Perfect Hash Browns

The classic American breakfast, eaten millions of times every morning in cafes and restaurants across the U.S., most often includes eggs, hash browns, and toast. The hash browns are the iffiest part of the meal. Just about any breakfast joint can turn out a decent version of eggs-over-easy, but good hash browns are another story.  Still, they are always worth ordering, because when hash browns are done right, they are fantastic: crispy brown on the outside, and soft and yielding on the inside – without being gooey.  The shreds of potato should retain their shape without being completely separate from each other – that is, you do not want a homogenous mass of smooshed potato, and you do not want matchstick potatoes – or worse yet, something that looks like a forkful of pale worms.  When you find a café that makes proper hash browns, all is right with the world.

My early attempts to make hash browns at home were disasters.  After dozens of unsuccessful efforts, I came to the conclusion that restaurants used Secret Ingredients or Special Equipment or Advanced Techniques or Black Magic to achieve that crispy-creamy hash brown magic.  So I did what most sane people do when confronted with the unattainable.  I gave up.  I turned to grits, to oatmeal, to pancakes, to scrapple…

But what I really wanted with my eggs was some fantastic hash browns.  Sigh.

A couple of years ago I bought a cheap Japanese slicer and went crazy for a while slicing everything edible.  Also, my fingers.  I decided to take another run at the Holy Grail that is Perfect Hash Browns.

I am pleased to report that I have had some success.

Perfect Hash Browns (for one*)

What you need:

• A medium-size potato**

• A nonstick skillet (any size) with a cover

• 1 tablespoon butter

• Salt (to taste)

Excellent hash browns can be made from any potato variety, but for perfect hash browns, I recommend a mature russet.  In other words, a “baking" potato. 

Step One: Peel and shred the potato.  I use a Benriner slicer, but you could use a cheese grater, the shredding disk on a food processor, or a knife (tedious).  How fine or coarse the shred is up to you - there are many versions of "perfect." 

Whatever tool you choose (Secret Technique coming), shred the potato into a big bowl of water.  Stir it around a bit.  See how milky the water becomes?  That starchy stuff coming off the potato is (ahem) potato starch, and will turn your hash browns into a gluey mess if you let it. You can leave the potatoes in the water for a few seconds, or for hours. 

11111Pour the shredded, soaked potatoes into a strainer.  Rinse them under running water to get rid of most of the starch. Now (here comes the Black Magic) dump the wet shredded potatoes onto a clean dish towel, gather the corners of the towel together, and twist the towel to wring the water from the potatoes. Give it a good twist. Lots of water will come out.

Put a tablespoon or so of butter in your a nonstick skillet. (You could use a combination of butter and oil, but do not eliminate all the butter – that’s what gets you that nice hash brown color.)  Heat skillet.  When the butter has melted but is not yet brown, sprinkle the shredded, semi-dry potatoes into the pan. Spread them evenly. Neaten up the edges if you wish, but DO NOT press the potatoes down with the spatula – you want hash browns, not a potato hockey puck. Loose is good. Those air spaces allow the heat and steam from the pan to wend its way up through the shredded potato. Add salt. Sometimes I throw in a pinch of white pepper, but that’s just me.

Turn the heat down to medium-low and cover pan.  Let it cook for about eight minutes, then take a look.  If the potatoes are brown around the edges, they are ready to turn.  If they aren’t getting brown, turn up the heat a bit and give it a couple more minutes.  If the edges are black, you had the heat too high.  Start over.

Shake the pan to make sure the potatoes aren’t sticking, then flip.  You won’t need a spatula. Or maybe you will.

Cook for another five to ten minutes. Leave the skillet uncovered for this stage – you want the top of the hash browns to stay nice and crispy.

Slide onto a plate. Perfect!

Even better!

*To make hash browns for several people, use a bigger pan, but keep the depth of the potato layer about the same. Flipping can be tricky. Good luck.

**This basic technique also works with other vegetables: zucchini, sweet potato, winter squash, beets, parsnip, etc.