Potato Hash

I wasn't a huge fan of hash browns for most of my life, but I eventually figured out why. If you prepare them in any sort of reasonable fat way, they consume an incredible amount of space. So most people (in restaurants, or in homes for a crowd) wind up with deep layers of potatoes and a lot of fat so they crisp up, or, for that matter, cook. Here are a couple of solutions that I like.

Grate:

1 Medium Yukon Gold Potato. You can use a lot of different kinds of potatoes. I like the flavor of these, and they have some good nutritional characteristics.

Dice:

1/2 Bell Pepper
2 Tbs Sweet Onion

Mix above ingredients with:

Worcestershire sauce
Habanero Ketchup, Sriracha, or other Hot Sauce
Fresh Ground Black Pepper
Salt (optional if you used the sauce or sauces above)

Heat a griddle or skillet. Brush with drippings, margarine or oil. If you make your bacon ahead, you can probably get enough drippings off a slice or two of bacon to cook these in, assuming your pan is already somewhat seasoned. Distribute the mixed ingredients in a thin, even layer with no holes. You want the starch from the potatoes, which is in the potato juice, to make everything stick together and flip nicely. If it doesn't, it'll taste fine, but look a little messier. Once you have the layer down, don't mess with it. Don't press on it. Don't move it around. If you have to, leave the kitchen for a few minutes. Make fresh coffee. Just don't fuck with it. No one ever mentions just how important that is to good hash browns.

You should be able to see when it's brown on one side. Flip it over. If it falls apart, make sure all the flips get turned over. At this point, you can break an egg over it and let that cook in. If so, when this side is done, and you like your eggs thoroughly cooked, you might flip it over one more time. Otherwise, you're done. Serve alone, with bacon, toast, pancakes, poached eggs, whatever. The amount above is for one person for breakfast or as a side.

Hash for Dinner

After I had been making the above for a while, I decided to start adding more vegetables.

Mix in a large bowl:

1 small potato, grated
1 egg
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1-2 slices leftover or deli meat, shredded or chopped, optional
1 Stalk celery, chopped
1 Carrot, grated or chopped
3-5 mushrooms, sliced or chopped
a few broccoli florets, chopped
the inner stalk of broccoli, chopped
snap peas in the pod, chopped
whatever else you can find in the vegetable drawer

Cooking directions as above, but unless you increase the eggs, it will probably fall apart in the pan. Which is okay. Serving directions same; generally I'm lazy and have it with ketchup mixed with sriracha. The potato shrank, because this is a large volume of food. Salt and pepper to taste.

Garlic Potatoes

Reconstituted egg whites mixed in are not bad. If you dice the potatoes, you'll want to add those first to the pan and cook on low for a while, until they start to soften, before adding the rest of the mix. Diced, mixed with 2 Cloves Diced Garlic per potato makes a tasty side dish at dinner.

Habanero Ketchup

Extracted with minor modifications from Tom Douglas' book. Get the cookbook. It's awesome.

Simmer in small sauce pan for several minutes:

1/2 C ketchup (Muir Glen)
1/3 C Orange Juice (Horizon Organic)
1-2 Tbs Molasses
1 Fresh Habanero, destemmed, deseeded (wash your hands!)
Splash Worcestershire Sauce

Decant into a jar after fishing out the habanero bits. If you want it hotter, dice the pepper and leave it in, but beware: if you eat it after the first day, it'll be hotter. Keep the jar in the fridge and use it in the next weekish. I usually make a double batch, because this disappears very rapidly. Spooned hot over the hash, it's unbelievable.

Created January 13, 2002
Updated November 20, 2004