“Hash is a peculiarly American institution. In no other country is every remnant of cold meat turned into that one unvarying dish. When English people speak of hash, they mean something quite different—meat warmed in slices. Our hash, made with nice gravy, garnished with sippets of toast and pickles, surrounded with mashed potatoes or rice—is dignified abroad by the name of mince, and makes its appearance as an elegant little entrée.” (from an 1800s cookbook)

INFORMATION BELOW FROM 1800s COOKBOOKS

THESE ARE THE COMMON WAYS OF SPOILING HASHES:

1. By frying, instead of merely heating them. Melted butter and oils are good and healthful when only heated, but are unhealthful when fried.

2. Dredging in flour, which, not being well cooked, imparts a raw taste of dough.

3. Using too much water, making them vapid; or too much fat or gravy, making them gross.

4. Using too much or too little salt and other seasoning. The following recipes will save from these mistakes, if exactly followed. When water is recommended in these recipes, cold gravy will be better, in which case the butter may be omitted.

A SIMPLE AND EXCELLENT VEAL HASH
Chop cold veal very fine. Butter a pudding-dish and make alternate layers of veal and powdered crackers till the dish is full, the first layer of meat being at the bottom. Then beat up two eggs and add a pint or less of milk, seasoned well with salt and pepper, and two or three spoons of melted butter. Pour this over the meat and crackers, cover with a plate, and bake about half an hour. Remove the plate awhile, and let the top brown a little. This is the best way to cook veal, and children are very fond of it.

A SIMPLE BEEF HASH
Make a gravy of melted butter, or take cold gravy. Season with salt, pepper, and currant jelly or vinegar. Cut cold roast beef or the remnants of cold steak into mouthfuls, and put into the gravy till heated, but not to fry. Or, season this gravy with the crushed juice of fresh tomatoes or tomato catsup.

BEEF HASH AND POTATOES
Chop rather finely cold roast beef or pieces of beefsteak, and chop twice as much cold boiled potatoes. Put over the fire a stew-pan or frying pan, and put a piece of butter as large as required to season it well. Add pepper and salt, moisten with beef gravy if you have it, if not, with hot water.

Cover and let it steam and heat through thoroughly, stirring occasionally so the ingredients be evenly distributed, and to keep the hash from sticking to the bottom of the pan. When done, it should not be at all watery, but have sufficient adhesiveness to stand well on a dish or buttered toast. Many like the flavor of onion; if so, fry two or three slices in the butter before adding the hash.

A SEASONED HASH WITH EGGS
Chop, but not very fine, any kinds of fresh meat, but be sure not to put in any that is tainted. To a common tumbler* of chopped meat, put three tablespoons of water, a teaspoon of sugar, a heaping teaspoon of salt, a saltspoon* of pepper, and butter the size of half an egg. Warm, but do not fry.

When hot, break in three eggs and stir till they are hardened a little, then serve. The hash may be put on buttered toast when served.

*tumbler – one-half pint.
*saltspoon – a miniature spoon used with an open salt cellar for individual use before table salt was free-flowing. One saltspoon equals one-fourth teaspoon.

RICE AND COLD MEAT HASH
Chop remnants of fresh meats with salt pork,* or cold ham. Season with salt and pepper and a little sugar; add two eggs and a little butter. Then make alternate layers with this and slices of cold boiled rice, and bake it half an hour.

*salt pork – the layer of fat, usually with some streaks of lean, that is cut from the pig’s belly and sides. Salt pork is salt-cured and usually must be blanched to remove the excess salt before use. Salt pork is often confused with fatback, which is unsalted.

A HASH OF COLD MEAT FOR DINNER
Peel six large tomatoes and one onion, and slice them. Add one teaspoon of sugar, a little salt and pepper, a bit of butter the size of a hen’s egg, and half a pint of cold water. Shave up the meat into small bits, as thin as thick pasteboard. Simmer the meat with all the rest for half an hour and then serve it, and it is very fine.

Dried tomatoes can be used. When you have no tomatoes, make a gravy with water, pepper, salt, and butter, or cold gravy. Slice an onion in it, add tomato catsup, (two or three spoonfuls,) and then prepare the meat as above, and simmer it in this gravy half an hour.

MEAT HASH WITH BREAD-CRUMBS
Take one teaspoon of flour, (or potato or corn starch,) wet in four teaspoons of cold water. Stir it into a teacup of boiling water, and put in a saltspoon of pepper, two teaspoons of salt, a teaspoon of sugar, and two tablespoons of sweet butter. Use cold gravy instead of butter, if you have it. Set this in a stew-pan where it will be kept hot, but do not fry. Chop the meat very fine, and mix with it while chopping half as much dried bread-crumbs. Put this into the gravy, and let it heat only ten minutes, and then serve it on buttered toast. Tomatoes, one or two, improve this.

A HASH OF CORNED* BEEF
Chop the meat very fine, fat and lean together. Add twice as much cold potatoes chopped fine. For each tumbler of this, add butter half the size of a hen’s egg melted in half a teacup of hot water, a saltspoon of pepper and another of salt. Heat very hot, but do not let it fry. Some would add parsley or other sweet herb.

*corning – similar to brining or pickling, using large grained rock salt; also called “corns” of salt

A HASH OF COLD HAM
Chop, not very fine, fat and lean together. Add twice the quantity of bread-crumbs chopped, but not fine. Heat it hot, then break in two eggs for every tumblerful of the hash. A teaspoon of sugar improves it, and a saltspoon of pepper.

Image from Deposit Photos

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