Griddle/Pan Fried: Wanted recipe for hash browns
Subject: Wanted recipe for hash browns
Newsgroup: rec.food.cooking
From: Siddharth Shankar (shankar at sal-sun85.usc.edu)
Date: 1 Nov 1996 02:01:19 -0800
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Could someone give me the best recipe for making hash browns.
sid
shankar at kaus.usc.edu
From: lsscdjj at lux.latrobe.edu.au (Douglas Jackson)
Date: 2 Nov 1996 08:44:08 GMT
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I don't know if this is what you had in mind, but my dad makes this for brekkie almost ever Sunday (or did before he had his stroke and started eating smart) He would take the left over boiled potatoes from the night before, and cut em up in odd shapes, never cubed them properly, just kind of ran a knife through them over and over till he got little chunks. Then he would chopsome oninos and a bit of celery when he was in the mood, and saute them lightly in bacon drippings or in a little oil. Add the potatoes, scrape witha spatula every once in awhile and server with runny eggs over top of them, bacon on the side. YUMMY...how I miss home. Oh yeah he ALWAYS uses his cast iron fry pans for this meal.
Jenn
From: Lyndon Watson (L.Watson at csc.canterbury.ac.nz) (Lyndon Watson)
Date: 6 Nov 96 17:08:14 +1200
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Jenn writes:
> He would take the left over boiled potatoes from the night
> before, and cut em up in odd shapes, never cubed them properly, just kind
> of ran a knife through them over and over till he got little chunks.
Yes, not exactly hash browns, but so much better, I think.
That was my mother's way of disposing of leftover boiled potatoes, too. Other leftover vegetables were thrown out for the poultry to turn into eggs for us, so I've never yet tasted bubble and squeak, but those fried potatoes were something else. Perfect with eggs, as Jenn says. Also good for tea (our lightish evening meal after dinner at midday) with, say, quartered tomatoes and cold cuts from the leftover weekend roast.
From: suehutt at erols.com (Sue Hutt)
Date: Fri, 08 Nov 1996 00:04:07 GMT
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Lyndon Watson wrote:
>That was my mother's way of disposing of leftover boiled potatoes, too.
What ever you do, don't make them with purple potatoes and Yukon gold. I had both left over and that was the ugliest dish I ever saw!
Tasted great though!
From: pilar (pilar at unm.edu)
Date: Sat, 02 Nov 1996 13:38:41 -0700
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Grate a good ripe russet potato. With or without peel, up to you. Soak the grated potato in cold water to cover with some Fruit Fresh or another commercial preservative for about 20 minutes. Rinse and cook in a large pot of water for about 20 minutes after the water boils. Rinse them twice in warm water and let them drain well in a colander. At this point you can freeze them in ziploc bags for later. To cook, thaw if frozen, and cook in a med-hot skillet with half butter and half margarine. Let them brown on one side and turn the whole batch over. Don't stir them up and mess around with them or they'll be greasy and not crisp.
From: aol594 at merle.acns.nwu.edu (Arsenio Oloroso)
Date: 3 Nov 1996 19:53:10 GMT
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Here's the recipe I use. I start with a couple (or more) potatoes that I zap in the microwave, peel and cool for about half hour. This saves the time of baking potatoes the night before.
Hash Browns
Wash 2-3 Idaho potatoes and pierce each deeply with a fork.
This is necessary to vent steam from the potatoes and to prevent them from exploding in your microwave oven.
Place the potatoes in a microwave oven a cook on high for six minutes or a little more. Take the potatoes out when cooked and peel them. Set aside for about a half hour until cool. (In the winter I put them outside until they stop steaming.)
Take the cooled potatoes and chop them into small (1/4") cubes or chunks. Salt and pepper the potatoes to taste. Heat 4-5 tablespoons of oil (Canola is best for you.) in a frying pan over a medium flame until it begins to smoke just a little.
Place the chopped potatoes into the hot oil carefully and form into a cake. Press down on the potatoes with a spatula. Let the potatoes fry for about 5 minutes or so until a crust forms on the bottom of the potatoes.
Put a plate over the potatoes and invert the pan carefully. Add more oil to the pan, if needed. Then slide the unbrowned side of the potatoes back into the frying pan. Brown until a crust forms on that side.
Serve 'em up!
From: Michael W. Adams (khesan at warwick.net)
Date: Mon, 04 Nov 1996 19:52:32 -0500
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Diced or cubed potatoes are not hash browns. This is what you do to make real hash browns:
1. Peel your raw potatoes
2. Using a box grater or a food processor with a shredder plate, shred your potatoes. You may add shredded american cheese for cheese hash browns like they make at Cracker Barrel.
3. Place potatoes into an appropriate sized bowl and add any/all of the following: salt, pepper, finely chopped bell peppers, chopped onions and some cheese. You can also add mushrooms, chili peppers, bacon or anything else you like.
4. On a hot griddle, place a small amount of butter(1/2 tsp.).
5. When butter melts and begins to spread out, place a scoop full of shredded potato mix on top of the butter. Continue for as many piles as you have room.
6. Fry until potatoes are golden brown and rather crispy. Turn over and repeat frying. If you have a meat weight, place on top to thin the pile. Very thin means real crispy!
For those who have no desire to experiment, plain potatoes with a little salt will do just fine.
Note: Whipped eggs and onions added to the raw potatoes makes german potato pancakes!
Yummmmmmmm!
Subject: Correct Hash Browns Correction
From: hartmans at ix.netcom.com (Kay Hartman)
Date: 7 Nov 1996 15:57:06 GMT
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I guess my post wasn't so correct. I left out an important step.
The definitive way to make hash brown potatoes is as follows.
1. Peel and grate *raw* potatoes.
2. Heat vegetable oil on a high flame in a frying pan to *very* hot. The oil should fill the pan to a depth of approximately 1/4 inch. Too little oil is very bad. The size of the pan should be such that the entire pan is covered with potatoes and the potatoes fill the pan to a thickness of approximately 1 inch. (Jack and I are debating this. I think it's more like 3/4 inch and my hash browns are better than his.)
2a. Squeeze the water out of the potatoes. I always squeeze real hard with my hands. However much comes out it correct.
3. Add half of the potatoes to the frying pan. If you are going to add whole flavoring agents (such as basil leave, onions, or garlic cloves), place them on top of the potatoes. Cover the flavoring agents (if any) with the other half of the potatoes. Keep the flame high while cooking.
4. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic (not garlic salt). If you are cooking these potatoes at Ron Sullivan's house, do not spill half the bottle of granulated garlic onto her floor on the side of the stove where it is impossible to clean.
5. When the potatoes are golden brown on the bottom, turn them over.
6. Sprinkle the potatoes with salt, pepper, and granulated garlic, keeping in mind the admonition in step 4.
7. When the potatoes are golden brown on the bottom, remove them from the pan and drain them on a paper towel.