Chicken Hash With Sweet Potato, Rotisserie Shortcuts and Edges That Brown

8:20 on a Saturday morning, the skillet hot, the shredded rotisserie chicken from last night's bird in a bowl, and someone who stayed over wondering what that smell is. This chicken hash is the answer: sweet potato, onion and chicken in one pan, about 34 minutes, and no one has to put real pants on. It is the breakfast you make for the person you would like to see again.

Crisp edges, soft middles, and a skillet that does it all.

A hash is a pan of leftovers dressed up for brunch, and this one starts with the leftovers: a rotisserie chicken, shredded, plus two sweet potatoes and an onion diced small. The sweet potatoes go in first so they have the time they need, the onion follows, and the chicken goes in last, only long enough to heat through. Parsley goes in at the end, and it is breakfast.

How to make it

1. Shred the meat from 1 rotisserie chicken to yield about 1.25 lb about 5 minutes.
2. Dice 2 whole sweet potatoes and 1 whole onion into small cubes about 5-8 minutes.
3. Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.
4. Add the diced sweet potatoes and cook 10 minutes until tender.
5. Add the diced onion and cook 4 minutes more.
6. Stir in the 1.25 lb shredded rotisserie chicken and cook 5 minutes until heated through.
7. Season with salt and black pepper then stir in 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley.
8. Cook 2 minutes more to blend flavors.

Notes

Cooked leftovers keep three to four days refrigerated, per USDA FSIS. Store the hash in a covered container once it has cooled.

This chicken hash reheats best in a skillet rather than a microwave, so the edges crisp again. A little oil in a hot pan for a few minutes will do it. It also works as a make-ahead breakfast, since the whole thing can be cooked the night before and warmed up in the morning. Freezing is possible, though the sweet potato softens, so it is better eaten within a few days.

The method asks you to dice 2 whole sweet potatoes and 1 whole onion into small cubes, and small matters. Cubes about the size of a thumbnail cook through in the 10 minutes the method gives them, while big chunks are still firm in the middle when the chicken goes in.

Shred the rotisserie chicken first, because it takes about 5 minutes, and the method wants about 1.25 pounds of shredded meat. Pull off the skin and discard the bones. The skillet moves quickly once it is hot, so it helps to have everything ready next to the stove.

Season at the end, after the chicken goes in. The method seasons with salt and black pepper, then stirs in 2 tablespoons of chopped parsley and cooks 2 minutes more to blend the flavors. A rotisserie bird already carries a lot of salt, so taste before you add the full amount.

On SwipeCart this is the swipe for the morning after, when nobody is asking for a performance but everyone is hoping for something hot.

The pan itself matters more than it looks. A heavy skillet holds heat and browns the cubes, while a thin one tends to steam them. If you have cast iron, this is the recipe for it. Keep the heat at medium as the method says, because turning it up to rush the sweet potatoes just burns the outsides and leaves the middles hard.

Swaps that actually work

The sweet potato is the point of a good chicken hash. It is the sweet, soft counterweight to the savory chicken. If you swap in Yukon gold or russet, the cook time may change and the hash will be less sweet, so check a cube before the chicken goes in.

The rotisserie chicken can be any cooked chicken, such as leftover roast or poached breast, shredded the same way. If you only have raw chicken, cook it first, since the method assumes the chicken starts out cooked and only needs to heat through.

Olive oil can be avocado oil or butter, and parsley can be chives or scallions. A pinch of smoked paprika or a little cumin, added with the salt, gives the hash more of a savory edge. Diced bell pepper can go in with the onion for color.

A fried or poached egg on top is not in the recipe, but it turns the hash into a proper brunch, and the yolk becomes the sauce.

The swap that costs you the dish is overcrowding the skillet. If the pan is too small, the cubes steam in a pile and turn soft, so use the widest skillet you have, or cook in two batches.

If it goes wrong

It is mushy. The pan was crowded, or the cubes were too small and stirred too often. Spread the hash out, turn the heat up a little, and leave it undisturbed for a couple of minutes to crisp up.

The sweet potatoes are still hard. The cubes were too big or the pan was too cool. Add a splash of water, cover for 2 minutes to steam them, then uncover and let the water cook off.

It is dry. The chicken has been in the pan too long. Stir in a spoonful of oil or a splash of broth, and take it off the heat sooner next time.

It tastes flat. Salt, and a squeeze of lemon or a dash of hot sauce. Taste a forkful with a bit of everything in it before you add more.

What to serve with it

The default beside chicken hash is an egg, any way you like it. A runny yolk is the best sauce a hash can have.

The better version is the hash on a plate with sliced avocado and a spoonful of salsa or hot sauce beside it, and a side of fruit.

The thing in the fridge that lifts it is a spoonful of plain yogurt or sour cream, and a handful of chopped scallions.

It makes a good lunch the next day, reheated in a hot skillet, or packed cold into a tortilla.

Why this one earns its place

Breakfast for the person who stayed is a small romance of its own, and chicken hash is the dish that says you can do more than toast. It uses what is already in the fridge, and it feeds three without needing a plan.

Swipe it into the week and the agent can shop the sweet potatoes, onion, parsley and the chicken. If you want eggs involved, pesto eggs is a fast way to get them, crispy bacon and egg breakfast tacos is the other brunch worth having ready, and meal planning to cut food waste is a good read for what to do with the rest of the rotisserie chicken.

More like this: all American recipes in Crave Corner.