Skip to main content

Potatoes O’Brien



So Potatoes O’Brien hold a special place in my heart. I could tell you it’s due to my Irish heritage, and that this simple breakfast side dish came to me from my grandmother, but that would be a lie. I am Irish (both sides- both of my great-grandfathers immigrated from Ireland) and I do love potatoes, but that has no bearing on my nostalgia for this recipe.

My mother worked as a nurse. Some nights, she’d be at the hospital working. When I was young, our babysitter would watch us and fix us dinner. As we got older, my older sister would watch over me in the afternoons, and my dad would make dinner. Because we were children, he made fairly simple things but ones we adored. One dish was spaghetti, peas and butter, which we named Rubaboo. 

When I was around 11, I wanted to cook dinner for my sister and father while my mom was away. (Don’t worry- we always set aside a plate special for mom when she came home. I always looked forward to her coming home. She’d run a bath when she returned at night, which always woke me up as my bedroom was next door. I still love the sound of running water to this day). I remember finding a frozen bag of Potatoes O’Brien and asking my dad if I could cook it. 

I thought I was some grand chef, frying frozen potatoes, onions and pepper in oil and seasoning it all just right. I can still remember how delicious it tasted to me, because I made it, and how proud I was of myself, because my dad complimented the dish. 

It’s utterly simple to make from scratch. I like to cook the potatoes apart from the onions and peppers to retain more crunch. I also like to add a pinch of cayenne for a wee punch of heat. It’s still delicious to me and every time I make it I am brought back to that wonderful memory of cooking for the first time by myself. 




Ingredients:
Oil, for frying
5 pototoes, diced
1 red pepper, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 onion, diced
salt and pepper to taste
pinch cayenne 



Method:
In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the peppers and onions and a pinch of salt, pepper and cayenne and saute until translucent, about 10 minutes. Remove to the plate. 

Add the potatoes to the oil; fry until well browned, about 15 minutes. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to drain the grease. Salt generously.


Toss the potatoes, pepper and onions together. Serve with a fried egg. Enjoy!


Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Leftover Cranberry Sauce Cookies

Like many of you, I made an entire Thanksgiving Day feast for only my husband and I. As such, I have an inordinate amount of leftovers. Expect my blog to largely star ways to dress up leftovers, because I have freezer meals of Thanksgiving day to last a lifetime. In this recipe, I was looking for a way to use up cranberry sauce and leftover walnuts from my apple crisp. Cranberry sauce drop cookies seemed the perfect thing to make; enjoy it with a cup of hot cocoa. I plan on gifting some to my parents; a way to break bread near the holiday without breaking protocols. Enjoy!  Ingredients: 3 3/4 cup all purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg 2 sticks of butter, softened 1 1/2 cups sugar 3 eggs 1 cup cranberry sauce 1 teaspoon vanilla 1/2 cup chopped nuts Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Set aside a rimmed baking tray. Whisk together all of the dry ingredients in a medium bowl; set aside. With ...

Samosas with Yogurt Sauce

I love exploring many kinds of cuisine in my kitchen because I can control the spice level, and in the case of this recipe, the use of cilantro. Cilantro lovers out there- sub it info the parsley here. I have the gene that makes cilantro taste like soap, which limits my ability to enjoy some dishes in restaurants, but is easily rectified in my own kitchen. I hope you enjoy! Ingredients:  3 russet potatoes 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 bunch fresh parsley, chopped 2 teaspoons curry powder 5 ounces peas Six 8 inch flour tortillas 4 ounces Greek yogurt Oil, salt, pepper, vinegar 4 tablespoons butter Method: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet. Scrub potatoes and cut into 1⁄2-inch pieces. Place in a large saucepan with a generous pinch of salt and enough water to cover by 1 inch. Cover and bring to a boil over high; uncover and cook until tenderDrain potatoes and transfer to a bowl.  Heat 2 tablespoons oil in reserved saucepan over medium. Add chopped garl...

Peek-a-boo Squares

My grandma, Mimi, taught me this recipe. I used to make this with her and my mother as a child. It is my very favorite dessert. It is incredibly easy to make, and even easier to eat. My favorite part of making this as a child was dusting every bar generously with snowy white powdered sugar.  My favorite version of this dessert uses canned blueberry pie filling; I vastly prefer Libby brand over the store brand. You can make blueberry pie filling from scratch with sugar, cornstarch, bleberries, etc. but using the canned stuff is easy in a pinch and is much for nostalgic for me. Plus, I don’t notice a vast improvement over my homemade blueberry pie filling and the Libby brand; it just takes me longer to put this dessert together.  I have been known to whip up a pan of these Friday night and have them disappear by Saturday afternoon. Be warned, these things are addictive! Ingredients: 3 cups of all-purpose flour 2 cups of granulated sugar 4 eggs 2 ...