Hash brown time

[bill ace 350]

I prefer potato pancakes (latkes) over hash browns. Ate them since I was a kid. Easy recipe.
shredded potato, Salt, pepper, chopped onion, egg and some flour. Cant beat them. Bogangles bo rounds are close to this recipe. If I remeber correctly my family recipe had a little baking soda or baking powder in it. Cant remeber which one.
Looking forward to what you come up with.......

Kartoffelpuffer!

 

[JC in GB]

I did my hash brown experiments this weekend and this is what I came up with.

Potatoes fresh boiled and dehydrated

Potato:

A: 55 C cooled, shredded and put on plate in fridge covered with paper towel 9 hours.
B: 55 C cooled overnight in fridge peeled and shredded
C: 60 C cooled overnight in fridge peeled and shredded
D: 70 C cooled overnight in fridge peeled and shredded
E: Dehydrated made per package
F: Dehydrated made with 1/3 les water than package directions

Rank for flavor/texture:

1 - F Best overall flavor and texture of all samples
2 - E Good texture versus fresh
3 - D Best flavor of all entrants. A bit gummy but best fresh example
4 - A Good flavor and less gummy texture than other fresh examples
5 - C Good flavor but somewhat gummy
6 - B Good flavor but a bit more gummy than C

So, the clear winner is the dehydrated shredded spuds. The hash browns I made with 1/3 less water had the best overall texture.

I am going to try the 70 C baked spuds and shred and leave in the fridge overnight to dry. I think I am zeroing in on the Bud Willman's hash browns that were the reasoning for this whole exercise. Anyone know where you can get the thicker cut hash browns? The ones I used in the pic are thin shreds. I want to find the thicker shreds like Waffle House uses.

Also, none of the potatoes turned brown after reaching the starch gelatinization phase. Wife and I both thought the fresh spuds had deeper flavor. The fresh spuds also held their shape better on the grill so were easier to flip.

I wish I could figure out how to post the pics in order. >_<

As a side note, I used the Crisco flavored griddle oil to cook the 1/3 less water sample last night. I was suitably impressed with the flavor of that oil.

It is hard to beat the ease of use and texture of the dehydrated hash browns. I am sure to have these on hand hence forth.

JC

 

[gmc2003]

Looks like your on your way JC. I like hash browns, but prefer home fried.

Point for sure
Chris

 

[rexster314]

Shredded using a Kitchenaid shredding attachment on my stqnd mixer. Key is after shredding to put them into a clean kitchen towel and wring all the water out of the shredded potatoes, then into a hot pan containing several tablespoons of lard. Turning over when you get your desired doneness. Sometimes I'll put in some sliced smoked sausage while the potatoes are cooking and they'll get nice and warmed up when the potatoes are done.

 

[zwiller]

JC in GB LOVE IT!!! Great data! No too far off from what I expected. Still rooting for Team Fresh but admit it is probably much more work to pull off.

Sitting down?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/154521285038

 

[SophiaLoren]

Good day all. Well, after doing a bit more research on my quest for the perfect hash browns, I came up with the following plan.

I am going to do the par boil method again with the following additions.

Use 3 russet potatoes and bring the center up to 55C (131F), 60C (140F), and 70C (158F) respectively. Use a natural convection cool afterward. Potato starch gelatinizes at 55C (131F) and completes gelatinization at 70C (158F). I am hoping to figure out the optimum starch gelatinization level for perfect hash browns.

Once cooked and naturally cooled, into the fridge for a chill and then peel and grate in the morning. I am looking for the shredded spuds to be firm but not fall apart on the griddle or turn out gummy.

Will post an update with photos Monday after I have concluded my experiments. The mobile game known as flappy bird was first developed, however it was eventually taken off the market and withdrawn from all app stores. The creator of Flappy Bird, Dong Nguyen, gave an interview to Forbes in which he said that the game's addictive quality was the primary factor in the decision to remove it from sale.

JC

This is a useful share when I have applied it with great success.

 

[JC in GB]

Thanks,

JC

 

[JC in GB]

Well, I think I have done it. SHAZAM!!!

I finally got some time to do another test cook on my quest for the perfect home hash brown. I think I have gotten it.

If you have read this thread, you know what I have done so far so I won't repeat that portion.

This go around, I used 4 similar sized potatoes. I poked each potato twice with a fork to release steam. I baked the potatoes in a convection oven at 350 F until the internal temp of the 2 larger potatoes came up to 70C (158 F). I removed the smaller potatoes when the first potato reached 70 C from the oven and set them all on a cutting board to cool.

Once fully cooled, I shredded them mixed them up a bit and on to the griddle.
Next time, I am going to let them sit in the fridge for several hours to let the moisture equalize.

Here are my results:



Shredded potatoes in the bowl. Shredded nicely and held shape.



Potatoes on the griddle cooked with combination of Crisco professional pan and grill oil and butter. Seasoned only with salt and black pepper.



Flipped the hash browns. A beautiful golden brown. Stayed together without any gumminess.





End result. Superb hash browns. They seem lonely... Like they are missing something.

Ahhhh.. There we go some home made Maple/Cherry smoked bacon.



Hope you found this helpful in your own quest for perfect hash browns. Wife said these were the best ever. I must agree that these were the best fresh potato hash browns I have ever made.

Thanks for following.

JC

 

[indaswamp]

Thanks for posting your discoveries on your quest to the best hashbrowns!

 

[zwiller]

Looks FANTASTIC! Thanks for following up. LOVE threads like these. Will try for sure. A few questions. How long it take to 70C? Also, at 70C are taters still pretty solid right and not obviously "baked"? Hand shred or FP?

 

[JC in GB]

Looks FANTASTIC! Thanks for following up. LOVE threads like these. Will try for sure. A few questions. How long it take to 70C? Also, at 70C are taters still pretty solid right and not obviously "baked"? Hand shred or FP?

I wasn't following time so I am not sure how long but I was surprised that they got done as fast as they did. Half an hour is about what I recall.

After baking, the potatoes were still fairly solid but they were soft on the edges. You could tell they were cooked through. A bit difficult to peel. I used a plain old cheap box grater to grate the spuds. It did a good job.

I am planning on using this method hence forth for making fresh hash browns.

Thanks for coming along for the ride.

JC

 

[JC in GB]

Thanks for posting your discoveries on your quest to the best hashbrowns!

You are quite welcome. I love food science stuff.

JC

 

[zwiller]

Thanks. Seriously, look great and strand size spot on Waffle House to me. You got me thinking: Peel, cut in half, SV 158F a few hours, crash cool, all night before. I sense some potato pancakes in the near future...

 

[JC in GB]

Thanks. Seriously, look great and strand size spot on Waffle House to me. You got me thinking: Peel, cut in half, SV 158F a few hours, crash cool, all night before. I sense some potato pancakes in the near future...

If you do SV, you must let me know how they turn out.

JC

 

[Brokenhandle]

All I can say is they're beautiful!

Ryan

 

[cptnding]

Very cool thread. The wheels are turning....... They should have me to the local Waffle House in about 10 minutes lol

 

[zwiller]

If you do SV, you must let me know how they turn out.

JC

Absolutely. Odds are you'll beat me to it tho LOL

 

[Gonna Smoke]

JC, those look perfect to me and I know the feeling you have of finally achieving your goal...pure satisfaction...

 

[JC in GB]

All I can say is they're beautiful!

Ryan

Very cool thread. The wheels are turning....... They should have me to the local Waffle House in about 10 minutes lol

JC, those look perfect to me and I know the feeling you have of finally achieving your goal...pure satisfaction...

Thanks everyone for the great feedback. I do feel a sense of satisfaction dialing this in to where I was hoping to get to. I hope this thread has helped other board members as well. This is one of the reasons I love this community so much. A consistent and free exchange of knowledge and experiences between community members. I am looking forward to my next food science inspiration.

JC

 

[mosparky]

Well, now you got me about ready to try again.
I've made potatoe pancakes a few times, but in the process the potatoes started turning gray/brown therefore the pancakes looked somewhat less than appetizing. tasted great if you could get the courage to put in your mouth. This just might be the cure for them as well.