Passages » Hash Browns

Hash Browns: Solved

Matt — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 02:19:03 +0000

After incorporating the “wash and drain” step into the hash brown preparation I think I can call this quest solved/over. For the past several weeks I’ve used different types of potatoes (Russets, Whites, Yukons, etc) and they’ve turned out perfect every time. The secret was washing that starch off after shredding – it was never about moisture.

So, here’s the final recipe for a single serving:

1 medium sized russet potato
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper

Peel and wash the potato. Using a box grater, shred the potato using the largest holes. After shredding, rinse the potato shreds in a strainer under cold running water for a minute or so, turning the shreds over each other under the water. Let drain and then arrage in a single layer on a tea/paper towel. Press to remove excess water.

Heat oil in a non-stick pan over medium heat until shimmering. Add potatoes and compress down with a spatula form a single mound about 1/4-1/2″ high. Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper on top of potato mound. Cook for 5 minutes without touching. Turn entire potato mass over and cook for another 5 minutes without touching. Serve.

They have a great, fluffy white texture on the inside without a hint of sliminess. The outside is golden brown and delicious. Served with scrambles eggs it makes a fantastic breakfast. It was worth all the trouble and experimentation.

Hash Browns: Ever Closer

Matt — Sun, 31 Jan 2010 15:21:25 +0000

I think I’ve solved my texture issue with hash browns. While watching an America’s Test Kitchen episode on mashed potatoes, the cooking technique called for rinsing the sliced potato pieces in water before boiling. Washing the slices removed the surface starch which would cause gumminess in the mashed potatoes. WHAM! Gumminess is exactly what I was trying to remove from the texture of my hash browns.

This weekend I decided to give it a try. I grated the potato on a box grater per normal, but before pressing the water out with a towel, I loaded the shredded potato pieces into a small strainer and rinsed them under cold water. After draining and pressing the excess water out using a towel, I ended up with the driest potato shreds I’ve ever had – amazing! Some oil, pepper and garlic salt coupled with 8-9 minures of heat and I had the texture I was after.

I had been working under the assumption that the gumminess was being caused by excess water instead of the surface starch. In hindsight I should have realized it was the starch since changing potatoes to Yukon’s and Red’s dropped the gumminess vs. russet. Russet’s have the least water while reds have the most and russets have the fluffy texture I was after - think french fries – and reds don’t.

Now that I have the texture I’m going to try to get more middle fluffiness. I’ve observed that the mound of shreds shrinks as cooking progresses. Some of that undoubtedly is the downward pressure, but I’m sure that the water loss from the cell destruction also contributes. I’ll try some higher mounds.

Hash Browns: Bacon Fat & Preheating

Matt — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:02:08 +0000

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.