This recipe was served at the bar on Sunday afternoons for years at my first
restaurant. It goes well with Bloody Marys and/or Champagne for
a decadent, comforting treat:
8 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks about <1" square
4 pounds Italian-style pork sausage (or sausage patties) (2 pounds sweet; 2 pounds hot), in 1" hunks
1 cup Olive Oil; not Extra Virgin
4 ribs celery, cut to 1/4" dice
4 very large onions (Chef's or White) cut into coarse (>1/4") dice.
1/4 tsp. rubbed Sage
Two dried Bay Leaves
A cup of dry white wine; Chardonnay preferred (do not use Pinot Grigio)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Soak the potato cubes in water for 15 minutes then remove to paper towels and
let dry thoroughly (near the stove on a sheet-pan is great).
In a very large pan or wok, sauté the sausage briefly; remove when slightly
browned but still undercooked.
In the same pan, without removing the grease from the sausages, add the olive
oil and cook the potatoes until half-done. Add the celery and onions and cook
until the potatoes are browned thoroughly. It's best to turn this mixture
regularly with spatula or spoon, so the potatoes don't stick to the pan and
break up.
Add the par-cooked sausage, Sage, and Bay Leaves and stir vigorously, keeping
the mixture moist with the wine.
Season and serve in a chafing dish. (Remove the Bay leaves if you can find
them). This dish just gets better and better when it sits so it's good to
prepare early and you needn't worry about cooking after the arrival of your
guests.
ADDITIONS/SERVING SUGGESTIONS:
- Two lovely, fat, ripe tomatoes, seeded and cut into coarse dice, are
very good in this when added with the par-cooked sausage and seasonings.
- Use Knorr Hollandaise Sauce mix to make a batch of sauce. It's
absolutely decadent served with this recipe.
- This becomes roast beef hash when made with minced beef instead of
sausage. I don't recommend using Corned Beef with this recipe, however.
- If placed in a serving dish that's oven-proof and large enough, it's
nice to nearly burn the top in the broiler before setting the dish out. This
broiler technique is a great way to bring it up to serving temperature if
you've made it earlier in the day. If it's going into the broiler cold; just
keep it farther away from the heat than if it's already hot.