How do y'all make loose/patty hash browns?

[dragnlaw]

Do you happen to know if those potatoes are cooked and then shredded or shredded and then cooked?

According to my Excalibur instruction book for dehydrating potatoes.

Use new potatoes, wash and steam for 4-6 minutes.
Cut french style, in 1/4" slices, 1/8" circles or grate.
Texture: Brittle or Leathery Temperature: 125℉/52℃
Time: 6-14 hours.

I personally and honestly don't think the time to do the above is worth it. For all the prep, just grating & rinsing fresh is the same amount of work. There would be no worries as to their shelf life, just in case you didn't thoroughly dry them. I really don't see a savings.

I also don't think that the amount of sodium phosphate, caramel and annatto are in sufficient quantity for me to worry about. Considering I may only have them once (OK, sometimes twice) a week or even less. They certainly are not on my weekly shopping list.
I'd rather save the limited shelf and freezer space that I have for items more expensive than potatoes.

If it's time before supper (or whenever it is that you want them) your concern, they can be peeled, put in a bowl of water, into the fridge, and then grate when time to cook. Or peel day before, grate morning of, supper time, squeeze, dry, cook.

About the only reason I would attempt it (other than just to see how I'd do) is if you would not have access to potatoes for 6 or 8 months.

JMHO

 

[taxlady]

According to my Excalibur instruction book for dehydrating potatoes.

Use new potatoes, wash and steam for 4-6 minutes.
Cut french style, in 1/4" slices, 1/8" circles or grate.
Texture: Brittle or Leathery Temperature: 125℉/52℃
Time: 6-14 hours.

I personally and honestly don't think the time to do the above is worth it. For all the prep, just grating & rinsing fresh is the same amount of work. There would be no worries as to their shelf life, just in case you didn't thoroughly dry them. I really don't see a savings.

I also don't think that the amount of sodium phosphate, caramel and annatto are in sufficient quantity for me to worry about. Considering I may only have them once (OK, sometimes twice) a week or even less. They certainly are not on my weekly shopping list.
I'd rather save the limited shelf and freezer space that I have for items more expensive than potatoes.

If it's time before supper (or whenever it is that you want them) your concern, they can be peeled, put in a bowl of water, into the fridge, and then grate when time to cook. Or peel day before, grate morning of, supper time, squeeze, dry, cook.

About the only reason I would attempt it (other than just to see how I'd do) is if you would not have access to potatoes for 6 or 8 months.

JMHO View attachment 72870

Sometimes you make a recipe once and you like it, but don't want to go to the effort of doing it again. But you can say that you have done it. Same here.

Sometimes I have "too many" potatoes and my arthritis is acting up, so I don't want to eat them and they will go off if I don't do something with them.

 

[Kathleen]

"Dry-can" them, Taxy - if you have a pressure canner!

 

[FrankZ]

I am interested in this so I have potatoes for hashbrowns ready n the basement whenever I want them. The new sealer will handle mylar bags so once dehydrated and sealed in mylar it should have a really nice shelf life.

 

[dragnlaw]

Tired of potatoes growing eyes (other than in the spring) I've take to purchasing only 1 or 2 Russets at a time. I know, more expensive but I guess one would have to ask, just what is more expensive? 1 or 2 potatoes and you eat them all or 10 potatoes for the same price.... and then you throw out 8 of them.

 

[taxlady]

"Dry-can" them, Taxy - if you have a pressure canner!

I don't have a pressure canner. That was one of the things my first husband got when got divorced. I particularly resented that because he just wanted it for pressure cooking. He didn't need a canner for that.

 

[Janet H]

I've been watching this thread for a week or so now and today being Valentine's Day and all, I took out a small loan and am making a cheese souffle for dinner with Hash browns and a salad. The taters are about to go on the soak and I just made a blackberry vinaigrette with last years (frozen) berries.

 

[FrankZ]

I've been watching this thread for a week or so now and today being Valentine's Day and all, I took out a small loan and am making a cheese souffle for dinner with Hash browns and a salad. The taters are about to go on the soak and I just made a blackberry vinaigrette with last years (frozen) berries.

We expect pictures.

 

[dragnlaw]

Absolutely - need pictures, we need to know that the signature on that loan is really legit!

 

[caseydog]

Absolutely - need pictures, we need to know that the signature on that loan is really legit!

Dragn would probably call the bank and tell them you lied on the loan application.

CD

 

[dragnlaw]

 

[BAPyessir6]

Oh. I forgot to post my results. So! I tried to make dehydrated potatoes. These are my findings.

I took potatoes, peeled them, then boiled and froze them. I then, after freezing, took them out of the freezer and attempted to grate them, and finally dehydrate, cause I figured that boiling then grating would be easier to control the probability of "overcooking" as opposed to shredding, then boiling, then dehydrating.

Well, I was wrong. Frozen potatoes don't grate even with a good amount of thawing. . .they turn to mush. Basically freezing destroys the cells and makes them impossible to shred, at least for me. Made great mashed potatoes though!

Up next, I will buy more spuds and try boiling them AFTER grating!

 

[BAPyessir6]

I also probably should've fridged them then grated, instead of freezing them before grating. You live and learn!

 

[taxlady]

Once, when I lived in the country, we went grocery shopping in the town. We ran into some friends and went for a meal or a drink and gabbed for a while. The temperature was minus something hideous. The groceries were in the car. When we got home, we discovered that any of our groceries that could freeze, was frozen solid. That was only a problem with the eggs and the potatoes. When the potatoes thawed, they were little bags of mush.

 

[caseydog]

Once, when I lived in the country, we went grocery shopping in the town. We ran into some friends and went for a meal or a drink and gabbed for a while. The temperature was minus something hideous. The groceries were in the car. When we got home, we discovered that any of our groceries that could freeze, was frozen solid. That was only a problem with the eggs and the potatoes. When the potatoes thawed, they were little bags of mush.

I used to have a lake property. The ex and I went down there on a somewhat regular basis. There was a nearby town named Point Blank (yes, that's a real name). It had a roadhouse that was mostly a gathering place for bikers (Harleys). My Chevy Silverado pickup was more than acceptable -- that's a redneck Mercedes. Cheap beer, and surprisingly good food, although a cardiologist would definitely disagree.

There was another town named Coldspring that had a real grocery store, and a very good volunteer fire department -- the house was struck by lightning when we weren't there, and they put it out before it burned too much, even though it was way outside of town and they were almost all volunteers. That's 5AM phone call you never want to get. They also had this cafe that had amazing country food. Burgers, chicken fried steak... all the artery clogging food Texas is known for. We would go home from a weekend there and eat nothing but salads for a week.

CD

 

[BAPyessir6]

Coming back to this forum to update! I am in the middle of the dehydrate shreds again!

So far I peeled about a dozen potatoes, shredded and soaked them in water, then boiled them in about a gallon or water for 30 seconds to kill the browning enzyme (the potato shreds turned slightly opaque during this time). I didn't want mush so I barely cooked them; a taste test as after boiling and shocking in an ice bath (basically just blanching I think is the correct term) revealed they're still a bit crunchy, but it beats mushy.

I have placed them in my dehydrating trays and will check back in a few days once they're dry!

 

[BAPyessir6]

Dehydrated stuck together grate of potato

 

[dragnlaw]

You put them in the dehydrator all on top of each other like in your picture?
Are they breaking apart OK?

 

[BAPyessir6]

Yeah they're good. Probably should've spread them out more. 12 potatoes makes lots of grated hash.
Dehydrated potato baggie.

 

[dragnlaw]

Most instructions say not to let the items overlap. I know with bananas, apples and all sorts of things really dry glued to each other if overlapped. Was sort of thinking maybe as they were shredded it wouldn't be as bad.
Although your first picture does show them fairly deep! LOL.