Morning · All year
Cast-Iron Hash Browns
Grated potato, squeezed dry, then left alone in hot fat until a crust forms.
30 minutes · Serves 4 · One skillet
“Come and have breakfast.”
Ingredients
- 2 lb russet potatoes
- 1 tsp fine salt
- 3 tbsp tallow or butter
- ¼ tsp black pepper
Method
- 1
Peel the potatoes and grate them. Toss with the salt. Put them in a clean towel and squeeze until they stop dripping. This is the step that makes them crisp. Wet potatoes steam.
- 2
Heat the tallow or butter in a cast-iron skillet over medium until it shimmers. Add the potatoes and press them into an even cake. Pepper the top.
- 3
Cook without stirring 6 to 8 minutes, until the underside is deep brown and releases. Flip in sections if the whole cake will not turn. Cook the second side 5 to 7 minutes, until it is crisp and the potato is cooked through.
From the kitchen
- If you stir them early, you get boiled shreds. Leave them alone.
- Tallow takes the heat better than butter here. If you use butter, keep the heat at medium so it does not burn before the crust forms.
My note
Kept on this device, beside the recipe, for the next time you cook it.
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