I had a dream last night. What a lovely dream it was! I dreamed that I walked into a Waffle House and ordered… A Triple Smothered, Covered, Chunked and Peppered Hashbrown… And my hashbrown was Stuffed with a Fried Egg!
Then, Pumpkin, our 6-toed orange tabby, started head-bunting me up-side the left eye. Which is an unmistakable message: It’s morning, he’s hungry, and I am expected to drop whatever I may be doing and ‘make it so’. If it was a Star Trek TNG episode, he would be Picard. And I would be a lowly ensign. But it is just another day in the life.
A memorable vision
Usually, my dreams – no matter how vivid – start to fade the moment I wake up. Not so with my hashbrown reverie. I can still see the place-mat menu with its myriad options, and a fanciful rendering of my fantasy order. And I want it.
But I also want other hashbrowns. Stuffed with other things.
Lacking Harry Potter’s wand or Aladdin’s Lamp. Or even Elizabeth Montgomery’s nose… I resolved to do whatever it took to recreate my vision for real…
The concept
It’s simple: Make a big, flat, loose-ish hashbrown patty (suitable for folding over). Then decide what you want to stuff it with. Which could be just about anything. I could go for any of the following right this minute:
- The aforementioned Fried Egg(s)
- A small Western Omelet
- Leftover Egg Foo Yong
- Ham and Cheese
- Montréal Smoked Meat
- Beans and Rice
- Chili
- Fajitas
- Pulled Pork…
The possibilities are endless.
Hashbrown hacks
You’ll want to make sure the potato shreds are as dry as possible, to ensure you achieve the ideal crispy, golden brown crust. For convenience sake, I like to use pre-shreadded ones from the super-market – refrigerated, not frozen. The frozen ones get soggy as they thaw.
But you also have to make sure the whole thing sticks together sufficiently to hold-in the filling and resist tearing when you flip it. Add a beaten egg to your big bowlful of ‘taters, and toss gently, but thoroughly.
Spread out the potato mixture in a single thin layer in the bottom of a 9 in. / 22.5 cm or 10 in. / 25 cm fry pan. Make sure there are no holes, so the filling doesn’t leak. It’s alright if not all potato shreds are touching, as long as there’s egg mixture running in to fill any cracks.
Place a good amount of filling on one half of the finished hashbrown and fold over. Serve nice and hot!
Filling tips
You can literally use any filling you want – just as long as it’s not too liquid. You could say, draw the line at chili – and don’t go as loose as stew.
Depending on the structural integrity of your hashbrown platform, you could just cut the finished product in half and eat it like a sandwich. I’m afraid the only sensible option if using rice-based or similar mixtures, or options such as chili or pulled pork, will call for a knife and fork.
My take
I can’t wait to try all my filling inspirations. I could eat this stuffed hashbrown for breakfast lunch and supper. Maybe I will!
~ Maggie J.