Homemade Hashbrowns
Last week I got a couple dozen potatoes my from CSA. I love potatoes and farm fresh ones are absolutely the best. Since I had so many fresh potatoes lying around, I wanted to make some nice hashbrowns for breakfast. Hashbrowns are hard to make as fresh potatoes have so much starch in them that the potatoes seem to stick together. I always used to end up with a sticky mess of potatoes. However, I have figured out the secret and I have listed all of the steps below to make crispy and amazing hashbrowns.
Hashbrowns – (serves 4)
- 6-8 potatoes
- 3 tbs vegetable oil
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp freshly cracked pepper
The key to perfect hashbrowns is perfectly cut potatoes. I have found that using a food processor with the shredding attachment is the way to go. If you don’t have one, try a box grater. It is a bit of work, but the results are fantastic. Once you have the potatoes shredded, let them soak in a bowl of water for 20 minutes.
Make sure to change the water twice. Soaking the potatoes will help remove the excess starch from the potatoes. If you skip this step, the potatoes will stick together and create clumps.
Next drain the water and wring out the potatoes. To do this, I layer up a couple of paper towels and then use them to filter out the water. Squeeze hard to get all of the water out. The dryer you can get the potatoes the better. Dry potatoes make crispy hashbrowns.
I have found that cooking hashbrowns on an electric griddle or fry pan creates the best results. Set your pan to 350, and add the oil.  You can use a fry pan, but try to get the pan to a constant temperature around 350 degrees. I find that this is usually around medium/high on most stove tops.
Once the oil is hot, add the potatoes and then season with the salt, pepper and paprika. If you don’t have smoked paprika, regular can be substituted. Smoked paprika will give you a nice smokey flavor and just a tad bit of heat.
Stir the potatoes on the griddle and let the cook for 8-10 minutes or until the potatoes soften. Then arrange the potatoes into a single uniform layer. Cook for 3-5 minutes.
When golden brown, flip the potatoes and cook until the other side is golden brown. This will be another 3-5 minutes.
This method will give you the perfect hashbrowns. Crispy edges with a nice soft center.
