about 10 inches (25 cm) in diameter, heat a tablespoon of lard or fat over medium-high heat. Scoop the potato dough with a ladle, pour it into the pan, and spread it in a thin layer.
Fry each side until golden brown; it takes about two minutes to fry each side of the pancake.
Transfer the fried potato pancakes to a plate lined with paper towels to drain the excess fat. Keep the pancakes warm.
STEP 3: Heat the slices of smoked meat. Heat half a tablespoon of lard or fat in a frying pan over medium-high heat, and fry the meat briefly on both sides. Reduce the heat to one-third, add four tablespoons of water, and let the meat heat through for another five minutes. Halfway through, flip the meat.
Put the meat aside and keep it warm, like potato pancakes.
Do not pour off any liquid left in the pan after heating the meat!
STEP 4: Drain the sauerkraut and, if necessary, cut it into shorter strips. Put it in the same pan in which you previously heated the meat.
Heat the sauerkraut over medium-high heat for three to five minutes. Stir occasionally. Season sauerkraut to taste. If it is too sour, add a teaspoon of sugar.
STEP 5: Time to put together the final dish!
Place a potato pancake on the plate. Put the warmed, smoked meat on the right half and top with sauerkraut. Finally, fold the potato pancake, so the meat and sauerkraut peek out a little.
➜ Serving
Serve Kaplice cmunda warm as a hearty lunch or dinner. To lighten up the meal, put fresh veggies or a homemade vegetable salad alongside the stuffed potato pancake.
For a nicer display, sprinkle the potato pancake with chopped green herbs, such as parsley.
➜ Useful tips
- A single-serving potato pancake should be about 10 inches (25 centimeters) in diameter. Don't make it too thick so it folds well.
- The warm potato pancake has crispy edges. Once it cools, the pancake softens, but it's still good if you eat it just like that on its own.
- A potato pancake stuffed with smoked meat and sauerkraut is a filling and nutritionally rich meal. For better digestion, Czechs always drink lager or a cold Pilsner with fried dishes.
More potato recipes:
- Bramborove placky (Czech potato flatbread)
- Lokse (Slovak potato flatbread)
- Czech potato salad (bramborovy salat)
- Meat stuffed potato dumplings (with creamy sauerkraut)
- Potato dumplings and sauerkraut (Czech strapacky recipe)
Tried this recipe?
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Potato Pancake Filled with Smoked Meat and Sauerkraut
Ingredients
- 3 slices fully cooked smoked meat each about 5 ounces/140 g - e.g., smoked ham or pork chops
- 7 ounces sauerkraut (200 g) Czech, German or Polish style
Potato pancakes:
- 1 ½ pounds raw potatoes (680 g) Yukon gold or Russets
- ⅓ cup whole milk (80 ml) hot
- 2 eggs
- 5 cloves garlic
- ½ Tablespoon dried marjoram
- 6 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper ground
- 3 Teaspoons lard or sunflower/rapeseed oil, to fry pancakes
Instructions
- First, make a batter for potato pancakes. Peel the potatoes and shred them finely. Squeeze out excess water. Put the potato shreds in a large bowl and pour the hot milk over them. Add peeled and pressed garlic, eggs, salt, dried marjoram, ground pepper, and flour. Stir until combined and a semi-fluid batter forms.
- In a non-stick frying pan about 10 inches (25 cm) in diameter, heat a tablespoon of lard or fat over medium-high heat. Scoop the potato dough with a ladle, pour it into the pan, and spread it in a thin layer. Fry each side until golden brown; it takes about two minutes to fry each side of the pancake. Transfer the fried potato pancakes to a plate lined with paper towels to drain the excess fat. Keep the pancakes warm.
- Heat the slices of smoked meat. Heat half a tablespoon of lard or fat in a frying pan over medium-high heat, and fry the meat briefly on both sides. Reduce the heat to one-third, add four tablespoons of water, and let the meat heat through for another five minutes. Halfway through, flip the meat. Put the meat aside and keep it warm, like potato pancakes. Do not pour off any liquid left in the pan after heating the meat!
- Drain the sauerkraut and, if necessary, cut it into shorter strips. Put it in the same pan in which you previously heated the meat. Heat the sauerkraut over medium-high heat for three to five minutes. Stir occasionally. Season sauerkraut to taste. If it is too sour, add a teaspoon of sugar.
- Time to put together the final dish! Place a potato pancake on the plate. Put the warmed, smoked meat on the right half and top with sauerkraut. Finally, fold the potato pancake, so the meat and sauerkraut peek out a little.
Notes
- Makes 3 filled potato pancakes.
- SERVING: Serve Kaplice cmunda warm as a hearty lunch or dinner. To lighten up the meal, put fresh veggies or a homemade vegetable salad alongside the stuffed potato pancake.
- A single-serving potato pancake should be about 10 inches (25 centimeters) in diameter. Don't make it too thick, so it folds well.
- The warm potato pancake has crispy edges. Once it cools, the pancake softens, but it's still good if you eat it just like that on its own.
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
Per Holm
Bramborák, sauerkraut, smoked meat -- what's not to like? I have eaten cmunda several times in Czech lunch restaurants, but today I made it myself for the first time. Easy-to-follow recipe, and the result was excellent! One question: why does the milk need to be hot?
Petra Kupská
Thank you, Per, for your nice comment! 🙂 Happy to hear you liked the recipe. I love cmunda as well! The milk is used hot to keep the grated potatoes from browning (oxidizing). At least that's how I read it in the old cookbooks.