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How to Make Hash Browns in a Waffle Iron

This is definitely a “waffle” unlike any you’ve ever had before…

I love making homemade hash browns, but even in a non-stick pan, they always stick. Often, I would end up with more hash browns permanently affixed to the bottom of my pan than on my plate. Then the other day, I saw a picture online that showed how to make hash browns in a waffle iron and I immediately ran into my kitchen to try it. And… it worked! Not only did it work, but the hash browns were more perfectly cooked than in any other method I’ve tried, with virtually no oil, in 5 minutes, and nearly instant cleanup. Would it be too hyperbolic to say this discovery has permanently changed my life for the better?

So for this recipe, I wanted to celebrate my newfound hash brown cooking technique by kicking it up a bit. There’s the grated hash brown potatoes, of course, but we’re adding a bunch of other awesome ingredients like black beans and cheesy nutritional yeast to make this one epic breakfast hash brown waffle.

Waffle_Hash

Makes 4 servings

Ingredients:

  • 2-3 cups grated potatoes
  • 1 16 oz can black beans
  • 1 green bell pepper
  • 1/3 white onion
  • 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
  • Salt & pepper to taste

Step One

Gather all the ingredients. You can use frozen grated potatoes (easiest) or make them yourself by actually grating a potato or two. Either way, ensure that the grated potatoes are at room temperature so they are more pliable. Also rinse and drain a can of black beans, chop a green bell pepper, chop a white onion, and measure a few tablespoons of nutritional yeast (which adds a wonderful cheesy flavor), as well as some salt and pepper.

Step Two

Start preheating the waffle iron and (optionally) add just a dab of vegetable oil to prevent sticking. Meanwhile, add all these ingredients into a mixing bowl and toss well. When the iron is hot, add a few handfuls of the mixture onto the iron, trying to spread evenly. It should be quite a bit thicker than typical waffle batter, as it will cook down.

Step Three

Close the lid and press down firmly (ideally, set something heavy on top, like a mortar and pestle) to compact the ingredients. Allow to cook for at least 5 minutes (ignoring the signal that says the “waffle” is done). Open the lid occasionally to ensure it’s not burning. When the top is browned and crispified, the hash browns are officially done.

Step Four

In full disclosure, it is nearly impossible to pull these hash browns out in one perfect waffle shape. I tried all morning to create different techniques that would hold together, using flax, flipping the iron upside down, etc. It didn’t work (but if you have any ideas, please let me know). The fact is, however, that these hash browns are more perfectly cooked than any other method I’ve used and the cleanup is almost nonexistent. Take one bite and it won’t matter if they’re scrambled together or shaped like a waffle.

NOTE: as readers have suggested, adding 1-2 tablespoons of whole wheat flour to the mixture before cooking will result in waffles that are much easier to remove in one piece. Thanks, guys!

Optionally top with salt, pepper, and some salsa or hot sauce for a pretty incredible breakfast.

Waffle_Hash_Plate

Waffle_Hash_Half

52 Comments

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    • You’re so welcome Lydia! 🙂 Although, I have found frozen hash browns that are literally “one ingredient” with just potatoes – no salt, no additives, etc. I love using those because they’re faster and still just as natural as fresh potatoes.

  1. Ooo we HAVE to figure out a way to get them to stay together and come out all pretty! Hmmmm…. BUT beautiful pictures!! These look great.

    • Definitely! Experiment all you want and let me know if you come up with anything! 🙂 One idea I haven’t tried is adding a little water and flour to the mixture, which will bind the hash browns so they don’t fall apart. Possibly? I might try that this week…

      • I just made the potato waffles. Crispy and very good tasting. Everyone gave raving reviews! They were GREAT!!!! They held their shape just like waffles. All I did was add 2 Tbs. of flour and mixed with my hands. I did not add water as the juice came from the potatoes. I did bake them for approx. 10 min Thanks for the recipe! I share your website with my friends as they enjoy it as much as I do.

        • Very cool, Janet! Thanks so much for reporting back with that suggestion. I’m definitely trying the flour idea this weekend. Fingers crossed that they’ll hold together for me too! 🙂

    • As a binder for this dish, you might like to make a “flax egg” by combining 1 Tbs. ground flax seed and 3 Tbs. warm water and letting it sit until it gels. It should work. Obviously, you need more, increase the recipe to 2 Tbs ground flax seed addd to 6 Tbs water.

    • Not a dumb question at all! Nutritional Yeast is a deactivated yeast that’s sold as light yellow flakes. It’s very nutritious (hence the name) and has a wonderful cheesy flavor. It can be sprinkled on popcorn, folded into sauces (see my kale chips), or added to dishes like this. It’s actually quite easy to find these days at any healthier grocery store (i.e. Whole Foods).

  2. I never, ever, ever comment on posts like this, but I just had to tell you that you are truly helping me change my perspective on food! I’m just beginning on a whole foods plant based journey and I LOVE your concepts and your website so much. So – THANK YOU!

    • Oh, that just made my day, Jennifer! I’m so glad you’ve found my crazy recipes & ideas valuable. I’ll keep them coming! 😀

  3. My Mom is Belgian. I used to love when she would make the big Belgian waffles for us as a treat. I personally haven’t had a waffle iron in decades. But this could inspire me to be on the look out for one. Once again, I am a fan of simplicity. I like the combo of the few ingredients used, not to mention the texture you are getting w/o much oil. I promote what I call the SAS approach~Simple, Affordable, & Sustainable. Your recipes fit the bill. I will do a post soon and link to your blog. Will have to look at the pumpkin waffle recipe as well. Duo motivation to go crazy for a waffle iron! ~Tracy

    • Awesome, Tracy! I try to keep my kitchen appliances to a minimum, but a waffle iron can be a great thing to have on hand (for many reasons) 🙂

  4. I bet this would make great potato pancakes. Add a bit of whole wheat flour and a flax egg. And a touch of allspice. Will try as soon as I can find a waffle iron.

  5. My oven needs a new control panel that won’t be in for 3-5 days so this recipe was perfect for tonight! My 8 and 11-year old daughters even got in on the action and shredded all the potatoes (which was a big job given that I had to double the recipe for our family of 6!)

    • That’s awesome, Kate! I’m so glad this recipe worked out for you in a pinch (cooking without an oven is always rough…) 😀

      • Ok, my whole comment must not have gone through last time. I asked if there was a way to print your recipes? I use multiple food blogs and recipe sites, so I like to print them and put in a binder.

        • Definitely! Right under the post content there’s little square buttons to share on Twitter, Pinterest, etc. The last one is a print icon. Click that and you’ll get a window with printing options!

  6. I prefer savory breakfasts, so I was intrigued by this recipe. I made it this morning, except I used sweet potato and a jalapeño instead of green pepper, and it came out really well. I had some avocado slices on the side. Yum! This is definitely a keeper. The worst part was trying to dig out some of the veggie pieces from the grooves of the waffle iron.

    • Ooh, that sounds awesome, Staca! I love the idea of sweet potatoes here (and I’m glad to hear they turned out well!) I’ll have to try that soon. Haha, I had the same problem of trying to dig out every last crispy bit from the grooves 🙂

  7. I just made these and they were perfect! I even got them to come out of the waffle maker still looking like a waffle! Thank you for the amazing idea!!

    • Awesome, Victor! I don’t know if yours held together without flour, but as other have mentioned in the comments above, I tried adding a little whole wheat flour to my latest batch and voila! – they come out in one whole, perfect waffle.

  8. Brand new plant-based eater here. I have been scouring the Internet for cooking inspiration & really love what I am seeing on your site! Thanks for your hard work in sharing all your amazing food!

    • Hi Karyn, Welcome to the wonderful world of plant-based cooking! Thanks so much for the kind words, I’m happy you found my site 😀

  9. I will try this my gr/daughter just found out about using a waffle iron to cook with. Another thing I really like the way you do reply to all of these comment–so many sites do not Thanks!

    • Haha, bummer! It would work just find in any other cooking method, you will just have a scramble instead of a waffle 😉

  10. It smells fantastic when the stuff is in waffle iron. Unfortunately for me it didn’t work at all. It wasn’t even a scramble, it was a big mess. I’ve tried to do the rest in a pan but no luck there either.

    Thanks for all those great recipes! I’m snacking my way through your recipes and I just finished a dish of our tomato and chickpea curry. It was delicious.

    I also mentioned you on my blog a bunch of times, recently here

    http://gruenish.com/2015/02/17/bulk-life-upgrade/

    • Oh bummer! I made these a few nights ago for dinner and they turned out really well once again, I couldn’t imagine why it didn’t work for you (especially if it wouldn’t cook in a pan either…). I’m glad you’ve been enjoying my recipes and thanks for the shoutout! 🙂

        • I used raw hashbrowns that I bought frozen. Then I thawed them briefly (so they would be softer and easier to mix). It probably would not work to start out with cooked potatoes.

  11. Andrews, you mention the social share and print icons. I’m not seeing them on your posts. Did you turn this feature off? I’m like Kate I like to print them and save them so I them handy.

  12. I have been waffling potatoes for some time but didn’t think to add beans etc, Love the thought to add N.Y. to keep it dairy free for my lactose Intolerant daughter. BTW some variations could be sub sweet potatoes or spaghetti squash.

    • I think I’ve tried that, if I remember, and it works well. I’d prefer wheat flour for this, but you might be able to get by with GF flour as well.

    • Ah, I don’t really have a favorite. I recently got a new one that has removable plates so that they can be more easily cleaned, which is nice. But I’d check out reviews on Amazon and go with whatever fits your price/need.

  13. Very interesting combination for hash browns … with the black beans.
    I always add flour when making the hash browns … makes a huge difference!!
    I will tweak a little and try it out. Thanks for sharing.

  14. This was SO yummy! I ate it all so fast! You can feel good about eating vegetables, beans, and seasonings disguised as hash browns…The only issue I ran into was the cooking method. I was really excited to try cooking it in a waffle iron until I tried it. It was a disaster! Everything stuck terribly to the waffle iron and was almost impossible to clean. It did cook quite well though. I finally let the rest finish cooking the old fashioned way in a pan. Is there anything that I did wrong for it to not work very well in the waffle iron?
    Thanks

    • Ah, I’m sorry they stuck. I’ve always been worried about that, but actually never had it happen.Two things might help (assuming you’re starting with a clean non-stick waffle iron) … 1) I hate using oil or cooking spray but they will help. 2) don’t open it until you think they’re super done (way longer than your waffle iron’s done indicator). As they cook, the outside will harden and be less likely to stick.

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