Trust me when I say that I’m the last person that expected a hash brown recipe to end up on the blog.
Potatoes for breakfast are fine—I see no fault in them—I just don’t feel like I have anything to contribute to the potato-for-breakfast discussion. They’re potatoes. Cooked in butter or olive oil (feel free to discuss the merits of both). With salt and pepper. Maybe there are some herbs in there.
But this story starts with a quest for a tiny tube of miso paste and it ends at hash browns. Let’s dive right in.
I needed one tablespoon of miso paste for a meatball recipe that shall not be mentioned again—it was meh. Our normal grocery store didn’t have any, so I bopped by the Asian market, which—unsurprisingly—sold miso paste in what I consider to be a 10 year supply. Ever since then it’s been miso this and miso that and miso this again and can you use miso in ice cream? Answer: you can.
Basically, I’ve made it my mission to slip miso into at least 3-4 meals a week and I have to say, I’m quite pleased with my success. But this one. This miso aioli. It was begging to be drizzled over something crispy that could stand up to it’s saltiness and creaminess. I thought about going straight potato pancake but thought some of you may riot at the amount of fritters already on the blog—(listen, anything fritters, don’t hold it against me). I settled on hash browns.
And if I’m making hash browns, I’m going to make the crispiest hash browns possible, because otherwise, what’s the god damn point?
In full disclosure, we ate this for dinner, but I fully suspect your brunch guests this weekend would be happy as can be if you whipped them up a little miso aioli to go along with their meal.
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 small garlic clove, finely grated
- Pinch of Kosher salt
- 2 teaspoons cold water
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1½ tablespoons brown miso paste
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1½ pounds russet potatoes, peeled and grated on large box grater holes or shredded on coarse disk of food processor
- 4-6 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 4 scallions, thinly sliced
- In a small metal bowl, whisk together egg yolk, garlic, small pinch of salt, and cold water. Whisk until well blended, then drizzle in a little bit of olive oil, and continue to whisk. Continue to drizzle olive oil in until fully integrated and sauce is thick and emulsified. Whisk in miso paste and lemon juice. Season with salt to taste.
- Place shredded potatoes in a bowl of cold water and stir until water is cloudy and starchy. Next, drain the potatoes. Working in batches, transfer potatoes to a clean kitchen towel and squeeze and twist the towel over the sink to get as much liquid out as possible (this will help you get your hash browns crispy). Return to dry bowl, season with salt and pepper.
- Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a cast iron pan over low heat, being careful not to brown.
- Once butter is melted, turn it up to medium-high. Add potatoes and spread evenly. Cook without stirring for at least 5 minutes, until underside has started to brown. Gently break up potatoes and flip them over, and cook for an additional 8-10 minutes, turning once or twice until most hash browns are nicely browned on both sides. If potatoes are too dry, add in addition 1-2 tablespoons melted butter.
- Drizzle miso aioli over hash browns and top with scallions.
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