The Search is Over

You know, for someone who doesn't like deep frying, it seems to me that I have a lot of recipes that call for deep frying. But this is Hash-browns.....that's different.

I'm not sure where my obsession with finding the perfect hash-brown comes from, maybe it's part of my genetic make up or maybe I had one too many happy McDonald Morning Egg McMuffin sets with the orange juice & hash-brown when I was a young impressionable child.

In any case, I've been on a quest to make the perfect hash browns for awhile. You know crunchy & crisp on the outside but soft on the inside. I've had some wonderful duds back in the day when I would do things "on the fly" instead of doing a little research first. Everything from frying the potatoes without rinsing the starch out & having some discolored gummy messes, to precooking & frying them & creating a titanic clean up job on the bottom of my pan.

My most used mediocre method involved simply grating potatoes, rinsing & then salting & squeezing out the excess water. It worked OK but depending on the potatoes. Finally I found a recipe that makes sense. The secret (Well, maybe not a secret to you, but to me it was news) flour & egg to bind the potatoes into a batter. By golly, it was pure genius. So, I'm passing the word for all you Hash-brown-junkies! (Come on, I know you're out there.)

The Recipe:

3 large potatoes shredded
1/4 medium onion, finely chopped (the recipe called for 1/2 but it's a bit heavy duty for the kids first thing in the morning)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg
oil for frying, or as needed
salt and pepper to taste

The Directions:

Rinse shredded potatoes until water is clear, then drain and squeeze dry. Place shreds in a bowl, and mix in the onion, flour and egg until evenly distributed.
Heat oil till sizzling hot in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat. & get your plate & paper towels ready. Now drop them in little piles (OK, the "Al' friendly term" is actually, "Lil' Plops") And fry till they're golden brown on each side. It'll take a little bit of time. Don't get impatient & turn the heat up. And you don't need much oil only about a inch or so.
Ohh.....that looks goooood!!

And the First Law of Hashbrown consumption states: YOU MUST EAT THEM HOT!! That's right scalding HOT, burn-your-mouth-freak-the-kids-out HOT. If not, you can just forget it. Becasue the whole point is to have a crunchy crust. Ok? Mmm--hmm! Enough said!
Salt & Pepper to taste, and defile with ketchup if you feel so inclined (I know I do!!) And it's gonna be a jolly morning, my friends, yes it is!