I am constantly seeing strange food hacks on the Internet and sometimes I’ve very skeptical whether or not the methods actually work. Stuff like, Hey! You can cook an egg in plastic!
But this method for Waffle Maker Hash Browns made a lot of sense to me. Waffle irons get hot and they also provide some pressure and both can be used to make really solid hash browns.
Normally, to make very crispy hash browns in a skillet, it’s going to take 20 minutes or so, but these take about 10 and are completely stress-free. Because the waffle irons are at a set temperature, it’s almost impossible to burn the hash browns. They just get crispy and beautiful.
I loved this method, especially if I’m only making hash browns for one or two.
Waffle Maker Hash Browns
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 medium Yukon potatoes, grated
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Salt and pepper
- Paprika
- 4 Eggs
Instructions
- Shred potatoes and add to a bowl of cold water. Preheat waffle iron.
- Swirl potatoes around in the cold water and drain them. Lay them out on a few paper towels and dry out the potatoes thoroughly.
- Add dried, shredded potatoes to a bowl and drizzle with olive oil and a big pinch of salt and pepper.
- When waffle maker is heated, spread out potatoes on the iron. Try not to get them too thick, but remember that they’ll shrink a bit as they cook.
- Close the waffle iron and let the potatoes cook for about five minutes. Don’t worry if the timer goes off… it’s almost impossible to over-cook these.
- After five minutes or so, flip potatoes and rotate a bit. Then drizzle with a tiny bit more oil and continue to cook them for another five minutes or so.
- Meanwhile, you can cook a few eggs in a drizzle of oil over medium heat. Either flip the eggs and cook for a few seconds on the second side so the whites set or just cover the pan and steam the eggs for 30 seconds or so so the whites are just set but the yolks are still runny.
- Slide waffle hash browns onto a plate and top with eggs. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and a pinch of smoked paprika. Serve immediately!
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
Waffle Maker Hash Browns
Prepping Potatoes
You could use Russet potatoes for these Waffle Maker Hash Browns, but I prefer Yukon potatoes for hash browns these days. You don’t even need to peel them. Just grate them up!
When the potatoes are grated, add them to a bowl with cold water. This will rinse some starch off the potatoes and make sure they are clean. Swirl around the shredded potatoes a bit to make sure they aren’t sticking together.
Then drain the potatoes and lay them out on a kitchen towel or a few paper towels. Pat them very dry.
This is probably the most important step. Get the potatoes as dry as possible at this point or else they won’t crisp up nicely in the waffle iron.
When the potatoes are dried, add them to a bowl with a drizzle of oil and a big pinch of salt and pepper.
You want the potatoes lightly coated in oil so they get nice and crispy and won’t stick to the iron.
Cooking the Hash Browns
This is pretty straight forward. Heat up the waffle iron and pile on some shredded potatoes!
These Waffle Maker Hash Browns will shrink as they cook so you can pile them on. Also, I have a very intense waffle maker that I’m in love with, but I don’t see why you couldn’t use any waffle iron for this. As long as it gets hot and you can press it down, it’ll work!
Press the hash brown down and cook it for about five minutes. It’s totally okay if the buzzer goes off for the waffle. Just ignore it. We aren’t cooking waffles, we’re cooking hash browns.
This was my hash browns about half way through.
Then flip the hash browns and cook them for another five minutes or so.
They should be a really nice golden browned color. The crispier the better!
Eggs
Eggs are the obvious serving choice with these Waffle Maker Hash Browns. I did mine sunny side up by cooking them with a drizzle of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. When the whites are set (90 seconds or so), then I just cover the pan and let the eggs steam for about 20 seconds.
Perfect sunny-side up eggs!
Serve the eggs on the Waffle Maker Hash Browns with a pinch of salt, pepper, and paprika!
If you have a hard time making hash browns that get really nicely crispy in a skillet, try this method out.
The hash browns will get crispy and it’ll leave your stove for other uses.
Plus, it’s pretty fun!
Has anyone cooked potatoes in a waffle maker before? Good right? Leave a comment!
Felicity
I don’t own a waffle iron but I’m thinking I could use my flat panini press for a similar result. What do you think? I looks like a waffle iron (sort of) but the plates are flat.
Nick
Hey Felicity, I think that would totally work. I don’t think there is a major difference between a panini press and a waffle maker that would affect this recipe.
Obviously, keep an eye on it the first time you try it, but good luck. :)
Felicity
Cheers Nick, I’ll let you know :-)
karen
wah now I need a waffle iron…I love hash browns
Son Nguyen Truong
To avoid flipping the waffle manually, you can try some flipside waffle irons like the Presto 03510 FlipSide one.
RK
I love super crispy hash browns more than I love waffles. This is such a clever idea….perhaps a waffle maker is now in my future!
Mary
Wow! What a great idea. Just wondering why you need to flip it?
Nick
Hey Mary, I flipped mine just to make sure it was cooking evenly. I also rotated mine a bit because I noticed that it was getting darker in some areas. You might not need to do it depending on your waffle maker but it doesn’t hurt. :)
Michelle
Just made these this morning – thanks for the instructions! I needed to flip and rotate mine too. The texture and consistency was perfect – my husband loved them. What I’m wondering is if I could add onion and garlic, as I typically do when I cook these on the stove (which I will probably never do again). Have you tried this? I’m wondering if the iron would burn the garlic and/or onion, and I’m also wondering if those flavors would get into the pan, thus ruining it for waffles. Thoughts? Thanks again!
Glen
Use dried granulated or powered garlic or onions…works just fine
Joy A
I tried these for lunch today and they took forever to cook. Next time I might try them in my George Foreman and see if they cook quicker. They were tasty though!
Suzy
How did they turn out, I also have a foreman grill and was wondering if it would work
Ashley
I tried these and found that the trick is to cut the potatoes very thinly or they won’t stick together as nicely. And it cooks better when cut thinly.
Sarah O.
I just made these today, and they came out pretty good! Mine did take 6-7 minutes to cook, even though I had them in a pretty thin layer so that I could close the waffle iron. Still, it was a piece of cake and I was pleased with the results.
Denise
I’m curious as to why these need to be flipped if they are cooking both sides at once. Going to try this for lunch today with a brunch casserole.
Nick
Hey Denise, you might not need to flip them depending on your waffle iron. I just thought it helped mine cook a bit more evenly. Good luck!
Yang Razlan
Thank you. I did it. Your instruction and illustration was easy and simple to follow. As a guy who live alone, getting what to eat is a major decision. So, hash brown is one of my favorite. And what a hefty breakfast i had. Thank you again.
Nick
Awesome Yang! Glad you liked it. :)
Marlene
May be good for 1 person, or 2 if you don’t eat much, but would never work if you are used to cooking a whole frying pan full for the family.
Taz
I know what I’m having for breakfast ! ! ! Yum. Toast with a slathering of butter and apricot preserves on the side? I am sooooo ready !
Brad
we cooked it this morning, enjoyed the crispness of the hash. Had an issue with the hash falling apart and not easy to slide out of the waffle maker. Had to pick up a hot waffle maker and flip it over to get the hash out.
Son Nguyen Truong
It looks delicious. I’d like to top it with tomato sauce also.
Jones
I love super crispy hash browns more than I love waffles. This is such a clever idea….perhaps a waffle maker is now in my future!
Thanks for share!
waffle maker
tuan anh
Great recipe! It looks delicious. I will use recipe for my breakfast.
SallyJoJo
Thanks for the instructions!! Just came home with a waffle maker, so many fun recipes out there for them. I bought a Cuisnart from JCP and didn’t have to do any flipping or rotating. Next time I will add some fresh onion.
Suzy
I don’t have a waffle iron anymore, but I do have a George foreman grill…think that would work?