Potato hash gets a Mediterranean twist with this easy recipe! Crispy potatoes, asparagus, chickpeas, and tomatoes are loaded with big flavor thanks to a bold blend of spices.
Potato hash may be mostly an American phenomenon, often associated with late-night diners. And while I’d never argue with crispy potatoes—or the ease of a one-skillet meal—to me it has always begged for a boost from the spices of my childhood.
In this simple recipe, warming Eastern Mediterranean-style spices make a comforting dish that much cozier. As a bonus, this 30-ish minute recipe will make your kitchen smell incredible!
I keep the Mediterranean vibes going with fresh tomatoes, parsley, and creamy feta cheese. I sometimes top the golden potatoes with a poached egg, but feel free to swap in a fried egg if poaching isn’t your thing. And, because the chickpeas give it a nice protein boost, it’s also satisfying all on its own.
Table of Contents
Potato Hash Recipe Ingredients
With a well-stocked pantry, you only need a few fresh ingredients to make this potato hash recipe.
For the Potato Hash
- Yellow onion and garlic: Add savory-sweet depth to the potatoes. White onion, green onion, and shallot can all work in their place.
- Potatoes: Russet potatoes get nice and crispy, but you can use whatever variety you have on hand.
- Chickpeas: Add extra texture and protein. Substitute with white beans.
- Asparagus: Adds a sweet, grassy flavor. Swap in other quick-cooking seasonal vegetables, like snap peas, bell peppers, mushrooms, and baby broccoli.
- Extra virgin olive oil: Use a high-quality extra virgin variety.
- Seasoning: Allspice, za’atar, dried oregano, sweet or smoked paprika, and coriander give the potatoes a warming, bright, aromatic, and decidedly Mediterranean flavor. You can find all these vibrant spices and more at our shop, each of which I hand-selected for quality. Kosher salt and black pepper draw out the other flavors.
- Sugar: Just a pinch of sugar rounds out the savory flavor, but feel free to skip it if you’d like.
- Red onion: For garnish. Substitute with sliced green onions, chives, or shallots.
- Roma tomatoes: Substitute with other firm and flavorful varieties, like grape or cherry.
- Feta: Leave this off for a dairy-free option, or swap in goat cheese or grated Parmesan.
- Parsley: Fresh herbs are essential, but you can swap with other tender green options like basil, cilantro, mint, or dill.
For the Poached Eggs (optional)
- White vinegar: Makes the egg poaching water acidic, which causes the egg proteins to set more quickly. In other words, this helps you make beautiful poached eggs without them separating and becoming stringy.
- Eggs: Opt for large eggs if you can.
How to Make Potato Hash
To make hash, you simply cut small-ish cubes of potatoes so you can cook them fast and hot, which makes them beautifully golden and crispy. (Not to be confused with hash browns, which involve shredding the potatoes). Here’s the rundown:
- Optional: If you’re serving with poached eggs, fill a medium pot with water, set it over medium heat and bring it to a steady simmer, not a boil.
- Get your prep done. Chop 1 yellow onion, 1 red onion, 2 Roma tomatoes, and 2 garlic cloves. Cube 2 russet potatoes. Trim the thick woody stems off of 1 pound of asparagus, then slice into 1/4-inch pieces. Drain and rinse 1 (15-ounce) can of chickpeas.
- Soften the potatoes. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the yellow onion (save the red onion for garnish), garlic, and potatoes. Season with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently until the potatoes are tender. (Some of the potatoes may gain a bit of a golden crust, which is good!)
- Poach the eggs. Meanwhile, add the white vinegar to the simmering water. Break the eggs into a bowl. Stir the simmering water gently to make a whirlpool, then carefully slide the eggs into the center. The egg whites should wrap around the yolk. Cook for 3 minutes exactly, then use a slotted spoon to transfer the eggs onto a clean kitchen towel to drain. Season with salt and pepper.
- Finish the potato hash. Stir in the chickpeas and asparagus. Season with 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice and 1 teaspoon each of za’atar, dried oregano, sweet or smoked paprika, and coriander. Stir in a pinch of sugar and a dash more salt and pepper. Cook for another 5-7 minutes. Turn the heat to low to keep the potato hash warm; stir regularly.
Top and serve. Remove the potato hash from the heat and top with the red onions, tomatoes, feta, parsley, and the poached eggs. Serve immediately.
What to Serve with Potato Hash
With veggies, potatoes, and eggs, you have everything covered except the drinks! Coffee or black tea comes to mind, of course, but that’s certainly not your only option.
For an added veggie-boost, how about beet juice with apples, carrots, and ginger? Or perhaps my favorite green juice with kale, celery, and cucumber for a refreshing way to start the day.
More Breakfast Potato Recipes
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Sweet Potato Breakfast with Eggs
Mediterranean Diet Recipes
Crispy Baked Hash Browns with Parmesan Cheese
Breakfast
Easy Potato Omelet Recipe
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Ingredients
For the Potato Hash
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 small yellow onion, chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, chopped
- 2 russet potatoes, cubed
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- 1 (15 ounce) can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
- 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and sliced into 1/4-inch pieces
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground allspice
- 1 teaspoon za’atar
- 1 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon sweet or smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoons coriander
- 1 pinch sugar
- 1 small red onion, finely chopped
- 2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
- 1/2 cup crumbled feta
- 1 cup chopped fresh parsley, stems removed
For the Poached Eggs (optional)
- 1 teaspoon white vinegar
- 4 eggs
Instructions
- Optional: If you’re serving with poached eggs, fill a medium pot with water and set over medium heat. Bring to a steady simmer, not a boil. You will come back to this later.
- Soften the potatoes. Heat 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, garlic, and potato, and season with a big pinch of salt and pepper. Cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring frequently until the potatoes are tender. (Some of the potatoes may gain a bit of a golden crust, which is good!)
- Finish the hash. Stir in the chickpeas, asparagus, dried spices, sugar, and a dash more salt and pepper. Cook for another 5-7 minutes. Turn the heat to low to keep the potato hash warm; stir regularly.
- Finish poaching the eggs. Meanwhile, add the white vinegar to the simmering water. Break the eggs into a bowl. Stir the simmering water gently to make a whirlpool, then carefully slide the eggs into the center. The egg whites should wrap around the yolk. Cook for 3 minutes exactly, then use a slotted spoon to transfer the eggs onto a plate lined with a clean kitchen towel or paper towel to drain. Season with salt and pepper.
- Finish and serve. Remove the potato hash from the heat and top with the red onions, tomatoes, feta, parsley, and the poached eggs. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
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*this post was recently updated for the reader’s benefit.
Hey Suzy, I’m really excited to try this for a weeknight dinner (I’m all about packed breakfasts doubling up for dinner)! I’m a little confused about the potatoes – Are they steamed and then chopped or simply peeled, chopped and then tossed into the skillet? I’m looking to use russet.
Hi! The potatoes are simply peeled then small diced and cooked in the skillet. Enjoy!
Easier to make than anticipated. Very flavourful and filling. I didn’t have the za’atar so left it out. A little too much all spice for my taste so would reduce it next time
Glad you gave it a try, Christine! Thank you for sharing
I hate chickpeas, however they are an integral part of this recipe and blend in well with the other ingredients while adding a boost of protein. This breakfast punches you in the face with a very good morning and sets you off on your day. Five stars!
So glad you gave this one a shot, Jim! And glad you enjoyed it!
This yummy recipe has become a house hold favorite and is a requested dish now 🙂 thank you for all your hard work! Keep it ☝!
Yay, Kaylee! Thanks so much for sharing!
I live in India and I’d like to know what is the best replacement for asparagus in this recipe.
Hi Aaron, really you can swap it for green beans or another vegetable you enjoy. The cooking time will vary, of course.
Could you substitute sweet potatoes instead of russets?
That would work perfectly here Lulynn!
This was absolutely delicious! Thank you so much for the recipe.
Wonderful, Maria! So glad you enjoyed it!
This was so good! My husband and I loved it! Amazing!
Awesome, Rachel! Thanks for giving it a try!
Don’t have a cast iron skillet right now as I have recently moved. Only have a 2 burner stove top. Is it possible to cook the potatos using a regular pan, or would I need to boil them first?
Sarah, if you have any other kind of skillet or pan, it should work here too! Enjoy!
Just wanted to say that I found your sight looking for an authentic shakshuka recipe and then I found this recipe. This recipe is aces and a perfect breakfast for a group using my two large cast iron skillets. I had some mushrooms in the fridge so I added them and some spicy peppers for heat. Everyone loved it with the taboon bread so now I have another recipe sight to use!
Brad, so glad you found our site! Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback!!! Hope you’ll be trying many more recipes 🙂
Hi there! I just landed here because I am starving and the only things edible in my fridge are feta cheese, potatoes and bell peppers…This is the perfect recipe for my cravings right now. I’m off to the kitchen, thank you for the recipe!
Wonderful, Ayida! Welcome to The Mediterranean Dish. I hope you’ll find more recipes to try!
Made this yesterday and loved every bite. Thanks for the recipe!
Great to hear it Igor! Thank you so much for stopping in.
On my gosh. I would eat this for dinner! Looks delicious. Plus, I’m a sucker for all things potato.
Hey, I won’t judge ya if you make it for dinner…it’s really quite filling. Enjoy!
This is true comfort food for me. I would eat this any time of the day. It’s wonderful!
Isn’t it though, Maureen?! Thanks so much for stopping in, friend. So glad to see you here.
I love this!!! And those eggs are poached so perfectly!!! And the brightness of the dish would entice everyone’s appetites!!!
Thank you, love! I’m so glad you like this dish.
Love the vibrant colors and seasonings on this. Sounds like an amazing weekend breakfast for the family to wake up to!
Hi Mary! Thank you for stopping in. I’ll be eager to hear if you try this recipe!