Hash browns

[HNA]

Okay fellow lady friends!....I tried to make some home made hash browns last night for supper. Not being familiar with it, (the last time I attempted to make them was ...back in the early 90's maybe ). Back then, what I had to work with made them too much work.

So's anyways..... MIL had given me one of the better food processors. Her old one. Way better than my old one.
So I found 3 potatoes, fresh and firm. Washed and dried them. Then ran them through the grater blade on the FP.
Put them in cold water, and rinsed several times till clear.

I just dropped them immediately into the hot oil after they were drained and dried well. They were ok, but it seemed to me like they were missing a step. Too hard(?) Not enough potato body(?).

Should I have microwaved them first? They were a fresh bag of russets by the way.

I know there is a method of slightly precooking them before shredding them. That way was far too messy for my tastes. Ick. Half baked potato all over my hands and the hand grater. But if that is the preferred way to do it.

I have been using the pre-packaged ones from the dairy section at the store. DH is a potato addict...being Scots/Irish and all

Anyhoos.....suggestions? Any of you ladies make hash browns often? I have been making them every weekend, till DH got smacked with those 6 day weeks. The half opened package is hard to keep fresh, but one full package is far too much for one person to consume in one meal.

[Farmfresh]

Yup. The problem is moisture content. I used to do it exactly as you describe and with the same results. Then one magical day I learned how to do it far better.

Now I grate the potatoes, usually with a hand grater, and put them into a colander over a bowl. Next you need to salt the potatoes. Not heavily, but sufficiently. Stir them up with the salt on them and let them just rest for about 5 to 10 minutes. The salt starts a sweating process and removes a lot of the extra moisture from the potato. After the sweat period you squeeze out as much moisture as possible. If you need no salt you can give them a quick water rinse and then pat dry, but seriously most of the salt comes off with the sweat water.

Finally. Fry up as normal with some diced onion. I sometimes also add peppers and mushrooms. Yum.

[dizzy]

Sounds yum.

[House Sparrow]

If you add an egg to that, you end up with potato pancakes, one of my childhood favorites.

[HNA]

For now, I am back to using the store ones. We only eat them on the weekends anyway.

[Old Fashioned]

Way back when I made hashbrowns......I would just grate, then fry them with salt & pepper. No pre-cooking, no rinsing. Cooked on a higher heat & they'd come out crispy on the outside & kinda gooey on the inside Loved em as a kid.

I noticed whenever I'd order them at a restaurant they would be pre-cooked, then fried. So I tried using leftover bakers but they don't stick together well now I just use the pkgs too

[HNA]

Makes me wonder what is "different" about the potatoes too these days.

[Farmfresh]

I think type of potato is the secret. Some potatoes like the russet make better bakers because they are a dry grainy potato. Others like the reds and yellows, do better as mashed potatoes because they have a more waxy consistency. You might try hashing the red ones?

[HNA]

Potatoes are like apples....too confusing

Too many different kinds for too many different applications.