Chorizo Hash with Poached Eggs

Eye-shaped eggs courtesy of my egg cooker.  I cannot poach eggs, but I have lots of experience watching eggs explode into amoebas and octopi in simmering water. 

Hash is, perhaps, the easiest thing to cobble together in the half-eye-open hours of early weekend mornings.  Besides, of course, pouring a bowl of cereal or heading to the local bagel shop. Which are both fine options, I should add, for a weekday, when time is short and work is looming.  But when Saturday morning rolls around, why not shed the "rush rush rush" schedule of a work week and instead seize the lazy morning as your ample reward.  Celebrate this reward by taking the time to make a real meal for breakfast.

On the weekends, time becomes more amorphous, certainly more plentiful, and what seems daunting before work becomes a welcome task and way to welcome the two work-free days ahead.  For me, anyway.  Waking up Saturday in the early morning hours seems like gaining back time that was lost to desks, e-mails, faxes and other "have-tos" throughout the week.  Stretching our the limbs, starting the coffee pot, and grabbing a paper are weekend morning rituals designed to honor the laziness our busy bee butts earn the week through.

We didn't end up doing it, but wrapping this up in tortillas with chihuahua cheese would have been an awesome secondary taste exploration...

So just eating cereal seems a too quick way to begin my first work-free day.  Instead, it's the day for testing my patence, pulling out the cutting board, and savoring the few times a week where I'm awake and actually enjoying the morning.  Next comes the hard decision--savory or sweet?  A decadent, syrupy french toast, or a cheesy, hearty omelette?  Pull out the waffle maker or the bacon?  How do you choose between these equally delicious options?

You don't.  You take turns.  So the pumpkin waffles a few weeks back took sweet's turn, and today it was savory's chance to shine.  An omelette sounded too eggy, a breakfast burrito just a bit too...much.  Then, a light bulb went off...HASH!

Hash is perhaps the easiest thing in the world to make for breakfast.  Don't let an ill-advised, greasy bite of canned corned beef hash (served in second-rate diners the country over) turn you off from what hash can potentially be.  In its essence, it is simply potatoes, onions, peppers, and (if desired) meat sauteed together, and topped with a poached egg, the runny yolk of which coats the humble hash with a golden crown of rich, silky glory.  Plus, it give veggies and potatoes the starring roll, letting eggs have some free time too.

Corned beef hash aside, it's variable and adapts to whatever you may have in the pantry.  Just keep the potatoes and onions, and swap out the protein and veggies at will.  Several months back I made a fancy-pants version with asparagus and pancetta instead of peppers and corned beef.  I've been wanting to try a version with apples and bacon, and I think red peppers and salami would make a nice pair as well. This morning, though, a brand-new package of chorizo beckoned.  Mexican hash it was.

The cooking method is simple as well.  Dice everything pretty finely.  Brown the protein first, then reserve and wipe out the skillet.  Fry & steam the potatoes to give them a head start, then add the remaining veg and sautee until browned.  Throw the protein back in, toss together, season and serve. Easy peas.

Just ignore the shape of the poached eggs, which I cooked in my egg cooker.  Poaching eggs is a fancy chef's skill that I just don't have mastered.  An over-easy egg would be just as good, and a hell of a lot less fussy, if you don't have the world's awesomest egg cooker like me.

Chorizo Hash with Poached Eggs
Serves 2-3 for breakfast

2 oz chorizo
4 small/medium red or new potatoes, scrubbed and diced
1 shallot, chopped
1/2 large green pepper, diced
Salt & Pepper
Poached eggs, for serving

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Spray with cooking spray, then cook the chorizo, breaking up with a spoon, until well browned.  Remove to a bowl and reserve.

Wipe excess grease out of the skillet (but leave a little to flavor and cook the potatoes), the add potatoes and season liberally with salt and pepper.  Cover skillet and cook 5-7 minutes, stirring/flipping occasionally, until starting to brown and soften.

Push potatoes to one side of the skillet and add shallots and peppers to the other. Season, then sauté in the space for a few minutes (you can even slide the skillet over on the burner so that the veggies are more directly over the flame).  Once the veggies begin to soften slightly, mix the veggies into the potatoes and sauté about 5 minutes until all ingredients are well browned and softened.  Add reserved chorizo and sauté another few minutes to rewarm and allow the flavors to combine.

Serve on a plate or in a bowl, topped with poached or fried eggs.