By the time you read this it will be too late.
I’ve already committed the crime. The deed is done. There is nothing you can do to change it.
My husband looks at me in sheer disbelief. I look through him, like a stone cold killer.
Can he even love me after what I’ve done?
I’m eating nachos. Out of a casserole dish. From the fridge. Unwarmed — It is seven thirty in the morning.
The sneers of painful, uninterested disgust loom closer. He (poor dear) does not enjoy leftovers.
I can admit, I have a problem with them. It’s an addiction. I frickin’ LOVE them. Ice cold.
Virtually anything: pizza, pasta, nachos, pad thai, french fries. I’m a fiend with a grievous morning malady. Like a junky with a twitch. Like an obsessive stalker.
I told you…Like a stone cold killer.
Also, I don’t believe in microwaves (or squirrels – but that’s another story entirely).
Wanna know what else? I’m a sneaky, deceitful yet unquestionably convincing wife.
Do these look like leftovers? I think not.
Takes 40 min; Feeds 2 skeptical husbands
Ingredients for Hash
- 1 cup leftover cooked corned beef, cubed (bite size)
- 2 cups parboiled gold potatoes, cubed (bite size)
- 2 tsp fresh oregano, minced
- 2 tsp fresh thyme, minced
- 1/2 green bell pepper, diced
- 1/2 yellow onion, diced
- 1 tsp cayenne pepper
- 1 tsp ground garlic
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 2 tsp sweet paprika
- salt and pepper
- 4 eggs
- 2 scallions, diced
- 6 cups water
- 1/3 chopped radicchio (optional)
- hot sauce of your choice (optional)
Ingredients/Method for Hollandaise
- 3 eggs yolks
- 4 tbsp salted butter, melted (ok, I believe in microwaves sometimes)
- 1 tsp fresh oregano, minced
- 1 tsp fresh thyme, minced
- Juice of 1/2 lemon
- Large pinch of cayenne
- Large pinch of salt
Make the hash first – see below.
Once the hash and eggs are ready, add all hollandaise ingredients except butter to a blender.
Blend for 10 seconds. While on low speed, open the top of the blender and add the hot butter slowly. Allow the sauce to form and your nostrils to be enveloped and taken to the heavens. Serve while warm.
Method for Corned Beef Hash and Poached Eggs
Heat olive oil in a medium cast iron skillet. Add onions, bell pepper and pinch of salt. Sauté for 4-5 min until onions are translucent.
Add potatoes. Season with paprika, cayenne, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook for another 10 min, or until potatoes start becoming crispy and golden. Stir often.
Turn heat down and add corned beef and herbs to warm through.
While this is warming, boil water in a separate sauce pot. Once water comes to a boil, turn it down to a simmer*. Gently and carefully add the eggs, dropping one at a time into the water.
Eggs will take 3-4 min for a runny, perfectly poached center.
Remove with a slotted spoon and place over the hash. Garnish with hollandaise sauce, extra herbs, radicchio, hot sauce, scallions and paprika.
*A lot of times I see people add vinegar to the boiling water bath. I don’t think it’s necessary, but if you do – by all means do it.
And so, I’ve been tasked with the tactical assignment of being a sniper in the kitchen; convincing even the most suspicious of husbands to enjoy foods beyond its inaugural journey. And so far, I’ve never been caught.
Need some ideas for other leftover uses? How about Corned Beef Migas with Gochujang and Goat Cheese? Or my ever popular … Kitchen Sink Quesadillas! How about the versatility of world’s most perfect food? Magic Carnitas.
