Make Your Own Frozen Hashbrowns
ByI’ve always had a hard time making good homemade hashbrowns. When my friend Brenda shared this little trick with me…I gave it a try and it WORKS!
Not only does this make delicious homemade hashbrowns, it is a great way to use up an abundance of potatoes before they start sprouting. Remember how I got 50 pounds for such a good price last week? I plan on putting up several pounds of them into the freezer in hashbrown form. That way, I’ve preserved some of my good organic potatoes, plus I’ve got EASY hashbrowns ready to pull out and cook up for breakfast or dinner anytime I need them!
Oh, and can you say “inexpensive”? Yes, I thought you could. These hashbrowns are so inexpensive, especially when you’ve taken advantage of a good deal on potatoes. So let’s get started, shall we?
First, scrub your potatoes…as many as you want.
Bake the potatoes. I avoid using aluminum foil if at all possible in baking, so I always just place my scrubbed potatoes into a covered dish and bake them for about 1 1/2 hours at 350°. Be sure to stab each potato with a knife before baking so you don’t have a massive potato explosion in your oven. Unless you want a massive potato explosion in your oven. Then feel free to leave them unstabbed.
Allow your baked potatoes to cool. Peel the potatoes.
Shred your potatoes with a cheese grater. They shred very easily because they are soft after baking.
See how lovely?
At this point, you can either cook them, or freeze them. To freeze them, lay them flat on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Put the cookie sheet into the freezer for a couple of hours or until the potatoes are frozen, then transfer them into freezer bags to cook up when you’re ready. Oh so convenient!
I usually cook my hashbrowns in my electric skillet or in a cast iron skillet on the stove.
I use a generous amount of butter, because I love the flavor butter gives my taters.
I also use quite a bit of sea salt or onion salt.
If the hashbrowns are frozen, you can cook them the same way as if they were not frozen…it will just take a few more minutes.
Cook them on one side for 4-5 minutes, then turn. Try not to turn them too much so they don’t get mushy. Cook until the potatoes are golden brown and slightly crispy.
Yum, yum, yum! Ever since I discovered this hashbrown making trick…we have the most delicious hashbrowns. Before, I had simply shredded a raw potato, then tried to fry it. I always ended up with a mushy mess. Blech. The trick: Bake the potatoes first. It works so well! PLUS, the baked potato does not turn brown and ugly like a raw potato does once you shred it.
You can use this same trick to make and freeze diced potatoes or potato chunks. Fry those up in butter and you’ve got some wonderful fried potatoes!
I just tried these. My family couldn’t stop raving about them. I got a good deal on 40lbs of potatoes, so have been baking, peeling, shredding and freezing like crazy. I’m also freezing 2xbaked potatoes and blanching diced potatoes to freeze for future mashed potatoes and soups.
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GREAT IDEA
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Love it:):):):):)
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I LOVE this recipe! The only thing that I do differently is I don’t peel the potatoes. The skin is delicious mixed in. Yummy!!
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So glad to read this tip! I have made homemade hash browns several times from raw potatoes and always wondered the trick to keep them from being soggy! Know I know! Thanks can’t wait to try!
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I just heard about these from Penniless Parenting… WOW, so glad I did!! I can’t wait to have NON-MUSHY hash browns!!
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I am so glad my sister in law told me about this blog! I can’t wait to try this recipe out this weekend!
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just made this morning but used my salad shooter!! FAST!!! Strongly recommend!:)
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WoW!! Seems like every click I make through your blog, I learn something new. I tried the non-baked freshly shredded hashbrowns. Yuck! Can’t wait to try these.
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I have a HUGE harvest from our garden of potatoes. I want to do something with them before they start going bad….looks like I found it!! Thank you SOOOOO much for your blog! I am officially addicted to it! Blessings to you and your family. Hope you are feeling better soon, too!!!!! (xtra exclamation points for health! :o)
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Judi Reply:
December 2nd, 2011 at 11:16 am
that would be “huge harvest of potatoes, from our garden” – we DID grow more than just potatoes.
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Am getting on this today. Have pinned it in pinterest.
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Hey – you can also boil the potatoes – skin on – put in fridge to chill overnight, peel (easy now) and then you can dehydrate them – they take up a tiny bit of area to store and you’re not dependent on your freezer. To use, put hot water up to the top of the potatoes – let sit a few minutes, drain and cook. Marvelous!
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have read your storing potatoes and hashbrown blog, very imformative. our potatoes always sprout while storing, also hard to find a “cool” room for storage. We are about to harvest our “Reds” but have had lots and lots of rain…. hope they have survived.
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Why do you peel them? Most of the nutrients are in the peel. I’ve made our hasbrowns like this for years. I tried the raw potato thing like you and it did NOT work. After some research I found that if you bake the potatoes then shred them, they are wonderful. I have never peeled ours and they turn out just fine. I always bake 7-10 potatoes when I know I will have the oven on for a couple hours then I store them in the fridge for a quick breakfast/snack. They last in the fridge for about 2 weeks. I am going to try making some for the freezer since we have an over abundance.
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Thank you for this post. I just ordered 50 lbs of organic potatoes and was worried I would let some go to waste. This will work wonders for our freezer & convenience for a couple of males in the house that area always scavenging for food to fix fast. THANK YOU!!!
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You are my hero! :) I wanted to make some bird’s nests for breakfast, but I didn’t want to buy hash browns from the store (with all the weird ingredients). So glad I found this. Thanks!
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You don’t have to use foil to bake potatoes. Scrub, dry, poke holes and coat with a bit of oil – I use my hands and rub it on. Salt the oiled skin. Place directly on the oven rack. You can place a pan on the rack below if you are worried about your oven (but honestly, you don’t need to).
Not only are the vitamins in the skin, the flavor is there too. Roasting intensifies the flavor, even if you remove the skin later, the potatoes are improved by roasting in the skin. Brush the salt off before using. Let the steam out of any potatoes you save for later – it keeps them from getting soggy.
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Do you have a good hashbrown casserole recipe to use with these hashbrowns? Trying to find one that does not contain cream of something soup.
Sheri
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Cream of soup without issues: 5 T of white bean flour, 1 3/4 cup cool water, 4 t of soup base, bouillion (whatever you normally use) Bring all ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat and let thicken. This is equal to a can of cream soup. Add 1/4 c whatever kind of soup you’re making – such as mushroom. Yummy and full of fiber! Without any of the dangers of canned soups. . . (I hand grind my white beans into flour).
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