Hash Marks

I was reading up on the history of corned beef hash.  According to the source I was reading at the time, it was born out of leftovers of canned corned beef and had it beginnings in the United Kingdom as a cheap meal when fresh meat was scarce.  The source then went on to say that it's introduction to U.S. palates was through Hormel.  As a cook working in corporate commissaries I have seen some abysmal examples of canned corned beef hash.  They were really greasy, nasty looking, foul smelling products that left me wondering how people could eat them.  I thought the ideal of the dish was great and seemed like it would be in my top five hangover breakfast items, but I can't say I ever saw one that stirred any appetite in me.
Fast forward to Christmas Eve 2011.  A killer day at work that ended with me coming home to an empty house and my new Kentucky love, Buffalo Trace Bourbon.  Needless to say that while I was not hurting the following morning, I was a little fuzzy.  I had a great meal planned for Christmas dinner; a standing rib roast, and I needed to fuel up and get working on that feast.  Rummaging around in the fridge, I found the remains of a massive corned beef sandwich and my direction was clear.

 I grabbed a skillet, an onion, some duck fat and a couple of potatoes and set to work.  I diced the onion and got that sauteing in the duck fat.  I chopped up the corned beef which as a note of interest is where the dish gets it's name from.  Hacher in french is to chop.  I grated up the potatoes and got them ready to go into the pan.

I added the corned beef to the pan.  As it warmed through it added it own fat and juices to the pan and then began to fall apart.  In went the potatoes and as I stirred them they became coated with fat and slowly cooked through and then began to brown.

The starch from the potatoes also worked to bind the mixture together in the skillet and give it a cohesive texture.  This was taking a dish that in theory had so much potential, but in reality I had only seen sad examples of, and was lifting it to awesomeness!

Once all the little bits had cooked through and browned to perfection I plated the hash up and cracked eggs into the same skillet.  My head was clear, my focus intense, and I hadn't even had a bite yet.  A splash of hot sauce, a beer on the side, and we were good to go.

Sometimes the inspiration for greatness comes from the most unlikely places.