If there is one meal more than any other that Jim and I like going out for, it’s a diner breakfast!
Long counters with swivel stools, waitresses pouring endless cups of steaming coffee, greasy plastic covered menus, and the list of iconic breakfast staples. Flapjacks, eggs every which way, sausage links, peameal bacon (Canadian bacon to our friends in America!) waffles, and of course, bacon and hashbrowned potatoes. Not the little cubes of potato that are briefly fried but have absolutely no crispy exterior, that are passed off as hash browns. Those are home fries, and even calling them that is a stretch. To me, those potatoes are the lazy way out of having to prepare breakfast potatoes.
No, the best potatoes that can be served at breakfast, are shredded hash browned potatoes. Those lovely crispy tender little shreds that have the best texture in the world. Yes, they take a bit more attention. But they are worth it! But they are really only at their best when the exteriors are perfectly crisped, and yet the interior is still nice and fluffy. We rate diners on their ability to one, serve them in the first place, and two, how good they are!
But when we’re at home, what do I do? Honestly, it’s not that hard! All it takes is a bit of prep, and then I let the oven do all the work. Yep, hashbrowns in the Emilson household are not made on the stove top. They are baked in the oven. I was already using the oven to cook our bacon, why not add the potatoes to the rack? This way, the stove top is free for the eggs!
I had been trying to perfect the way to make hash brown potatoes in the oven for a while, and then my problems were solved. I found the answer over at Macheesemo. He had been trying to do the same thing. And succeeded. So why go any further? He had done all the leg work, and I’m quite happy to defer to his method.
The main thing is, rinsing and drying the shredded potatoes well before proceeding. The first thing I do is to shred the potatoes right into a tea towel. This way I can wrap the towel around the potatoes and give them a good squeeze over the sink. From here I put them into a strainer and run cold water over them. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, you just squeezed liquid out of them, but the water will actually wash away any residual starch off the potatoes. This will allow the shreds to separate so that they won’t stick together in a clump in the oven. Then I put them into a fresh towel and dry them off again. Right away you will notice the difference in the lack of stickiness. The potatoes then get put into a large bowl. Then some melted butter, olive oil, and seasonings are combined, and the potatoes get tossed in this flavour bomb. The potatoes get spread out in a thin layer (too thick, and the centre of the potatoes will not cook through and become crisp) onto a parchment lined baking sheet, and baked on the bottom rack of the oven for 15 minutes. Depending on how many you are feeding, you may need two baking sheets. Then the baking sheet(s) get moved to the top rack so that the tops of the potatoes can get crisped up as well. This should take another 10 to 15 minutes.
So here is what started happening over here. Since I wanted to bake off my bacon at the same time as the potatoes, I decided that I would use full sized baking sheets. This way I could do them all at the same time. But if you only have half sized sheets, that’s fine as well. I spread parchment across the whole baking sheet, lay out strips of bacon on one side, and the potatoes on the other side. After 15-20 minutes on the bottom rack, the bacon was done. I removed the bacon to a paper towel lined plate, and moved the sheet of potatoes to the top to continue cooking.
But, you may ask, I want to feed more than two or three people? How can I do this now, without overcrowding the baking sheet with the potatoes. So this is what you’ll do. First of all, you will need at least three regular sized baking sheets. On the lower rack you will spread out all the potatoes that you have prepped. Usually you can feed six or more with the amount of potatoes that will spread out comfortably on one fully covered rack in the oven. You will have the bacon spread out on a separate baking sheet which you will place on the middle rack. After 20 minutes, check the potatoes on the bottom rack. They should have crisped up on the bottom. Move them to the top rack. Check the bacon. It may need a few minutes longer to fully cook, depending of course on the thickness of the strips. Once the bacon is ready, remove and drain. Cover them with foil. The potatoes should take about 10-15 minutes on the top rack. Check and if they still need more crisping to your liking, leave another 5 minutes.
All the while, you have the freedom to fry your eggs, make waffles or pancakes, juice some oranges, and get your coffee poured out. When you pull out those potatoes and serve them with the crispy bacon, you will have achieved Diner 101. All that’s left is for someone to call you Flo and leave you a tip!!
Sheet Pan Bacon and Shredded Hash Browned Potatoes
The crispiest bacon and shredded potatoes happen in the oven. The potatoes are perfectly seasoned pre oven, so they come out full of flavour, and the bacon gets baked right there with them. Diner worthy, just add eggs, pancakes and steaming cups of coffee.
Ingredients
- 4 cups peeled and grated potatoes I use Yukon Gold, but you can use pretty well any potato you like
- 6-8 slices of bacon two per person
Spice Mix
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted over low heat in a small pot
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Instructions
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Preheat the oven to 400F and have a rack set on the lowest rung.
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A standard home cook sheet pan is roughly 11×17 inches, and will accommodate 4 cups of grated potatoes. If you crowd it too much, the potatoes will not crisp up but rather turn into rösti or latkes, and that's a different recipe! If you want more potatoes, use a second parchment lined sheet. The parchment paper will ensure that the potatoes don't bake onto the sheet. This would be a waste of good potatoes.
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Peel the potatoes and grate them on the large holes of your box grater. Measure out 4 cups. I grate them right onto a large clean tea towel. Wrap the towel around the potatoes and squeeze the towel firmly to release as much of the potato juices over the sink as possible.
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Transfer the potato shreds to a large mesh strainer (you may need to do this in batches) Run cold water over them, moving them around with your fingers to get to all the residual starches. Transfer these potatoes to a clean towel. Wrap and pat them well. You will find that they feel totally different. Squeaky clean! If there is any leftover water, pat it off with a paper towel. Transfer the dried potatoes to a large bowl.
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Mix all the ingredients for the Spice Mix in a small bowl. Pour this over the potatoes and toss to coat the potatoes well.
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Spread the hash browns out in an even layer. Some overlap will happen, but try to get them as even as possible.
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If you are only serving two or three you may only be using the one sheet. Or if you are using a large full size sheet, the potatoes will fit on one side. Add the bacon slices to the other half of the baking sheet.
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Bake everything on the lowest rack for 15-20 minutes. At this point the bacon should be checked. Depending on how thick it is, it could be ready to come out. If not, leave it on the baking sheet. If the edges of the potatoes are browning nicely they are ready to move to the top rack.
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Watch the bacon to remove when ready.
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Bake the potatoes for 10-15 minutes on the highest rack of your oven.
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Moving the sheet pan higher in the oven will get a good crust on the bottom of the hash browns and then crisp up the top of the hash browns at the end. Do not adjust the temperature or stir the potatoes at all.
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Serve the bacon and potatoes with eggs, waffles, pancakes and whatever your little heart desires.
Recipe Notes
I say that the recipe feeds four, but of course it is totally adjustable.
If you are feeding more than four, use multiple sheet for both the potatoes and the bacon.
Bake the potatoes on the lowest and topmost racks as directed. Bake the bacon on a parchement lined sheet on the middle rack. You will just need to keep an eye on the bacon. Depending on how thick it is, it may take 20 minutes or longer. Remove when ready.
Happening one of these weekend mornings, looks so great! Nothing beats a breakfast like this.
Hi Matt, You gotta try the hashbrowns. Serve them with the cornbread!! Make a fun brunch. And don’t forget the bacon! Love Jen