My current culinary quest is hash browns. I’ve tried several recipes and none seem to capture the texture I’m looking for: Crisp on the outside, light and fluffy on the inside. Eventually I’d like to be able to incorporate some onions and seasoning into the equation, but for now I’m working on texture.
Most recipes call for shredding peeled potatoes on a box grater, wringing the water out and then pan frying. For what it’s worth, I’m not enthused about using a ricer to get the water out. If I can’t sop it up with a paper towel I’m not interested in trying. That’s pushed me in the direction of using Red potatos which seem to have less water in them than the Russet variety. I’ll circle back around to Russets once I’m successful with Reds.
At any rate, I’ve been trying a variety of techniques including using different frying mediums. I tried butter, but that didn’t seem to give me the browning layer I wanted. This morning after frying some bacon, I decided to try cooking the potato mass in the remaining bacon fat which was about 1-2 tbsp. I also precooked the potatoes in the microwave after I shredded them for about 45 seconds.
Into the hot pan, mashed down and then 5-6 minutes/side until golden brown. They were good but still a little slimy in the middle. Perhaps I’ll try for 55 secs to 1 min precooking next time.
