How to Make the Best Crispy Golden Hash Browns for Breakfast

Having a small farm holding means there's never a day that I don't have to do something, especially feeding all of my birds. Thankfully, the weekends are more relaxed, and my eight-year-old insists on a special breakfast treat on Sunday mornings. Hash browns have firmly found their way onto the "special list" and are a regular side to our bacon and eggs.

We have a few rules regarding our hash browns; they must be golden brown and very crispy with plenty of onion. We also like them to look like hash browns and not just a potato rosti, so I use cooking moulds. I have a food critic (my young daughter) who is not afraid to give me a rundown on my efforts. Admittedly I find the assessments a little harsh at times but she keeps me on my toes and the end result is worth the constructive feedback.

Cook Time

Ingredients

• 2 large floury potatoes, peeled and grated
• 1 large onion, grated
• 1 handful fresh chives, snipped
• Paprika, to taste
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• 1 fresh egg, beaten
• 2 tablespoons flour
• Vegtable oil, for frying

Important Tool: Cooking Moulds

You will need cooking moulds to shape the hash browns. I bought mine from Amazon ages ago and they are still in great shape and easy to clean. I have a newer set with handles and an older set without. I recommend the mould set with handles; they are much easier to manipulate and safer for your fingers.

Instructions

1. Rinse the grated potato in cold water until the water is clear.
2. Squeeze the excess water from the grated potato and place on a clean tea towel.
3. Add the onion to the tea towel and twist the towel to remove any excess liquid. The result should be an almost dry mixture of potato and onion.
4. Place the potato and onion mixture in a large bowl. Add the chives and season with paprika, salt and pepper. Mix the ingredients well.
5. Add in the flour and beaten egg. Using a fork, blend the mixture together.
6. Dab a little oil on a paper towel and grease the moulds to prevent any sticking.
7. Heat a good glug of vegetable oil in a large frying pan till hot (but not smoking).
8. Place the moulds into the pan and add spoonfulls of the potato and onion mixture to each mould.
9. Fry for 3 to 4 minutes, remove the cooking mould and flip the hash brown over and cook for a further 3 to 4 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
10. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper tables. Serve immediately.

Photo Guide

Golden crisp hashbrowns

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Notes

• Rinsing the grated potato gets rid of excess starch which can result in a raw centre as the starch encourages the potato shreds to stick together and we don't want that.
• Grate the onion on the smallest setting; we want very fine shreds. The onion adds a lot a flavour. Without the onion the hash brown can be bland.
• I add chives to my hash browns because I love the flavour, especially with poached eggs and bacon. It is optional.
• Cooking moulds give the hash browns a solid round shape. You can buy moulds from Amazon in packs of two or four. They are great for shaping pancakes, eggs, potato cakes and such.
• Make sure you cook the hash browns till golden brown. I never make them bigger than 1 and 1/2 inches thick, as per the photo below.

Happy Weekend!

Have a go at making these little delights. The ingredients are basic store cupboard foods but the result is anything but simple—they taste as good as any hash browns I've eaten in a diner. In fact, I believe they taste even better. My little critic loves them and she is a tough cookie when it comes to food. Happy weekend to everyone!

© 2021 Gabriel Wilson