Source video by Andy Cooks (or similar restaurant channel) on YouTube. This recipe was adapted with strict source-fidelity rules and is marked for human review.
A precision recipe that took a chef ages to dial in. Grated potato gives the strand texture, blitzed potato pulp binds it, blitzed onion adds flavour without raw bite. Everything is rinsed and squeezed bone-dry to remove starch and water (the cause of exploding hash browns). The mix sweats in butter, gets fully submerged under clarified butter as a confit at gentle bubble, then drains and seasons with onion powder, fine salt and a thickener (potato starch, cornflour or tapioca). Pressed into a tray under weight in the fridge for 4 hours (overnight better). Once set, cut into pieces and air-fried at 200°C for 8-10 minutes until ultra-crispy outside and fluffy in the middle.
Air fryer notes: Source ends with a 180°C deep-fry to crisp the pressed hash browns. Adapted for the air fryer at 200°C for 8-10 min, slightly higher temperature compensates for the air-fryer being less aggressive than oil. Confit step unchanged because it's the recipe's whole point. Don't try to freeze the pressed hash browns; cook says the residual water causes them to explode.
Ingredients
- floury potatoes (Maris Piper, King Edward, or 'a Greer'), peeled and coarsely grated
- floury potatoes, roughly chopped, then blitzed in a blender with cold water to a porridge consistency
- onion, roughly chopped, blitzed with a splash of water, then squeezed dry in a cloth
- clarified butter
- onion powder
- fine salt
- potato starch (or cornflour or tapioca starch)
Method
Peel the strand-layer potatoes and grate them on the coarse side. Tip into a large bowl of cold water and work them with your hands to release starch.
~10 minDrain. Refill with fresh cold water; repeat until the water is clear. Squeeze the grated potato dry in a clean dish cloth, hard, until no more water comes out. This is the most important step.
~8 minFor the binding layer, chop the remaining potatoes roughly and blitz in a blender with cold water to a porridge consistency. Tip into the same bowl, rinse, refill, repeat. Squeeze dry in the cloth.
~8 minBlitz the onion with a tiny splash of water until fine. Squeeze it dry in the cloth. Combine all three (strand potato, pulp potato, onion) in a bowl.
~4 minWarm half the clarified butter in a heavy pan over low heat. Add half the potato-onion mix and stir to sweat for 3-4 minutes with the lid on. Add the rest of the mix. Level it out.
~8 minPour over the remaining clarified butter so the potato is fully submerged. Cover with a parchment cartouche on top of the butter. Confit at gentle bubble (no rapid boil) for 5 minutes. Turn the slab over; another 5-10 minutes until the potato has just a touch of bite left.
~15 minStrain the potato out of the butter, lightly pressing the butter off as you go. Save the butter for re-use.
~5 minSeason with onion powder, fine salt and the potato starch. Stir to combine; the texture should be small clumps of potato in a binder.
~2 minPress into a flat tray lined with greaseproof. Cover with another sheet of greaseproof, weigh down evenly, and fridge for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight.
~240 minUnmould the set slab. Trim the outside edge, cut into squares (or triangles, or any shape).
~5 minPreheat the air fryer to 200°C. Lay the cut pieces in a single layer in the basket and cook for 8-10 minutes until deep golden and crisp. No oil spray needed; the confit holds plenty.
~10 minSeason immediately with a fine sprinkle of salt and serve.
~1 min