Hash (food)
Encyclopedia
Hash is a dish consisting of meat
, potato
es, and spice
s, that are mashed together into a smooth, creamy consistency, and then cooked either alone or with other ingredients such as onion
s.
In many locations, hash is served primarily as a breakfast food on restaurant menus and as home cuisine, often served with eggs and toast (or biscuits), and occasionally fried potatoes (hash browns, home fries
, etc.). The dish may also use corned beef or roast beef.
Corned beef hash became especially popular in some countries during and after World War II
as rationing
limited the availability of fresh meat.
, corned beef hash is a traditional cheap and quick dish dating back many years. Corned beef (beef treated with saltpetre
) is nearly always from a tin – and almost always imported from South America
. Tinned corned beef was available more plentifully during war years when fresh meat was heavily rationed – and a staple food in the armed forces. The meal is made with tinned corned beef, stirred with browned onions, before having liquid added (either gravy
or stock
, or tinned tomatoes) then having lightly boiled sliced potatoes layered over the top before being browned under a hot grill. Alternatively cubed boiled potatoes are stirred in. It can be eaten any time – but is often eaten around Ash Wednesday
(a play on words). Some recipes would add pea
s or carrots.
In Scotland
, the dish of "stovies
" is very similar to hash. There are many variations on the dish, but all consist of a base of mashed or coarsely chopped potato, with onions and leftover meat, usually minced or roast beef although there are many variations.
A really good food that has the name of a song in it.
. In the United States, September 27th is "National Corned Beef Hash Day.
Alternatively, in the southern United States
, the term "hash" may refer to two dishes:
In some areas of the United States, hashing also refers to washing dishes in general.
as "biksemad" (roughly translated, "tossed together food"), and it is a traditional leftover dish usually served with a fried egg
, worcestershire sauce
, pickled red beet
slices and ketchup
or Bearnaise sauce
. The meat is usually pork
, and the mixture is not mashed together into a paste, but rather the ingredients are coarsely diced and readily discernible in its cooked form.
In Sweden, there is a version of hash called pyttipanna
and in Finland, pyttipannu. It is similar to the Danish version, but usually served with HP Sauce
instead of ketchup, and sometimes with a raw egg yolk. The Swedish variety Pytt Bellman calls for adding cream to the hash and is named after Sweden's 18th century national bard Carl Michael Bellman
.
In Austria and perhaps more specifically Tyrol
, there exists a similar dish called "Gröstl", usually consisting of chopped leftover meats (often being pork sausage
), potato and onions fried with herbs (typically marjoram
and parsley
) and then served topped with a fried egg.
In Malaysia, a similar dish is called "bergedil". It is usually made with minced meat, potatoes, and onions, fried until brown.
In Mexico
and other Latin cuisines, there is a similar dish called picadillo
. It is made with ground meat
(usually beef), tomatoes (tomato sauce
may be used as a substitute), vegetables and spices that vary by region. It is often served with rice
or used as a filling in dishes such as tacos, tostadas, or as a regular breakfast hash with eggs and tortillas. The name comes from the Spanish
infinitive verb picar, which means "to mince" or "to chop".
In Germany there is Labskaus
.
Meat
Meat is animal flesh that is used as food. Most often, this means the skeletal muscle and associated fat and other tissues, but it may also describe other edible tissues such as organs and offal...
, potato
Potato
The potato is a starchy, tuberous crop from the perennial Solanum tuberosum of the Solanaceae family . The word potato may refer to the plant itself as well as the edible tuber. In the region of the Andes, there are some other closely related cultivated potato species...
es, and spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
s, that are mashed together into a smooth, creamy consistency, and then cooked either alone or with other ingredients such as onion
Onion
The onion , also known as the bulb onion, common onion and garden onion, is the most widely cultivated species of the genus Allium. The genus Allium also contains a number of other species variously referred to as onions and cultivated for food, such as the Japanese bunching onion The onion...
s.
In many locations, hash is served primarily as a breakfast food on restaurant menus and as home cuisine, often served with eggs and toast (or biscuits), and occasionally fried potatoes (hash browns, home fries
Home fries
Home fries, house fries, or cottage fries are a type of basic potato dish made by pan or skillet frying diced, chunked, wedged or sliced potatoes that have been par-cooked by boiling, baking, steaming, or microwaving....
, etc.). The dish may also use corned beef or roast beef.
Corned beef hash became especially popular in some countries during and after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as rationing
Rationing
Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, or services. Rationing controls the size of the ration, one's allotted portion of the resources being distributed on a particular day or at a particular time.- In economics :...
limited the availability of fresh meat.
United Kingdom
In Northern EnglandNorthern England
Northern England, also known as the North of England, the North or the North Country, is a cultural region of England. It is not an official government region, but rather an informal amalgamation of counties. The southern extent of the region is roughly the River Trent, while the North is bordered...
, corned beef hash is a traditional cheap and quick dish dating back many years. Corned beef (beef treated with saltpetre
Potassium nitrate
Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the formula KNO3. It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K+ and nitrate ions NO3−.It occurs as a mineral niter and is a natural solid source of nitrogen. Its common names include saltpetre , from medieval Latin sal petræ: "stone salt" or possibly "Salt...
) is nearly always from a tin – and almost always imported from South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
. Tinned corned beef was available more plentifully during war years when fresh meat was heavily rationed – and a staple food in the armed forces. The meal is made with tinned corned beef, stirred with browned onions, before having liquid added (either gravy
Gravy
Gravy is a sauce made often from the juices that run naturally from meat or vegetables during cooking. In North America the term can refer to a wider variety of sauces and gravy is often thicker than in Britain...
or stock
Stock
The capital stock of a business entity represents the original capital paid into or invested in the business by its founders. It serves as a security for the creditors of a business since it cannot be withdrawn to the detriment of the creditors...
, or tinned tomatoes) then having lightly boiled sliced potatoes layered over the top before being browned under a hot grill. Alternatively cubed boiled potatoes are stirred in. It can be eaten any time – but is often eaten around Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday
Ash Wednesday, in the calendar of Western Christianity, is the first day of Lent and occurs 46 days before Easter. It is a moveable fast, falling on a different date each year because it is dependent on the date of Easter...
(a play on words). Some recipes would add pea
Pea
A pea is most commonly the small spherical seed or the seed-pod of the pod fruit Pisum sativum. Each pod contains several peas. Peapods are botanically a fruit, since they contain seeds developed from the ovary of a flower. However, peas are considered to be a vegetable in cooking...
s or carrots.
In Scotland
Scottish cuisine
Scottish cuisine is the specific set of cooking traditions and practices associated with Scotland. It has distinctive attributes and recipes of its own, but shares much with wider European cuisine as a result of foreign and local influences both ancient and modern...
, the dish of "stovies
Stovies
thumb|right|StoviesStovies is a traditional Scottish dish. Recipes and ingredients vary widely between regions, and even families, but the dish contains potatoes, usually onions and often leftover roast beef, corned beef, mince or other meat.The potatoes are cooked by stewing with fat and stock;...
" is very similar to hash. There are many variations on the dish, but all consist of a base of mashed or coarsely chopped potato, with onions and leftover meat, usually minced or roast beef although there are many variations.
A really good food that has the name of a song in it.
United States
Corned beef hash and roast beef hash were introduced in the U.S. as early as the 1950's by HormelHormel
Hormel Foods Corporation is a food company based in southeastern Minnesota , perhaps best known as the producer of Spam luncheon meat. The company was founded as George A. Hormel & Company in Austin, Minnesota, U.S., by George A. Hormel in 1891. The company changed its name to Hormel Foods...
. In the United States, September 27th is "National Corned Beef Hash Day.
Alternatively, in the southern United States
Cuisine of the Southern United States
The cuisine of the Southern United States is defined as the historical regional culinary form of states generally south of the Mason Dixon Line dividing Pennsylvania from Maryland and Delaware as well as along the Ohio River, and extending west to Southern Missouri, Oklahoma and Texas.The most...
, the term "hash" may refer to two dishes:
- a Southern traditional blend of leftover porkPorkPork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
from a barbecueBarbecueBarbecue or barbeque , used chiefly in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia is a method and apparatus for cooking meat, poultry and occasionally fish with the heat and hot smoke of a fire, smoking wood, or hot coals of...
mixed with barbecue sauceBarbecue sauceBarbecue sauce is a flavoring sauce or condiment ranging from watery to very thick consistency. As the name implies, it was created as an accompaniment to barbecued foods. While it can be applied to any food, it usually tops meat after cooking or during barbecuing, grilling, or baking...
and served over riceRiceRice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
. This is a common side dish at barbecue restaurants and pig pickin'Pig pickin'A pig pickin is a type of party or gathering held primarily in the American South which involves the barbecuing of a whole hog . Females, or gilts, are used as well...
s notably in South CarolinaSouth CarolinaSouth Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
and GeorgiaGeorgia (U.S. state)Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
. - a thick stew made up of pork, chicken and beef, generally leftover, traditionally seasoned with salt and pepper and other spices, reduced overnight over an open flame in an iron washpot or hashpot.
In some areas of the United States, hashing also refers to washing dishes in general.
Other countries
In Denmark, hash is known in DanishDanish language
Danish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
as "biksemad" (roughly translated, "tossed together food"), and it is a traditional leftover dish usually served with a fried egg
Fried egg
A fried egg is a food made from an egg fried whole with minimal accompaniment. They are traditionally eaten for breakfast in western countries, but may be eaten at other times of the day.-China:...
, worcestershire sauce
Worcestershire sauce
Worcestershire sauce , or Worcester sauce is a fermented liquid condiment; primarily used to flavour meat or fish dishes.First made at 60 Broad Street, Worcester, England, by two dispensing chemists, John Wheeley Lea and William Henry Perrins, the Lea & Perrins brand was commercialised in 1837 and...
, pickled red beet
Beet
The beet is a plant in the Chenopodiaceae family which is now included in Amaranthaceae family. It is best known in its numerous cultivated varieties, the most well known of which is the purple root vegetable known as the beetroot or garden beet...
slices and ketchup
Ketchup
Ketchup is a sweet-and-tangy condiment typically made from tomatoes, vinegar, sugar or high-fructose corn syrup and an assortment of...
or Bearnaise sauce
Bearnaise sauce
Béarnaise sauce is a sauce made of clarified butter emulsified in egg yolks and flavored with herbs. It is considered to be a 'child' of the mother Hollandaise sauce, one of the five sauces in the French haute cuisine mother sauce repertoire...
. The meat is usually pork
Pork
Pork is the culinary name for meat from the domestic pig , which is eaten in many countries. It is one of the most commonly consumed meats worldwide, with evidence of pig husbandry dating back to 5000 BC....
, and the mixture is not mashed together into a paste, but rather the ingredients are coarsely diced and readily discernible in its cooked form.
In Sweden, there is a version of hash called pyttipanna
Pyttipanna
Pyttipanna, also pytt i panna, pyttipanne , pyttipannu , is a hodgepodge of food similar to bubble and squeak. The term is Swedish/Norwegian for "small pieces in pan"...
and in Finland, pyttipannu. It is similar to the Danish version, but usually served with HP Sauce
HP Sauce
HP Sauce is a popular brown sauce originally produced by HP Foods in the UK, now produced by H.J. Heinz in the Netherlands.It is the best-known brand of brown sauce in the United Kingdom and Canada as well as the best selling, with 71% of the UK market....
instead of ketchup, and sometimes with a raw egg yolk. The Swedish variety Pytt Bellman calls for adding cream to the hash and is named after Sweden's 18th century national bard Carl Michael Bellman
Carl Michael Bellman
was a Swedish poet and composer. Bellman is a central figure in the Swedish song tradition and remains a very important influence in Swedish music, as well as in Scandinavian literature in general, to this day....
.
In Austria and perhaps more specifically Tyrol
Tyrol (state)
Tyrol is a state or Bundesland, located in the west of Austria. It comprises the Austrian part of the historical region of Tyrol.The state is split into two parts–called North Tyrol and East Tyrol–by a -wide strip of land where the state of Salzburg borders directly on the Italian province of...
, there exists a similar dish called "Gröstl", usually consisting of chopped leftover meats (often being pork sausage
Sausage
A sausage is a food usually made from ground meat , mixed with salt, herbs, and other spices, although vegetarian sausages are available. The word sausage is derived from Old French saussiche, from the Latin word salsus, meaning salted.Typically, a sausage is formed in a casing traditionally made...
), potato and onions fried with herbs (typically marjoram
Marjoram
Marjoram is a somewhat cold-sensitive perennial herb or undershrub with sweet pine and citrus flavours...
and parsley
Parsley
Parsley is a species of Petroselinum in the family Apiaceae, native to the central Mediterranean region , naturalized elsewhere in Europe, and widely cultivated as an herb, a spice and a vegetable.- Description :Garden parsley is a bright green hairless biennial herbaceous plant in temperate...
) and then served topped with a fried egg.
In Malaysia, a similar dish is called "bergedil". It is usually made with minced meat, potatoes, and onions, fried until brown.
In Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
and other Latin cuisines, there is a similar dish called picadillo
Picadillo
Picadillo is a traditional dish in many Latin American countries and the Philippines that is similar to hash...
. It is made with ground meat
Ground meat
Ground meat is meat finely chopped by a meat grinder or a chopping knife. It is called minced meat or more usually mince outside North America....
(usually beef), tomatoes (tomato sauce
Tomato sauce
A tomato sauce is any of a very large number of sauces made primarily from tomatoes, usually to be served as part of a dish...
may be used as a substitute), vegetables and spices that vary by region. It is often served with rice
Rice
Rice is the seed of the monocot plants Oryza sativa or Oryza glaberrima . As a cereal grain, it is the most important staple food for a large part of the world's human population, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, the Middle East, and the West Indies...
or used as a filling in dishes such as tacos, tostadas, or as a regular breakfast hash with eggs and tortillas. The name comes from the Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
infinitive verb picar, which means "to mince" or "to chop".
In Germany there is Labskaus
Labskaus
Labskaus is a culinary specialty from Northern Germany and in particular from the cities of Bremen, Lübeck, and Hamburg. The main ingredients are salted meat or corned beef, potatoes, and onion...
.
See also
- Bubble and squeakBubble and squeakBubble and squeak is a traditional English dish made with the shallow-fried leftover vegetables from a roast dinner. The main ingredients are potato and cabbage, but carrots, peas, brussels sprouts, and other vegetables can be added...
- Garbage Plate
- LobbyLobby (food)Lobby is a traditional beef stew or broth from North Staffordshire, England. It was originally eaten by impoverished potters who lacked the money for fresh ingredients.-Background:...
- LabskausLabskausLabskaus is a culinary specialty from Northern Germany and in particular from the cities of Bremen, Lübeck, and Hamburg. The main ingredients are salted meat or corned beef, potatoes, and onion...
- StamppotStamppotStamppot is a traditional Dutch dish made from a combination of potatoes mashed with one or several other vegetables, sometimes also with bacon. These vegetable pairings traditionally include sauerkraut, endive, kale, spinach, turnip greens, or carrot and onion...
- Yukon Gold hashYukon Gold hashYukon Gold hash is a cooked potato, vegetable and meat hash topped with eggs. Named for one of its chief ingredients, the Yukon Gold potato, it is usually eaten as a breakfast meal and has several variations, including a vegetarian version....
External links
- 'Hashed Beef, Plain' at The Household Cyclopedia – A recipe for hashed beef from an 1800s cookbook
- Scandinavian Hash (Biksemad) recipe
- BBQ Hash Recipe at about.com – Recipe for BBQ Hash and Rice