Corned Beef Hash

Apparently, there are some serious corned beef hash snobs out there who insist that only diced corned beef brisket be used in what is really a very simple recipe.  For the rest of us that never seem to have enough corned beef left over after St. Patrick's Day, or who prefer to put their corned beef leftovers in a Reuben Sandwich, a canned version of corned beef works just as well, provided you use the right brand, and provided that you use canned corned beef, not canned corned beef hash. While the latter is ultimately more convenient because one only needs to slice and fry it in a skillet, the former will give you an ingredient to make a much homier version with a lot more flavor and texture.

Corned beef hash has been around a long time, with printed recipes archived from the 15th-Century.  The word "hash" comes from the French word hasher (pronounced ah-SHAY), which means "to chop".  Corned beef hash is, in fact, chopped corned beef with diced onions and potatoes, and served with a poached or fried egg. As usual, there are a lot of different versions on the Internet, including some that contain green peas and corn; some are prepared as a casserole and topped with cheese; others contain vegetables like carrots, green and red bell peppers.  I don't suppose there is any wrong way to make corned beef hash, but the traditional version is much simpler and I think in this case, "less is more."

According to the website Mashed from an article posted in early 2022, Canned Corned Beef Brands Ranked From Worst to Best, the best rated canned corned beef is Libby's.  Libby's was one of the earliest and is the oldest contiguous producer of canned corned beef, being around since 1869 where it was founded near the Chicago stockyards.  Today, the brand is owned by Conagra and the beef comes from South America. Conagra is a U.S. publicly traded food production and packaging company of enormous proportions, owning other classic American brands such as Orville Redenbacher, Duncan Hines, Hunt's, Birdseye, Vlasic, Pam and many more.  To their credit, they haven't changed the original recipe for Libby's Corned Beef nor the iconic shape of the trapezoidal can that still comes with an attached key to open it.

The can's unusual shape was the invention of Charles Libby in 1875, who patented the design, which made for more efficient wholesale packaging than conventional round cans, and also helped the product's release from the can when opened so it would stay whole.  I'll confess a huge sense of nostalgia when I opened my can of Libby's Corned Beef, because growing up mid-20th Century, many food products were opened with an attached key that way, including cans of peanuts, coffee and sardines.  My Number One Fan used to eat Libby's Corned Beef as a little girl, simply sliced and fried for dinner along with a couple of veggies.  This was my first time to use it in a simple corned beef hash recipe that was quite delicious. The corned beef itself is actually minced, and extremely well-suited to a skillet preparation with onions and potatoes. I classify this as a hearty breakfast dish, but there is certainly no reason why you couldn't have this for dinner.

Ingredients
1 12-oz can corned beef (like, Libby's)
2 medium Russet Potatoes, baked whole and chilled
1 medium yellow onion, finely diced
1 tbsp paprika
2 tbsp dried parsley
4-5 tbsp olive oil
salt & pepper to taste
two skillet fried eggs per serving

The Recipe
The easiest way to have your potatoes ready for this recipe is to buy the kind that have been shrink-wrapped, which you can microwave the day before you make the dish and toss in the refrigerator overnight. Take them out of the shrink-wrap before refrigerating, however, or you'll end up with soggy potatoes.

Leaving the peel intact, cut the potatoes lengthwise in half, then do so again so you have four quarters.  Slice the potato wedges perpendicularly so you have more or less even, one-inch slices.

Open the corned beef and remove from the can whole.  Using a very sharp knife, cut the small loaf into even-sized cubes.

Heat the olive oil over medium high heat and sauté the onions until they are just beginning to caramelize, 5 -7 minutes.  Add the potatoes and sauté until they are beginning to crisp up a little, about fifteen minutes.

Add the corned beef cubes, mix all the ingredients together well, then pat everything down to an even layer.  Lower the heat to medium. Sprinkle half the paprika and dried parsley on top, and season liberally with salt and freshly cracked black pepper. As it cooks, the cubes of corned beef will start crumbling and that's exactly what you want.

Allow the contents to sizzle away, undisturbed for about ten minutes.  Then using a spatula, turn everything over.  Pat down to an even layer again, and add the remaining seasonings including more salt and pepper.  Cook for another 8 - 10 minutes.  The corned beef, potatoes and onions should now be getting caramelized and crispy.  

While the corned beef hash is completing its final cooking phase, fry up some eggs in butter in a separate skillet.  Because I'm lousy at flipping an egg to make it "over-easy", I splash a bit of Worcestershire sauce in the skillet and cap it with a lid.  The tops of the eggs are steamed-cooked and when they become opaque, the eggs are ready, perfectly "over-easy" with runny yolks. Cook however many eggs you need, two per serving of corned beef hash (this recipe makes about four servings).

Dish out the corned beef with a spatula onto serving plates and top each serving with two over-easy eggs.