Crispy Hash Breakfast Skillet

Tender-but-crispy hash brown along with crunchy bell pepper and bacon with a luscious baked egg in the middle.


These are awesome! So creative and perfect dish. You have breakfast. Or brunch, or a snack. Whatever time you decide to eat this, you will be munching happy.
when I first decided to try these out, I was so excited.
These looked great and I couldn't wait to surprise Hubby with them.

I have to begin with the hash. First I tried grating potato from a raw state.
Squeezing them to release as much liquid as possible before they are cooked. 
This makes sense. Potatoes are loaded with moisture, which makes browning difficult. 
By getting rid of excess water, the potatoes should brown more evenly and quickly.
Then baked them until they were not quite tender enough to eat, Soft.
The consistency was perfect and the potato flavor was fabulous.(But i did not get the desired brown color :( )
I seasoned it with freshly ground black pepper.

Then I added rest ingredients. The original recipe only has bell pepper and bacon.
I added mushroom and tomato to add more flavours to this recipe. 

Cracked the egg and baked it
Ta-da. Its ready. A golden crust tops a savory egg mixture of cheese, hash-brown potatoes and spices in this wonderful way to start the day!  A slice of whole grain bread, a glass of orange juice. An energizing breakfast.
Got a YUM-MYY from my husband!

I tend to gravitate towards poached eggs and their evenly cooked whites and soft creamy yolks. Hence this recipe grabbed the showstopper position in the breakfast menu :)

These look like a sure winner for kid's breakfasts, lunches or suppers!! They will love it!

Try it and be happy :)

Ingredients:

Medium Russet  potatoes (or sweet potatoes) 2 
Bacon 3 strips 
Large bell pepper, chopped 1  
Chopped Mushroom 2 tbsp
Chopped Tomato 2 tbsp
Salt 1 tsp
Ground pepper 1/4 tsp 
Eggs 4 
Shredded smoked gouda cheese 1/3 cup 
Chopped parsley (optional)

Methods:

1. Wash and scrub the potatoes clean.
2. Shred the potatoes by using the largest holes of your box grater.(You can peel them or leave the peels on, whichever you prefer. I always prefer to have skin)
3. Place the shredded potato in a large bowl lined with a paper towel. 
4. Press down hard so the paper towels can absorb a lot of the moisture. Squeeze more using more paper towels if necessary. (Or you can wrap shredded potato up in a kitchen towel, and squeeze them out over the sink/ reuse in any other recipe)
5. Transfer the shredded potatoes to a plate and Cook in the microwave on high for 2 minutes. Set the potatoes aside.
6. Place a skillet on the stove.
7. Before you turn the heat on, put your three strips on the pan. Keep the flame low.
8. Cook the bacon on both sides just before they become crispy. 
9. Remove from heat, reserve the grease, and set bacon on a plate. Once the bacon is slightly cool, chop it up.
10. Preheat oven to 400F degrees.
11. Turn the stove heat up to medium. When bacon grease begins to simmer, add the shredded potatoes. 
12. Mix well. Allow to cook for about 2 minutes. 
13. Add chopped mushroom and cook it for 1 minute. 
14. Add the chopped pepper, salt, and pepper. Stir it around once or twice. Allow to cook for 3 minutes. Stir again, then allow to cook for 2 more minutes till the potatoes turns slight brown. 
15. Stir in the chopped bacon and cook for 2 minutes.
16. Add chopped tomato and stir once. Remove skillet from the heat and flatten out the top of the hash. 
17. Make 4 shallow indentations into the hash using the back of a spoon.
18. Top with shredded cheese.
19. Crack an egg into each indentation.  
20. Transfer skillet to the oven and bake until the egg whites set. (It will take about 8-10 minutes) Season with salt and pepper to taste and top with the parsley.

Serve immediately.

Notes:

1. If you do not wish to add bacon, you may leave it out. Since potatoes are cooked in the bacon grease, instead you may use 2 Tablespoons of unsalted butter.
2. You may use your favorite cheese instead of gouda cheese.