Corned Beef Hash: The best way to use leftover corned beef is in this corned beef hash recipe that offers crispy potatoes, fried eggs, and is all cooked in a single skillet for easy cleanup.
While I love making Corned Beef for St. Patrick’s Day, we inevitably have some leftover as we feast on Colcannon, Irish Soda Bread, and Rainbow bundt cake, and all things St. Patrick’s Day. So what is the best way to use up that leftover corned beef? Corned Beef Hash!
Why is it called corned beef hash?
What is corned beef hash? Corned beef hash is a skillet cooked mixture of potatoes, onions, peppers, and leftover corned beef. It is topped with an egg for a hearty breakfast feast.
Why is it called corned beef hash? Corned beef is made from beef brisket that is salt-cured. Which means the meat is treated with large-grained rock salt, also called “corns” of salt. Hash is a term used to describe a mixture of chopped meats and potatoes that are usually skillet fried. The term “hash” is derived from the French word “hacher” which means “to chop”. So chopped ingredients.
So in this case, corned beef hash is named corned beef hash because it is a hash where the chopped meat is corned beef.
Do the Irish eat corned beef hash?
The origins of corned beef hash can be traced back to Europe and specifically the United Kingdom, with variations being made in England, Scotland and Ireland. However, this is an Americanized version.
The reason this is not actually an Irish dish, but is often used to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day is corned beef is not considered an Irish national dish. This might surprise you since it is so traditional for Americans to eat it on St. Patrick’s Day along with things like Green St. Patrick’s Day Fudge. However, the connection to the holiday is due to those Irish who immigrated to America. During the late 19th century, Irish-American immigrants often substituted corned beef for bacon. And thus it became associated with them and their celebrations.
What is corn beef made of? What part of a cow is corned beef?
Corned beef is made from brisket. Brisket is often a tougher cut of meat, so by curing the meat in large grains of rock salt, and a brine, it tenderizes it and makes it extremely tender and flavorful when it is slow cooked. So in other words, it is a brisket that has been treated.
Why is corned beef pink?
The reason this brisket is pink is due to the brining and curing process. It is done with salt water or a sodium nitrite mixture. This mixture will fix the pigment of the meat, so while typically the meat color will change as it cooks, with corned beef, the meat remains pink even after cooking.
Can you eat corned beef rare?
With beef, typically rare is going to mean more flavorful. However, corned beef tends to be the exception to the rule of wanting to eat beef on the rare side. Because corned beef is made from the brisket, which is not a very tender cut of beef, you can safely eat it at 145 degrees F internal temperature, but if you want it to be tender and delicious, it is best to cook it to longer so it will be fork tender (202 degrees is a great temp to cook to on a smoker or grill).
Is Corned Beef Hash Compliant with popular diets?
The answer is it depends on both the diet and the preparation. Some corned beef has added sugar in the brine. If sugar is added to corned beef, it would not be whole30, compliant. And because it uses potatoes it is neither Paleo or Keto compliant. However, you could swap out the potatoes for cubed turnips to make this a low carb corned beef breakfast hash. And cure your own brisket to make a compliant corned beef and subsequently corned beef hash.
Is corned beef hash healthy? How bad is corned beef for you?
While many of the components in corned beef hash are healthy, it is not the healthiest option as corned beef, while containing good amounts of vitamin B12 and zinc, it is also high in cholesterol, saturated fat, and sodium. However the added vegetables help. And it is a better breakfast option than sugar cereals. So that is really up a question of comparison.
Canned corned beef
Corned beef hash is a mixture of corned beef, onions, potatoes, etc. all cooked up so it is nice and crispy stove top. Typically you would use fresh vegetables, freshly chopped potatoes, and leftover corned beef to make this. However, some grocery stores carry a canned version. Obviously this is a recipe for homemade, and the canned version is not even going to come close to the homemade corned beef hash.
The only upside to canned corned beef hash is it is canned already cooked through, so you can technically eat it without cooking it. Though, it is usually recommended that you heat it and brown it, otherwise it is not going to be good.
Tips for How to Make Corned Beef Hash:
- To get a nice crispy exterior on potatoes, you want to make sure they are dry and your cast iron skillet is hot before you put them in it. You will cook them in the butter for 6-8 minutes until they start to get a little golden brown crust, and the insides are becoming tender.
- When figuring out how to make corned beef hash well I discovered a big trick to getting crispy results that don’t stick to the pan and make a mess is to spread the butter around and cook at a medium high heat. This is one of the problems typically with homemade corned beef hash, it can stick to the skillet. A preheated, well greased pan, at a good temperature helps a lot.
- Cooking corned beef hash is best done in a skillet. However, there are alternative cooking methods. You could slow cook it, or bake it. I find that you get the crispiest version with the most flavor when cooked in a skillet.
What to Serve with Corned Beef Hash
Corned beef hash is basically a stand alone breakfast, but I love serving it with a tall glass of green smoothie to keep the fun theme of Green and St. Patrick’s Day alive.
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Corned Beef Hash
Ingredients
- 6 tablespoons butter divided
- 8 ounces cooked corned beef diced
- 1 cup white onion finely chopped
- 1 bell pepper finely chopped
- 2 cups baking potatoes peeled and cubed
- 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large eggs
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 2 Tbs fresh parsley chopped small
Instructions
- Heat 3 Tbs Butter in a medium skillet over high heat. Add the cubed potatoes, and cook until they start to get tender, about 6-8 minutes.
- Add corned beef and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, until it releases some fat and browns slightly, about 3 minutes.
- Add in the onion, bell pepper and cook, undisturbed, until potatoes begin to get brown and crisp on the bottom, about 5 minutes.
- Continue cooking, stir the hash to help it brown evenly, about 10 more minutes.
- Meanwhile, heat remaining butter in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the eggs sunny-side up or over easy; season with salt and pepper.
- To serve, divide hash onto 4 plates, and top each portion of hash with a fried egg. Garnish with fresh parsley and salt and pepper to taste.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Our recipe card software calculates these nutrition facts based on averages for the above ingredients, different brands, and quality of produce/meats may have different nutritional information, always calculate your own based on the specific products you use in order to achieve accurate macros for this recipe.
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Courtney says
So delicious and so easy – this is my new go-to!
Anna says
This hash was fantastic! Great idea for leftover corned beef!
lauren kelly says
I can’t wait to make this again! It’s such a great recipe!
Jen says
My husband orders this for breakfast when we go out. It’s his favorite. I’m going to surprise him with this at home this weekend, thanks,
Jocelyn says
Perfect with my eggs. Delicious!