Pastrami Hash.
Occasionally I run across something that confuses me or is not easily defined by it's name. When I discovered Pastrami Hash I had an idea of what it is but not what it should be.What I mean is, based on my experience with corn-beef hash it's easy to extrapolate what pastrami hash is but as far as how to serve it I don't know if it's breakfast, lunch, dinner or a side dish. My first thought thought was that it's a breakfast item to be served with pancakes, eggs and bacon. My second thought was that it's a side dish to be served with dinner. As I read through the recipe I started to think that since it's large and intended to serve a group of people maybe it's a dinner. The only way to resolve my confusion was to try it in all of these scenarios to see what works and what doesn't.
The first time I made pastrami hash I decided to make it as a dinner. This is a large recipe and I thought it would be good to try it as a stand-alone dish with a salad and artisan bread. This turned out to be a good call because at four servings we were able to have seconds and still have left-overs to combine with scrambled eggs the next day for breakfast. While I'm used to having hash as a breakfast food it made a delicious and satisfying dinner.
The next time I made it I tried it as a breakfast. This is the way I know hash; with pancakes, eggs and a side of bacon. This recipe works great as a breakfast food because it will serve several people and is well-suited to Sunday brunch or Christmas and Easter breakfasts. I like this as a breakfast but to me it seems like a lot for two people.
The third and most recent way I tried Pastrami Hash was as a side dish.
My sister-in-law Elaine and her husband Mike host a New Years day dinner, this year I decided that since I had all of the ingredients on hand I would make it and take it along. As usual with Mike's cooking the dinner went well and the sense that I got from everyone was that it worked well as a side dish.
The one thing that I haven't covered yet is the pastrami component of this recipe. We are probably all familiar with pastrami but in this recipe we will be using Turkey Pastrami. You should be able to find it in the deli counter at your local grocery store. Turkey pastrami usually comes with a light coating of black pepper, if you don't like spicy food you may want to omit the tablespoon of black pepper.
So, let's jump into today's recipe.
Pastrami Hash
Prep time 18 Min. Cook time 51 Min. Serves 4
Ingredients
2 sprays cooking spray
4 medium uncooked yukon gold potatoes, cut into bite-size pieces
1-1/2 large onion, thinly sliced
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced in half
1/3 pound turkey pastrami, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup scallions, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon black pepper, or less to taste
1/2 teaspoon thyme, fresh, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
Instructions
Preheat oven to 450f. Coat a 9 X 13-inch oven-proof dish or pan with cooking spray.
Set a medium pan of water to boil over high heat. Parboil potatoes just until fork tender, about 5 to 6 minutes.
Combine potatoes, onions, red pepper, tomatoes, pastrami, scallions, salt, black pepper and thyme in prepared dish; toss with oil. Bake to desired degree of doneness rotating dish once or twice during cooking, about 30 to 45 minutes.
This recipe yields 4 servings at about 1 cup per serving.
This is a great recipe that defies you to decide what it is. I've tried it in every situation that I can think of and I still don't know if it's a breakfast, lunch, dinner or side dish. While I reserve the right to serve it anyway that I want I have to say my favorite way is as a dinner. If you try this recipe check back here and leave a comment to let me know how it turned out.
Next week - Steak with Roquefort and Mushrooms or Yes, It Is Healthy.
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