Salt and Vinegar Potato Hash
My favorite weekends are the ones with no plans. The Saturday mornings where you linger in bed until the desire for coffee outweighs the desire to stay curled up under the weight of the blankets. Now that the kids are a bit older we have that sort of luxury; to linger in bed, slowly sip a full cup of coffee while maybe even reading an entire article in The New Yorker. These are the things my dreams are made of.
When the first cup of coffee has reached the critical last few sips and the kids are bemoaning over their hunger that’s when I’ll start to think about what’s for breakfast. And since we’re talking about the weekend of my dreams let’s talk about the breakfast of my dreams – because while I believe that vinegar runs through my veins, Gabe, on the other hand, leaves the room when he sees me reaching for the bottle. My hope of ever starting my own pickle business are quickly put to rest when my husband gets one sniff. It’s not that he doesn’t like vinegar, I mean he married me, at this point he’s well acquainted with the fact that my vinaigrettes make the toughest person pucker. He just doesn’t like it as much as I do.
This potato hash dish of sorts turns one of my favorite flavors into a perfectly acceptable way to start the day. By boiling the potatoes in a diluted pickling solution, the vinegar flavor runs deep. The bright zip is reinforced in the end with a fresh splash of vinegar. These potatoes are adapted from a Bon Appétit recipe and on their own they’d be lovely alongside a roast chicken or a grilled steak but here I crisp up some bacon in their presence, tuck in a few eggs, scatter some scallions and call it breakfast. The next weekend you find yourself in with no plans I think you too should call it your breakfast.
Salt and Vinegar Potato Hash
2 pounds fingerling or baby Yukon Gold potatoes
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon salt, plus more for finishing
4 strips bacon cut into 1/4-inch strips
4 eggs
3 scallions, thinly slices
Freshly ground black pepper
Place the potatoes in a medium sauce pan. Add the vinegar, salt, and water to cover the potatoes by 1-inch. Bring the pot to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Cook until the potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain the water then let the potatoes cool.
When the potatoes are cool enough to handle slice them in half.
Preheat your oven to 350°F
In a large skillet (preferably cast iron) set over medium high heat add the bacon and cook until crisp. Add a splash of oil if there’s less than about 2 tablespoons bacon fat in the skillet then carefully add the potatoes and cook until crisp and golden. Turn off the heat, stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons vinegar, then nudge the potatoes to create four little nests for the eggs to rest. Crack the eggs into the pockets, sprinkle a pinch of salt over each one then slide the pan into the oven and cook until the egg white is just set. This will take about 5 to 7 minutes. Watch closely to avoid a firm yolk because what’s breakfast without a golden yellow runny yolk?
Finish with a pinch of flake salt, thinly sliced scallions, and black pepper. If you’re like me you’ll also serve this with hot sauce, particularly one with a good bit of vinegar in it.
