# Hash Browns. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 26, 2010, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039 "2010-07-26T13:33:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![purplehorseshoe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/purplehorseshoe/32/2996_2.png) [@purplehorseshoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/purplehorseshoe)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2010, 10:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/41 "2010-07-27T22:00:02Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > > [@Ibanez](#): > > > > I dont do hash browns. But home fries are one of my favorite weekend breakfast side dishes. > > > > Boil potatotes let them cool off dice them up. > > Spoonfull of collected meat fat (grease) in a skillet set to medium to high heat > > Add home fries salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. > > Fry for 15-20 minutes flipping occasionally. > > Something seems off here. You boil them until cooked and then fry them for 15-20 minutes? I make home fries from fresh uncooked potatoes nearly every week, and they are done in about 10 minutes. Granted, I cut them fairly thin, probably about 1/4-3/8" thick. I can’t imagine it taking 20 minutes, especially if they’re already boiled. I was thinking the exact same thing. Maybe \*\*Ibanez \*\*has a different idea of “high heat” than you and I? ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2010, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/42 "2010-07-27T22:31:45Z")
> [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > I love them, and order them at restaurants because they’re a pain in the ass to make at home. :eek: Potatoes in the processor with the grater blade Put in hot grease Flip Eat ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2010, 10:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/43 "2010-07-27T22:34:58Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Potatoes in the processor with the grater blade > Put in hot grease > Flip > Eat Wash blade. Wash Food processor jug thing. Wash Food processor base. Repeat as directed when Spouse is displeased. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [July 27, 2010, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/44 "2010-07-27T23:39:16Z")
> [@Saint\_Cad](#): > > Potatoes in the processor with the grater blade > Put in hot grease > Flip > Eat For real? I’ve never had shredded hash browns turn out well unless wrung of most of the liquid. Maybe I haven’t been as aggressive with the heat. A question: I’d like to prep, say, 20 pounds of potatoes in advance for freezing in my home kitchen. Maybe half in dice, half shredded. I’ll be soaking the potatoes in acidulated water to keep from turning purplish, and for the shredded at least, squeezing as much liquid as I can out of them. But what’s the commercial procedure? I guess Ore-Ida type stuff is parcooked to some degree, , and for ease of use, I’d like to parcook as well a tiny bit. I’m thinking microwave for five minutes, seal, and freeze. Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/45 "2010-07-28T00:11:09Z")
Any advice from [latke](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potato_pancake)makers? Perhaps squeezing them with cheese cloth? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/46 "2010-07-28T00:14:44Z")
I like making them from fresh, but they’re also pretty good made from left over baked potatoes. I usually just shred raw potato, skin and all into a paper towel lined bowl to let them drain a bit, then I season them with S&P and toss them into a medium-high cast iron skillet with like an 1/8th inch of oil. Brown, flip, brown, eat…no sweat! Also, when I was a kid, we didn’t have home fries, we had soft fried potatoes, which are a little different. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/47 "2010-07-28T00:18:57Z")
> [@An\_Arky](#): > > Also, when I was a kid, we didn’t have home fries, we had soft fried potatoes, which are a little different. Are you _sure_ our Grandmothers didn’t know each other? ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/48 "2010-07-28T00:37:47Z")
Mom didn’t make home fries or normal fried potatoes, but she would boil new potatoes in the skin, spear them and peel them while hot, then sautee them in butter until the outsides were crisp while the insides were soft. HIGHLY recommended. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/49 "2010-07-28T01:01:20Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > > [@Ibanez](#): > > > > I dont do hash browns. But home fries are one of my favorite weekend breakfast side dishes. > > > > Boil potatotes let them cool off dice them up. > > Spoonfull of collected meat fat (grease) in a skillet set to medium to high heat > > Add home fries salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. > > Fry for 15-20 minutes flipping occasionally. > > Something seems off here. You boil them until cooked and then fry them for 15-20 minutes? I make home fries from fresh uncooked potatoes nearly every week, and they are done in about 10 minutes. Granted, I cut them fairly thin, probably about 1/4-3/8" thick. I can’t imagine it taking 20 minutes, especially if they’re already boiled. I forget the cooling off period which is about 2 hours. My bad ? ---
**Author:** ![cuberdon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/45deac/32.png) [@cuberdon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuberdon)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/50 "2010-07-28T14:05:59Z")
> [@Jaledin](#): > > A question: I’d like to prep, say, 20 pounds of potatoes in advance for freezing in my home kitchen. Maybe half in dice, half shredded. I’ll be soaking the potatoes in acidulated water to keep from turning purplish, and for the shredded at least, squeezing as much liquid as I can out of them. > > But what’s the commercial procedure? I guess Ore-Ida type stuff is parcooked to some degree, , and for ease of use, I’d like to parcook as well a tiny bit. I’m thinking microwave for five minutes, seal, and freeze. Thoughts? From my Joy of Cooking, 1995 Edition, “About Potatoes”: If you wonder why there are no recommendations for freezing potatoes in this chapter, let us say that this operation is not feasible with home equipment. Potatoes purchased frozen have all been treated to quick-vacuum partial dehydration and instant freezing, to which home equipment does not lend itself. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/51 "2010-07-28T14:10:47Z")
> [@An\_Arky](#): > > Also, when I was a kid, we didn’t have home fries, we had soft fried potatoes, which are a little different. Are these like what my mother calls cottage fried? Relatively thick latitudinal slices (through the shorter dimension of the potato) fried as is? Just lovely, tasty, greasy, salty fried potato disks? ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/52 "2010-07-28T14:45:43Z")
> [@carnivorousplant](#): > > > [@An\_Arky](#): > > > > Also, when I was a kid, we didn’t have home fries, we had soft fried potatoes, which are a little different. > > Are you _sure_ our Grandmothers didn’t know each other? It’s entirely possible. > [@jayjay](#): > > > [@An\_Arky](#): > > > > Also, when I was a kid, we didn’t have home fries, we had soft fried potatoes, which are a little different. > > Are these like what my mother calls cottage fried? Relatively thick latitudinal slices (through the shorter dimension of the potato) fried as is? Just lovely, tasty, greasy, salty fried potato disks? No, though that sounds good, too. (it’s ALL good) Soft fried taters are more rectangular, though you just can kind of cut them willy nilly right over the skillet if you want. They’re cooked in not that much oil and covered so they brown and steam simultaneously. Some folks take off the lid and crisp them up. ---
**Author:** ![Alpha\_Twit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alpha_twit/32/265_2.png) [@Alpha\_Twit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alpha_Twit)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/53 "2010-07-28T15:24:17Z")
OK, lets try to simplify the discussion a bit. When properly cooked, is there _ **ANY** _ variety or shape of pan fried spud you wouldn’t eat? Toppings like chili or cheese are negotiable but the basics are pretty simple. Tubers plus hot greasy cast iron plus salt equals heaven on a plate in my book. Agreed? ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/54 "2010-07-28T15:38:00Z")
The “properly cooked” qualifier means that I can heartily endorse the previous post. Potato-ey goodness… ---
**Author:** ![Jaledin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Jaledin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jaledin)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/55 "2010-07-28T18:25:58Z")
> [@LouiseE](#): > > If you wonder why there are no recommendations for freezing potatoes in this chapter, let us say that this operation is not feasible with home equipment. Potatoes purchased frozen have all been treated to quick-vacuum partial dehydration and instant freezing, to which home equipment does not lend itself. Thanks for that. Although, I don’t see why potatoes _couldn’t_ be frozen in advance, even if not to commercial specs. I know some people have frozen par-fried potatoes (french fries), saving until ready for a higher heat final fry, with apparently good results. The effect of cold on the potato might be an issue, but maybe not. An experiment awaits. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/56 "2010-07-28T19:17:19Z")
Hashbrowns have been around looong befor frozen french fries. My grandfather learned to make then when he was a cook for a logging camp at age 15. That would be 103 years ago. Also, gummy hashbrowns are caused by not rinsing away the starch and drying them before cooking. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/57 "2010-07-28T21:30:28Z")
> [@Ibanez](#): > > > [@Chefguy](#): > > > > > [@Ibanez](#): > > > > > > I dont do hash browns. But home fries are one of my favorite weekend breakfast side dishes. > > > > > > Boil potatotes let them cool off dice them up. > > > Spoonfull of collected meat fat (grease) in a skillet set to medium to high heat > > > Add home fries salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. > > > Fry for 15-20 minutes flipping occasionally. > > > > Something seems off here. You boil them until cooked and then fry them for 15-20 minutes? I make home fries from fresh uncooked potatoes nearly every week, and they are done in about 10 minutes. Granted, I cut them fairly thin, probably about 1/4-3/8" thick. I can’t imagine it taking 20 minutes, especially if they’re already boiled. > > I forget the cooling off period which is about 2 hours. My bad ? The problem we’re seeing here is the total cooking time. As I read your posting, you’re subjecting the spuds to a total of something in the order of 25-35 minutes by the time you’ve boiled them and fried them. Those are some tough spuds. ---
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/58 "2010-07-28T21:54:01Z")
Seattle has two restaurants, owned by the same people, that have all-you-can-eat hashbrowns (the shredded kind) with most of their breakfast plates. I usually ask that they begin frying the second helping as soon as they deliver the first. In those places, a ‘refill’ is browns–if you want your coffee refreshed, you’d better specify that. The absolute best thing to eat after being awake too long, for whatever reason. The first place is Beth’s Cafe, open continuously for almost 50 years now, excepting a 6-week hiatus rebuilding after a fire one time. The other is the Hurricane Cafe. ---
**Author:** ![Ibanez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a4c791/32.png) [@Ibanez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibanez)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/59 "2010-07-28T22:06:49Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > > [@Ibanez](#): > > > > > [@Chefguy](#): > > > > > > > [@Ibanez](#): > > > > > > > > I dont do hash browns. But home fries are one of my favorite weekend breakfast side dishes. > > > > > > > > Boil potatotes let them cool off dice them up. > > > > Spoonfull of collected meat fat (grease) in a skillet set to medium to high heat > > > > Add home fries salt, pepper, garlic and onion powder. > > > > Fry for 15-20 minutes flipping occasionally. > > > > > > Something seems off here. You boil them until cooked and then fry them for 15-20 minutes? I make home fries from fresh uncooked potatoes nearly every week, and they are done in about 10 minutes. Granted, I cut them fairly thin, probably about 1/4-3/8" thick. I can’t imagine it taking 20 minutes, especially if they’re already boiled. > > > > I forget the cooling off period which is about 2 hours. My bad ? > > The problem we’re seeing here is the total cooking time. As I read your posting, you’re subjecting the spuds to a total of something in the order of 25-35 minutes by the time you’ve boiled them and fried them. Those are some tough spuds. The home fries I make aren’t as small as yours a 1.5" thick home frie is as small as I go. They’re big ass home fries in comparison to yours that’s why. Also when I initially boil the potatoes they aren’t home fries yet, just potatoes diced in 3 or 4 parts. After their boiled and cooled down is when I dice them down to my version of home fry size then fry with seasoning and bacon fat. They come out very crispy and soft in the middle. Sometimes I’ll throw in onions/mushrooms. My larger home fries wouldn’t get cooked properly via your method, that’s why I boil them first. Their already cooked when I fry them , the frying part is just about getting them, crispy, seasoned and hot. Like slow cooking ribs then throwing them on BBQ after the cooked. Same deal. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2010, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039/60 "2010-07-28T23:01:20Z")
Oh, well that explains it, then. For that sized chunk I usually toss it them in olive oil and stick them in the oven. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/hash-browns/548039.md?page=4)