Potluck

HAVE YOU HEARD OF "RED FLANNEL HASH?"

By Mary Emma Allen

As you travel around the country, you'll discover foods typical to particular regions.  In New England, a boiled dinner of corned beef and cabbage is traditional.  Thus, leftovers are often served in the form of hash, more particularly Red Flannel Hash.

You'll find several stories concerning the origin of this dish made from beets, potatoes, onions, and corned beef, all of which were cooked the previous day for a boiled dinner.. One story asserts Red Flannel Hash came into being in the Green Mountain State of Vermont where Ethan Allen and his Green Mountain Boys, during Revolutionary War times, satisfied their hunger with it.

Another common claim is that Red Flannel Hash not only was the aftermath to a boiled dinner, but that it often was prepared toward the end of the week with leftovers from other meals. The one ingredient most certainly found in this mixture was boiled beets, which gave it a distinctive color.

Red Flannel Hash made from New England boiled dinner leftovers calls for 1 1/2 cups chopped corned beef, 1 1/2 cups chopped cooked beets, 1 1/2 cups chopped cold boiled potatoes, 1 medium onion, chopped fine. Mix these ingredients together and moisten slightly with 1/4 cup milk or cream.

Put into hot, well-buttered skillet; stir occasionally until heated thoroughly. Then continue cooking until a brown crust forms underneath; turn onto a platter as you do omelet.

Calico Hash is an aftermath or leftover meal, too, but often is mistakenly called Red Flannel. You make this from a mixture of chopped corned beef, turnips, carrots, potatoes, cabbage, beets, and raw onion which then you cook as any hash.

You make modern Green Mountain Hash with hamburger or ground steak instead of corned beef. Chop together 6 medium cooked beets, 4 medium cooked potatoes, 1 medium raw onion; mix with 2 cups cooked and drained hamburger meat. Season with salt and pepper as desired. Place in a frying pan containing 2 tablespoons butter (or pan spray); moisten slightly (so it sticks together) with hot water, cover, and cook slowly.

When nearly ready to serve, add 1 tablespoon cream mixed with 1 tablespoon butter. Brown quickly and serve.

Salt Pork & Hash  - Another variation is accompanied by salt pork. Make hash from vegetables - 2 cups cold diced boiled potatoes, 1 cup diced cooked beets, 1 cup cooked diced carrots, 1 finely minced onion; season with salt and pepper. Add 1/4 cup cream and mix well.

Brown in pork fat or bacon fat (modern day version calls for pan spray). Garnish with strips of crisply fried salt pork.

Corned Beef Hash  - Where I grew up in New York State, we never served beets with boiled dinner. So our hash consisted of potatoes, carrots, cabbage and corned beef. Any leftovers, Mother chopped in the wooden chopping bowl, then turned into a skillet to heat and fry. She warmed leftover cabbage separately, not in the hash.

(c)Mary Emma Allen (Mary Emma Allen researches old and modern recipes. She also writes books for children, such as her anthology, Tales of Adventure & Discovery .   She teaches workshops on genealogy and writing family stories. For more information on her children's anthologies and workshops,   e-mail: me.allen@juno.com )