The Skillet Hash…Beyond Corned Beef!
A skillet hash is really just a play on hash browns with already cooked ingredients added, usually meats and vegetables. The skillet hash can go beyond the familiar corned beef hash to make weeknight dishes packed with nutritious, delicious ingredients. Often, eggs are poached while nestled in the already cooked hash, but even without the egg, this is a great dish to have in your culinary arsenal. We love them for their ease and their versatility, like for using leftover proteins and vegetables.
We have two delicious — and different — hash recipes below to illustrate the versatility of the dish. Use these as guidelines to create your own favorites.
Sweet Potato Hash
This recipe is from a great market in the Seattle area that we often get inspiration from. It uses yams as the starch instead of regular potatoes. These ingredients go really well together.
- 2 Tablespoons high-heat oil, divided
- 1 pound ground sausage (any sausage of your choice)
- ½ onion, thinly sliced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon fennel seeds
- 1 ½ pounds organic garnet or jewel yams, scrubbed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
- 1 bunch kale, tough stems removed and leaves chopped
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 4 eggs
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a skillet (cast iron, if you have one) over medium-high heat. Add sausage; crumble and cook until no longer pink. Add onion, garlic, thyme and fennel seeds; cook until onion is soft, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove mixture from pan.
Heat remaining oil in skillet and add yams. Cook until tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Return sausage mixture to the skillet. Stir in kale and cook until tender, 5 to 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Using a spoon, make 4 shallow indentations in the hash, and crack 1 egg into each indentation. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and cook until whites are set, 8 to 10 minutes. Serve immediately.
Chicken, Spinach, and Potato Hash
This ingredient list is simple, but yields surprising flavor. Many of the elements can be prepared ahead of time. You can also use rotisserie chicken here, as well as pre-washed, packaged baby spinach.
- 2 bone-in, skin-on chicken breasts (6 to 8 ounces each)
- 6 teaspoons olive oil
- Coarse salt and ground pepper
- 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
- 1 ½ pounds Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 3/4-inch pieces
- 2 large shallots, diced small
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 pound spinach, trimmed, washed, and coarsely chopped
- Fresh lemon juice
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place chicken on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons olive oil, and season with salt, pepper, and thyme. Roast until cooked through, 35 minutes. When cool enough to handle, discard skin and bones; cut chicken into bite-size pieces.
Meanwhile, in a medium saucepan, bring potatoes to a boil in salted water, and cook until tender when pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes; drain.
In a large skillet, heat remaining 4 teaspoons oil over medium-high. Add shallots and cook, stirring, until softened, 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook 30 seconds. Add potatoes and cook, stirring often, until browned, 7 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons water, scraping up browned bits from pan with a wooden spoon. Cook, stirring often, until potatoes are golden brown, 5 minutes. Add chicken and spinach and cook, stirring, until spinach wilts, about 2 minutes. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and lemon juice.
Speedy: If you don’t already have leftovers to use in the hash, prepare as many of the ingredients ahead of time as possible so that all you have to do is sauté everything in the evening.
- precook any proteins or vegetables
- dice potatoes in the morning and leave in a bowl covered with water until you are ready to cook.
Super Speedy: Buy rotisserie chicken, or pick up cubed chicken from the salad bar to add to your hash.
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