Sweet Potato Hash Browns Skillet Breakfast

If there’s one thing that rarely seems to disappoint me, it’s hash browns.

Even the cheap ones you can buy from the freezer section of the supermarket. You can’t really seem to go wrong with potato and onion, especially when there’s some cheese melted on top. And that’s coming from someone who takes food pretty seriously.

We’re in Turkey right now, where breakfasts are very different from the regular fare in the UK or in the States. Here locals eat a mix of meats, breads, cheeses, olives, tomatoes and cucumber. Delicious, healthy even, but it’s just not a pancakes and waffles type place.

Which makes me kind of sad.

I’ve had to resort to making us pancakes in the apartment we’re renting (remember I told you about the distinct lack of ovens in Turkey?), but I’m sad knowing that I won’t be able to make this sweet potato hash browns skillet breakfast while we’re here.

Similar to my Waffle-House style hash browns, this consists of grated sweet potato, cooked with red onion, spinach and green peppers, topped with eggs and then finished off in the oven to give it a crispy edge. I guess I could cook it on the stovetop, but there’s something about the crispy edges that make it even tastier to me.

It was a brainchild of mine after I found us with only a couple of days left in our kitchen in Brussels and with a fridge full of leftovers and halves of vegetables. Needless to say, it worked out damn well.

The trick with this one-pan dish is to not overcook the eggs. The first time I cooked them in the oven, they came out hard, even though they looked shiny and delicious. This was because their colour and appearance fooled me into believing that they weren’t cooked through, so I left them in too long. Just remember when you put them in that eggs cook quickly no matter what the dish, but especially when put in a hot oven. I’d suggest no more than a couple of minutes, or as soon as the whites have turned an opaque white colour.

Sweet Potato Hash Browns Skillet Breakfast

Recipe by Julia

Servings

2

servings

Prep time

10

minutes

Cooking time

35

minutes

Ingredients

• 1 small red onion, diced

• 1/2 green pepper, diced

• 1 sweet potato, rinsed, peeled and grated

• Handful of fresh spinach, roughly chopped

• 1/2 cup of grated cheese

• 2 eggs

Directions

• Preheat the oven to 180C (350F).
• Put a little buttter or oil in a large skillet and cook the onions and pepper on a medium heat until softened.
• Add the grated sweet potato and cook on a low heat until softened (this should take around 10 to 15 minutes). To speed up the softening process, you can cover the pan with a lid and allow the steam to work its magic.
• Add the spinach to the pan and cook for only a minute or two, until the spinach is wilted and soft.
• Remove the pan from the heat and sprinkle the grated cheese over the top. Then crack the two eggs into the pan on top of all the other ingredients.
• Immediately slide the pan onto a shelf of the oven and cook for around 5-10 minutes, or until the egg whites have turned an opaque white colour (keep an eye on this as you don’t want your eggs to become rubbery).
• Remove from the oven and serve straight from the pan.