I make this sweet potato breakfast hash in one cast iron skillet, with crispy potato edges, peppers, spinach, and eggs cracked right into the pan. The potatoes steam under a lid until tender, then crisp up uncovered, ready in about 45 minutes with no parboiling and no second pan to wash.
The trick to make a crispy breakfast hash with sweet potatoes
My first few rounds of this hash went mushy in the center and pale on the edges, so I kept changing one thing at a time. It took about five rounds to figure out that the problem was not the heat or the amount of oil. It was actually the order of the steps!
TLDR; but you basically need to cover the skillet first so the sweet potatoes steam in their own moisture until they are tender through, then pull the lid off and raise the heat so the edges brown and crisp. That cover-then-uncover order is why this works, and it means no parboiling and no separate pot.
The other important thing is giving the cubes room, since a crowded pan steams them (aka soft) instead of crisping them. It is the same crisp-the-edges logic I lean on for my crispy Bombay potatoes.
From there it is easy to change up. I keep a base of onion, bell pepper, and spinach, but this one-pan hash takes swaps well, like black beans for more heft or kale in place of spinach.
On a busy week I fold it into my high protein vegetarian meal plan and cook the potatoes a day ahead so breakfast is ten minutes flat.
Key ingredients and why they matter
Full ingredient list and detailed instructions in the recipe card.
- Sweet potatoes are the base, and the variety matters. Firm orange-fleshed ones hold their cube shape and crisp at the edges, while softer white-fleshed sweet potatoes go to mush before they brown. Cut them into even half-inch cubes so they cook at the same rate. If you like the sweeter, softer side of this vegetable, that same flavor shows up in my savory sweet potato casserole.
- Eggs cook right in the hash, so freshness shows. A fresh egg holds a tighter white that settles into the well instead of running everywhere, and the yolk becomes the sauce. This is the ingredient the dish lives or dies on, so pull the skillet the moment the whites are just set.
- Smoked paprika and cumin are the savory backbone. Use smoked paprika rather than sweet, since the smoke keeps this from tasting like plain roasted potatoes. Toast both with the garlic for a minute so they bloom in the oil.
- Baby spinach folds in at the very end for color and body. I reach for baby leaves over mature spinach since they wilt in about a minute and keep some texture instead of turning to slick strings.
Shruthi’s Top Tips
How to keep the potatoes crisp, not mushy
A few things I learned the hard way while testing this.
- The most common mistake is crowding the pan. I did exactly that on my first two rounds and the cubes just steamed each other into mush, so give them room or cook in batches and bring them all back for the crisping step.
- Do not skip the covered steaming step, even though covering something you want crisp feels backwards. The lid is what cooks the potatoes through so the uncovered high-heat stage can crisp the edges instead of just browning raw cubes.
- Wait until the whites are set but still glossy before you pull the skillet. The eggs keep cooking off the heat, and thirty extra seconds is the difference between runny and hard yolks.
- Salt amounts here are for Diamond Crystal kosher salt. If you use Morton, cut it to about half or the hash will taste sharp.
How to make sweet potato breakfast hash
- Heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium until it shimmers. Add the sweet potatoes, toss to coat, then spread in a single layer, cover, and cook until tender, stirring now and then. Uncover, turn up the heat, and cook until the edges are browned and crisp.
- Push the potatoes to the edges and soften the onion and bell pepper in the center, then stir in the garlic and spices until fragrant.
- Toss the spinach through until just wilted.
- Make four wells in the hash and crack an egg into each.
- Cover and cook until the whites are set and the yolks are as runny as you like, then finish with herbs and serve straight from the skillet.
How to serve sweet potato breakfast hash
The eggs do most of the protein work here, and the runny yolk acts like a sauce over the crisp potatoes. To build it into a heartier plate, spoon the hash over a grain or greens the way you would a chickpea Buddha bowl, then add avocado, a spoon of yogurt, or extra beans. For bigger appetites, add a fried egg per plate. Hot sauce and fresh herbs at the table let everyone finish their own.
For a mixed table, this hash plays nicely with meat on the side. I add crumbled breakfast sausage or chorizo to the meat-eaters’ plates and keep the skillet itself vegetarian so I am not cooking two breakfasts. My toddler usually wants hers with the yolk broken and stirred through, or with a piece of toast for dipping.
If you are feeding a crowd, cook the potatoes and vegetables ahead, then crisp and add eggs in the morning, the same weekend logic behind my vegetarian breakfast tacos and vegetarian breakfast casserole.
Variations
- Stir in a can of drained black beans with the peppers for a heftier, more filling plate.
- Swap kale for the spinach, adding it a couple of minutes earlier since it needs longer to soften.
- Use Yukon gold potatoes for a classic skillet hash, with the same cover-then-uncover method.
- Add a diced jalapeno with the bell pepper for heat, or leave it out and pass hot sauce at the table.
- Skip the eggs and top with avocado or a tahini drizzle to keep it vegan.
Storage and reheating
This is a strong option for breakfast meal prep. Store the hash without the eggs in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days, then reheat in a skillet over medium until hot and re-crisped and cook fresh eggs to add on top. The potatoes go soft in the microwave, so the skillet is worth the extra two minutes.
More meal-prep friendly breakfasts
These breakfast dishes are all great for meal prep and keep you full past 10 am.
Cottage Cheese Egg Bake
Peanut Butter Banana Overnight Oats
Cottage Cheese Egg Muffins with Spinach & Feta
Sheet Pan Vegetarian Breakfast Quesadillas
Sweet Potato Breakfast Hash with Eggs
Equipment
- Large cast-iron or heavy skillet with a lid
Ingredients
- 1½ lb sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into ½-inch cubes
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 1 medium yellow onion, diced
- 1 medium red bell pepper, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- 1¼ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
- ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 3 oz baby spinach (about 3 cups)
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley or chives, chopped, for serving
- Hot sauce, for serving
Instructions
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat until shimmering, add the sweet potatoes and ¼ teaspoon of the salt, and toss to coat.
- Spread the sweet potatoes in an even layer, cover, and cook 10 to 12 minutes, stirring every few minutes, until tender through.
- Uncover, raise the heat to medium-high, and cook 4 to 5 minutes more, tossing, until the edges are crisp and browned.
- Push the sweet potatoes to the edges, add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil to the center, and cook the onion and bell pepper until soft, about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the garlic, smoked paprika, cumin, the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, and the black pepper, and toss everything together until fragrant, about 2 minutes.
- Add the spinach and toss until just wilted, about 1 minute.
- Make four wells in the hash, crack the eggs in, one per well, cover, and cook 4 to 6 minutes, until the whites are set and the yolks are as runny as you like.
- Finish with the parsley or chives and serve straight from the skillet, with hot sauce on the side.
Notes
- Covering the sweet potatoes steams them tender, then uncovering crisps the edges, so there is no need to parboil.
- Do not crowd the skillet; if it looks packed, cook the sweet potatoes in two batches, then return them all for the crisping step.
- Swap in Yukon gold potatoes for a classic skillet hash, or lean on more mixed vegetables for a veggie version, using the same method.
- For heat, add a diced jalapeño with the bell pepper, or pass hot sauce at the table.
- Salt amounts are for Diamond Crystal kosher salt; if using Morton, use about half.
- Store leftover hash airtight in the fridge up to 3 days, best without the cooked eggs; reheat in a skillet over medium until hot and re-crisped.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
