Campfire (Kind of) Home Fries
Ingredients:
- about 4 pounds of waxy type potatoes, boiled, chilled and chopped. (We prefer salt potatoes with their skins still on.)
- 1/3 cup bacon fat
- 1/4 pound butter (1 stick)
- 1/4 cup- 1/3 cup canola oil (or other clear, neutral oil)
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- Optional: 2 cups chopped onions, 2 Tablespoons minced garlic (or 1 Tablespoon onion powder and 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder.)
- Serve with hot sauce, ketchup or your preferred condiment. (I know someone who only eats this with maple syrup. I will not name names.)
Place a heavy-bottomed skillet over a medium to medium-high flame or camp fire (or on a medium to medium high burner on a stove top). Add bacon fat and canola oil to the pan and allow it to heat with the pan. When pan is hot and bacon fat is melted add the butter and stir until butter is completely melted and foamy. Add the chopped potatoes. Stir vigorously to chuff up the edges of the potatoes and to coat with oil. After the potatoes are evenly coated, allow to cook without stirring too frequently. Once a brown crust has formed on the bottom layer, flip or turn the potatoes over in sections. Allow that to brown on the bottom without stirring. (If you’re using onions and garlic or the powders, add them here!) After that layer has browned on the bottom, stir to break up the big sections and expose the as-yet unbrowned sections to the hot pan surface. When potatoes have nearly reached desired doneness, remove the skillet from the heat (or turn off the burner) and allow the pan to cool slightly. This will continue cooking the potatoes somewhat, and you should have beautifully browned, crispy potatoes to doctor up as you wish.
