The best hash browns have the perfect combination of crispy and tender shreds. It’s one of those things that seems easy but proves elusive.
Just shred the potato and fry it up in a pan, right? But hash browns at home can be less than ideal. The usual flaw is a weird gummy texture. At least, that tends to be my problem.
For a while, I relied on frozen hash browns. They’re good and convenient. But the bag gets half used, then languishes among freezer detritus. All while there are actual potatoes in my pantry.
Downsizing Hash Browns
Part of my problem when home cooking hash browns is scale. It could be I ignore that part of the package instructions that calls for a “single layer” in the pan. Or I invite chaos trying to flip a big pan full to the brim. Even from scratch, I tend to go too big… I’m making the effort so why not throw in another potato?
So, in keeping with my empty nest status in life, I’ve downsized my hash browns. No giant bag of frozen hash browns in the freezer, no pan packed to bursting. Just a few small potatoes, small patties, cooked in one batch.
Keeping the hash brown patties small means they’re easy to flip. There’s no struggle between a standard sized spatula and single large mass of hash brown.
Even on a small scale, the method matters. Rinse the potatoes to remove starch. Squeeze to remove excess liquid. Loosely form the patties so they’re tender. Use a generous amount of salt for flavor. Cook patiently about 3 minutes per side in a good amount of oil for a golden crisp.
Liquid Management
I’ve opted for rinsing the potato shreds, based on my perception that removing some of the starch yields a better texture. You’re in good company should you decide to skip the rinse, as there are cooks who maintain the starch contributes to cohesion.
Regardless, removing excess liquid before cooking is an important step. I used to approach it as an exercise in grip strength, piling the shreds in a clean dish towel, then wringing out as much liquid as I could. Because that can lead to stubborn gray stains on the dish towel, I’ve switched to pressing the shreds between paper towels.
It hasn’t escaped my notice that I add water with a rinse, then try to squeeze out water. My reason? I think squeezing out the water promotes the texture combination of crispy and tender that I’m aiming for.
Small Batch Hash Browns
Hash Brown recipes vary widely in yield. You’ll find recipes calling for one pound of potatoes suggesting 2 to 4 servings. Other recipes call for a quantity (or number) of potatoes which complicates matters given the variability in size of potatoes.
Certainly, serving size is subjective. For me, I’ve found that 1/4 pound of potato makes a generous single serving of hash browns as served alongside an egg. So for two servings, I start with 1/2 pound of potato.
Stating the obvious, it doesn’t matter whether the starting weight is comprised of multiple small potatoes, a single medium potato, or a portion cut from a large potato. My guideline is 1/2 pound for two servings or 1/4 pound for one serving. Smaller potatoes make this easier to manage.
To avoid mission creep, I actually use a kitchen scale to weigh the potatoes. Yes, this is persnickety. But I’ve found that discipline is a key ingredient to success with home style hash browns. Plus, weighing even once helps optimize the eyeball method for the future.
Clearly these are not party potatoes for a crowd. But as long as I’m cooking for one or two, then crispy hash browns are in my repertoire.
More Please?
- Although I’ve strayed from his method, it was Josh Ozersky’s “latticework” hash browns that inspired me to revisit hash browns from scratch. There was no rinsing or squeezing or par cooking, just a crispy potato snowflake. Perhaps even more important was his restraint – no more than half a medium potato, meant to please one diner.
- I was introduced to food writer Josh Ozersky’s and his 3-Minutes Hash Browns via Food52 Genius Recipes after his death in 2015. You get a sense of his unflinching style through the memorials written by his peers in Grub Street, a food blog he helped found in New York Magazine.
Hash Browns for Two
EQUIPMENT
- large non-stick skillet or griddle
Ingredients
- 8 ounces potatoes, preferably small, yellow or white
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Use a kitchen scale to weigh the potatoes. Whether you're using several small potatoes or a single medium sized potato, weighing them helps to confirm about 8 ounces (1/2 pound). With experience, you can eyeball it. Without a scale, you can gauge that you want to end up with about a cup of shreds.
- Peel the potatoes if you like. Then use the large holes of a box (or similar) grater to shred. To save my fingertips from the shredder, I slice up the little potato nubbins that remain and add to the shreds. I end up with about 1 cup of potato shreds.
- Put the shreds in a strainer and rinse well with cold water for about 20 seconds.
- Then dry the rinsed potatoes. Either transfer the shreds to a clean, dry dish towel and squeeze out excess water (please note the potatoes may stain dish towel.) Or press the shreds between layers of clean dry paper towel. When you’re done, the shreds should look and feel dry to the touch.
- Toss the dry shreds with the salt. (If you prefer, salt the hash brown to taste once they’re on the pan.)
- Add oil to a non-stick pan or griddle. Heat to medium. (If cooking on a griddle, I use a heat proof brush to spread the oil thoroughly over the surface. With a pan, just tilt for even coverage.)
- Put potato shreds in the pan or griddle forming several small patties, batching if needed. Make each hash brown patty by scooping about 2 tablespoons of shreds onto the pan and spreading the shreds into a 3-to-4-inch round, creating a thin, lacy patty. This recipe yields 6 rounds of hash browns, each about 3-4 inches in diameter.
- Using a griddle, I’m able to cook all the hash browns in one batch. With a 12-inch skillet, two batches are required – divide the oil between the batches, using more as needed.
- Cook for about 3 minutes on the first side until you start to see golden brown color, then flip and cook on the second side until potatoes are cooked and hash browns are golden brown and crispy to your liking. Repeat for second batch if necessary.
- Serve as soon as possible, adding salt to taste if needed.
Notes
- Cut the recipe in half to make hash browns for one. Starting with 4 ounces of potato will yield 3 hash brown patties (each 3-4 inches in diameter). Making a half recipe means you’ll only need one batch with a large enough skillet. Obviously, serving size is subjective so scale the recipe as you like. Please note however, I’ve only tested this recipe for small scales, starting with either 4 ounces or 8 ounces of potatoes.
- “Baby” potatoes work well, often available as yellow potatoes or Yukon Golds. Depending on their size, you’ll probably need several small potatoes to achieve 1/2 pound. Russet potatoes work well, but tend to be large, so look for small to medium ones. If shopping for bagged Russets, check the bag for some smaller sized potatoes. Medium to large potatoes typically exceed 1/2 pound, so are best saved for another use.
- Peel the potatoes or not as you prefer.
- Shredding small potatoes on a grater requires some care to protect your fingertips. Rather than get too close to the perforations, I stop while I’m still holding a small nubbin of potato. Then slice up the nubbin and add to the shreds.
- I’ve called for olive oil in this recipe. You could opt for a different type of cooking oil, butter, or a combination. I tend to cook eggs in butter, so I choose olive oil for the hash browns to add some unsaturated fat to the plate.
- Hash browns typically accompany eggs so the question of which to prepare first becomes a consideration. In theory, I’d cook them simultaneously but that type of multi-tasking is outside my skill set. Plus I’m typically using the same cooking surface for the eggs. So I make the hash browns, plate them, then tackle the eggs. As long as I’m quick about it, the hash browns are still warm and crispy.
