Potatoes O'Brien
Potatoes O'Brien- A simple, pan fried side dish made of potatoes, bell peppers, and onion perfect for any breakfast table.
April 30, 2021 by Nicole Collins
I love recipes that can be more than what they were intended to be.
Cooking for one, I oftentimes end up eating the same thing 3 or 4 days in a row. So, I have to get creative with leftovers so that I don't scowl at my food out of boredom every time I have to eat it.
Today's recipe is one of those recipes that I've eaten a million times from the freezer section of the grocery store. But making it from scratch myself, it took me a couple tries to get the measurements right. And that means pounds and pounds of potatoes that I had to figure out how to eat.
I know...that sounds like a real problem, right? How in the world will I ever make myself eat all these potatoes.
Well 3 rounds and 5 pounds of potatoes later, you better believe I needed to find different ways to eat this recipe.
The good news is, these potatoes are amazing in a breakfast hash, as the base of a soup, and just as they were intended as a side dish.
The other good news is that all those endless days of potato eating led us to me having the perfect recipe to share with you today.
So today, we're making Potatoes O'Brien!
This classic side dish has stood the test of time, and it's no wonder. It's simple, versatile, and super delicious! With only 3 main ingredients and a couple pantry spices, we have a savory side dish that's perfect for breakfast, lunch, or dinner!
Let's talk potato. We're using my all time favorite potato as the star of the show...the yukon gold potato! Yukon golds are the ultimate potato in my book; because they're smooth, they're buttery, and they have super thin skins that don't need to be peeled first. So we'll dice our potatoes in little ½ inch squares which will help them cook fairly quickly, and they'll get the first round of cooking in our skillet.
We're going to cook our potatoes in a large non stick skillet in a mix of butter and olive oil. The butter adds that rich flavor that we associate with potatoes while the olive oil helps to raise the smoke point of the fat so that the butter doesn't burn. Once we have the potatoes in the skillet, we're going to season them with a simple spice blend of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. Then, we'll cover them up and let them cook for about 15 minutes until they're mostly softened on the inside and starting to form a crispy crust on the outside.
Once the potatoes are mostly cooked through, it's time to add our other veggies. We're going to add in a red and green bell pepper along with some yellow onion that's been diced to a similar size to our potatoes. They'll go right in the pan with the potatoes, and they won't take more than another few minutes to soften up and marry perfectly with our potatoes.
After the veggies have finished cooking, we're all done! Our easy side dish made with the humblest of ingredients is ready to devour. These potatoes are perfectly soft on the inside while having just a little bit of crisp on the outside. The peppers and onions keep a nice bite to them which adds the perfect contrast of texture. And the simple spice blend that we used to season the potatoes permeates the whole dish making these perfectly savory and delicious.
For me, I've always eaten Potatoes O'Brien for breakfast. Sometimes, I use it as the base of a hash and mix some scrambled eggs and breakfast meat right in. Sometimes, I serve it as the base of a breakfast bowl and top it with fresh avocado and a poached egg. Sometimes, I use it as a filler in a breakfast taco. But, this also works amazingly as your starchy side dish to any protein dinner. The flavors are so traditional and classic that they pair well with pretty much anything.
The version that you buy in the freezer section of the grocery store is great and all, but nothing can beat fresh and homemade!
Ok, everyone! It just hit me that tomorrow is the first day of May, and that means that we are officially phasing out of stick to your ribs comfort food mode for a while. Though, these potatoes will never get taken off the menu.
I hope you all enjoy, have a great weekend, and let's eat!
Potatoes O'Brien
Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 ½ lbs yukon gold potatoes, diced into ½ inch pieces
1 red pepper, diced into ½ inch pieces
1 green pepper, diced into ½ inch pieces
1 large yellow onion, diced into ½ inch pieces
1 ½ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp garlic powder
1 ½ tsp paprika
¾ tsp pepper
Directions:
Add butter and olive oil to a large non stick skillet over medium high heat. Once the butter has melted, add potatoes, salt, garlic powder, paprika, and pepper. Toss well to fully coat the potatoes. Cover and cook for 15 mins, stirring every 4-5 mins to prevent the potatoes from burning.
Add peppers and onion to the potato mix. Toss well to combine. Cook uncovered for an additional 7-10 mins, stirring every few mins, until the veggies are softened and just start to crisp up on the edges. Serve!
Recipe notes:
*If you're not serving all of these at once, leftovers are best when reheated in a non stick skillet over medium high heat.
*These potatoes are a great side dish for breakfast or dinner! I love making a breakfast hash with these potatoes that involves topping them with avocado and a runny egg.
