Hot Potato

Of all the foods in the diner breakfast pantheon, it's hash browns that deserve more attention; what with bacon hogging the spotlight (looking back, that's a truly awful pun; sorry about that), even sausage has been relegated to the background, coming to prominence only infrequently on things like biscuits, but the minimal attention paid to sausage puts it on the C-list compared to the scoop-it-off-the-grill-and-forget-about-it nature of breakfast potatoes.

Potatoes have, in general, been stuck at the side of the plate for too long, which is a shame considering all the tasty things you can do to them - they're even good boiled, a fate I wouldn't usually reserve to the blandest of foods.

To hell with that, I say. Attention must be paid to potatoes, and breakfast is as good a place as any to start.
The diner breakfast trifecta is familiar the country over - eggs on one third of the plate, meats on another third and potatoes on the remaining third. This recipe brings the starch to the forefront by putting it smack-dab in the middle of the plate with everything else catering to it, for once. You'll notice that the proportions are similarly balanced in the potatoes' favor as well.

Ingredients:

• 1 mediumish potato, cubed
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp butter

• Pinches of Rosemary, Parsley and Thyme
• Dashes of Paprika and Celery Salt
• Salt and Pepper

• 1 Egg
• 1 tbsp half-and-half
  

optional:

• 1 cup (or so) sliced smoked hot Chorizo
• 2 dashes of Louisiana hot - Frank's, etc.
  

The Gist:

Melt the butter in a pan with the olive oil over medium heat, and throw in the potato and onion once the butter is bubbling. Toss to combine.

Potatoes are hardy starches - you're going to have to cook them for awhile at a relatively low temperature to simultaneously cook them and keep them from burning, about 10-15 minutes should do it. Add the spices and chorizo (if you went that way) halfway through - if you ever wondered what makes diner hash browns that distinctive slight-orange color, by the way, it's the butter and the paprika.

Once the potatoes are cooked, beat an egg with the half-and-half, pinches of salt and pepper and, if you like, the hot sauce. Pour into the pan directly over the potatoes and tilt the pan around for an even distribution. Don't touch it after that, just let it cook for 3 to 4 minutes. The eggs will be cooked through but slightly soft on one side, the potatoes will be fork-tender and the sausage will be warm and slightly crispy.

Serve with coffee and, if you think you can deal with the added starch, toast.

Notes:

• Chorizo translates to "sausage," but in practice (in the United States at least) Chorizo is almost always sold smoked, not raw. If the chorizo you have is raw, you'll need to cook it first.
• Sour cream can be substituted for the half-and-half. So can water; it's just a stretching agent.
• And speaking of sour cream, it works wonders here as a garnish.
• So does grated cheddar.
  

This recipe results in a diner-sized portion - I can eat this much by myself without so much as blinking, though you could probably feed two normal people with it. If you're cooking for two hungry people, add another egg and you should be fine. I serve it on one plate with two forks, but that's me.