I was buying canned goods to donate and I saw the cans of corned beef hash and couldn't remember what it tasted like. When I was little, sometimes my mom would take pity on my dad and make it because he liked it. I didn't really remember liking it or not. I do remember that I thought I put ketchup on it, which probably means my dad put ketchup on it.
So I bought an extra can for me. The instructions were really easy - something like, take the contents of the can and fry until crisp.
I admit to second thoughts after I opened the can. It did not look very appetizing. But, I fried it until crisp in the pan, and glopped some nice cold ketchup on it.
I like my condiments cold, I can't explain it. Even stuff like warmed maple syrup - no way. I like my maple syrup straight from the fridge. Duck sauce for egg rolls, ketchup for meatloaf, tartar sauce for fish sticks, heinz 57 for steak - I like it all cold. I guess it's something about the cold condiment with the warm food. I like it. I know, I've put too much thought into it, but when you have a fantastic cook for a mom, you end up noticing stuff like that. She'd do the nice things like warm up the maple syrup so your pancakes wouldn't get cold, or make a tangy sauce for the meatloaf that you cooked up and served on it warm. I was an un-appreciative child, happy with my cold pancakes and heinz-57-covered steak. Don't worry though, I've made up for it with her, I'll try just about anything these days, and love experimenting in nice restaurants.
But I'll tell you right now, if you're going to serve me meatloaf, I hope you have cold ketchup.
Anyway, back to the corned beef hash, from what I can tell, the way I served it made it pretty much just a vehicle for providing your body with sodium and ketchup. And since there's a ton of sodium in ketchup, it really all boils down to giving your body a big dose of sodium.
It was filling though, probably all that water I'm retaining now, but I think I'll be good to wait another several years before I try it again. I probably will try it again though, because there is something about it - since it's a food I ate in childhood, it's kind of comforting.
When I looked for pictures for this posting, I discovered that many people put fried eggs on top of the hash...now there's an idea! Next time I'll try that. Plus there were people out there mentioning mustard and worcestershire sauce and other things. Really? Yikes.
Meanwhile, I think I need to go get a glass of water...I'm thirsty! :-)
Yes, traditionally, you serve hash with a fried egg on top, but dad doesn't like fried eggs.
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, there is a trememdous amount of salt in the hash as well as the ketchup. I also think that the can of hash was more than one serving but dad always ate the whole thing so you could probably double the amount of salt intake that's listed for one serving...and then the ketchup...makes me ill to think about it. Freshly made is better.
Oh, thank you, sweetie.
Ah corned beef hash brings back memories - good and bad. Mom loved corned beef hash and when we went out for breakfast, she often ordered it with eggs - but never served it at home. To be honest, no one else cared for it. My memories are of opening the can and thinking I confused it with dog food.
ReplyDeleteBut my great-grandmother Therese Austin McGinnis was the Queen of Hash: with a summer home filled with 12 grandchildren, all leftovers became hash courtesy of the meat grinder clamped on the counter. There was turkey hash, chicken hash, beef hash and the ever-popular "mystery hash."
A little confession - I am crazy about corned beef hash, sodium or not. And yes, it is good with eggs on top of it.
ReplyDeleteI'd be willing to try homemade hash, even mystery hash!!! Oh, and Mom..I did not eat the whole can!! :-)
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