I’ve been all about the breakfast this month as I’ve made Vegan Toast Dipping Sauce (which is like a vegan egg yolk), The Ultimate Vegan Breakfast Sandwich, and Vegan Cashew Cream Cheese. The breakfast trend continues today with Vegan Hashbrown Potatoes, woot woot!
It’s not difficult to veganize hashbrown potatoes because generally, the only thing that’s not vegan about them is the fat they are cooked in. But the reason why I’m excited to share this recipe with you is that I have a few tricks up my sleeve.
You see, hashbrowns can be fidgety to make as you have to spend all of this time grating the potatoes, washing them and then drying them off. That’s not very fuss-free is it? So what are my tricks you ask…
Trick number 1:
Use the grater attachment of a food processor to grate your potatoes in seconds. My food processor grated these potatoes in about 3 seconds flat.
Trick number 2:
Use a salad spinner!!! This genius trick makes washing and drying the potatoes so easy peasy. Fill the spinner with water and wash the starch off of the potatoes right in there. The salad spinner I have has a build in drain making it so super easy to wash and drain. Now that you’ve rinsed the potatoes, give them a spin in that spinner to dry them off. No mucking about with bowls of water and towels. So EASY! Love, love, love it.
To make Vegan Hashbrown Potatoes: grate the potatoes. I like to leave the skins on, but if you prefer you can peel them first.
In a large skillet or non-stick pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes. Sprinkle the salt and pepper across the top of the potatoes.
Let sit cooking for about 5 minutes until the bottom has formed a golden crust. Stir the crust back into the potatoes, then continue to cook again until a new crust layer has formed.
Repeat stirring the potatoes back into themselves, as many times as needed until the potatoes are cooked through and you have reached your desired crispiness, 20 to 30 minutes.
Lastly, I like to pat the potatoes down into a compressed layer and do one final crust layer. Cut the potatoes into 4 sections and serve hot.
There are two tricks in this recipe to make these hashbrowns super quick and easy to make!
- 2 russet potatoes, grated (If you have a food processor grating attachment, I recommend using that as it makes it so much quicker)
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil (or other light oil)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
The salad spinner method: put the grated potatoes in the salad spinner basket and fill the whole thing with cold water. Spin the potatoes a few times to help release the excess starch. Drain, and repeat. Drain a last time and spin the potatoes to remove as much excess water as possible.
The large bowl method: add the grated potatoes to a large bowl of cold water. Stir them around so the water becomes foggy. Drain and fill the water with clean cold water again. Repeat and drain again. Use a clean dish town to squeeze out as much excess water as possible.
In a large skillet or non-stick pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes. Sprinkle the salt and pepper across the top of the potatoes. Let sit cooking for about 5 minutes until the bottom has formed a golden crust. Stir the crust back into the potatoes, then continue to cook again until a new crust layer has formed. Repeat stirring the potatoes back into themselves, as many times as needed until the potatoes are cooked through and you have reached your desired crispiness, 20 to 30 minutes.
Lastly, I like to pat the potatoes down into a compressed layer and do one final crust layer. Cut the potatoes into 4 sections and serve hot.
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
i never would’ve thought about putting potatoes in my salad spinner! i love crispy hashbrowns.
Oh it makes it so much easier!! Enjoy!
Hi Sam, I love your blog and recipes! I ordered your cookbook after making your spinach artichoke dip for the countless time and I love it so much! I probably have half the recipes marked already. I can’t deicde what to make as it all looks so good! I have made the nacho dip and am in the process of making the cheddar and chive scones , which I can’t wait for! Just wanted to say thank you and share how wonderful all your recipes are !!
Hi Addison! Yay!!! That’s so awesome, thrilled you are loving my book so much. Thank you so much for the kind note 🙂
Hi Sam, good recipe. Been doing this for years with one small change. I learned working in restaurant in Branson Mo, to use the left over baked potatoes from the day before. Just grate and fry! Works really well sense they are precooked.
Great idea!!! 🙂
Do you know what happens if you do not rinse the potatoes? Just curious to what the starch could do if it stayed there, squeezing as much liquid from it but not rinsing with water.
Thanks 🙂
Removing excess starch makes them crisp up, if you leave it on they will stay mushy. 🙂
Thanks 😀
They look great! I’ll have to try this method.
I do mine differently regarding the potatoes, …in the beginning – I bake the potatoes the night before, let them cool on the counter, then refridgerate over night. Right before making the potatoes, I get them from the fridge, grate them into a big bowl and mix them with all the other seasonings, onion, etc. Then I fry them in a little corn oil or Earth Balance butter.
I love learning of other folk’s methods and also love trying them – thanks!!
Yes, endless ways to do them! I hope you enjoy them, Carol 🙂