Hash Browns or Why I Love Leftovers

That extra baked potato no one ate. The remaining part of the green pepper you didn’t use. That unused half of an onion from last night’s dinner. If you find those in your refrigerator, as I did this morning, you smile, as I also did this morning. Why? Two words: hash browns.

So easy. Chop onion. Chop green pepper. Chop potato into bite-size pieces. You are going to saute the onion and pepper in your preferred oil for a few minutes to soften them (or cook them longer if you’d prefer them browner); don’t forget to season them with salt and pepper. Now, here’s a tip if you want to add more flavor: You could start by cooking bacon first – I like turkey bacon – so that you can then saute the onion and pepper in the leftover fat.

Once your onion/pepper mix is sufficiently softened, go ahead and add the (already cooked) potatoes and season them as well with salt and pepper. Make sure you have sufficient lubrication, i.e., just enough oil/fat to lightly coat and ensure that your ingredients don’t stick and burn. You can cook this whole mixture on top of the stove over medium high heat, stirring periodically, OR, you can even drop it into the oven at about 350 degrees and let it finish in there until it looks like this…

As good as they look.

Leftovers are your friend. Make them work for you.

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