sweet potato and poblano skillet.
soft, spiced sweet potatoes, crispy chorizo, and roasted poblano peppers join together in one skillet for an easy, flavorful, high-protein breakfast served with fresh avocado salsa.
Makes: 4 servings Prep time: 15 minutes Cook Time: 40 minutes jump to recipe.
All-time favorite homemade breakfast right here: breakfast hash. This is one thing I think you can make at home better than a restaurant (too much cheese — maybe this is an unpopular opinion). I actually don’t use any cheese in my hash, but I’m not against you adding it. In fact, I have suggestions for the best cheeses to use and I’ll list them out below.
Breakfast hash is easy. And customizable. And so delicious. You could use any potato, any meat, any bean, cook the egg any kind of way, and you’ll still have an awesome breakfast. Is it magic? Think so.
If you need some ideas for your next breakfast hash, let this be a contender. I’ve had 100 breakfast skillets that have inspired my at-home breakfasts, and this one is most directly inspired by Rachel Rey’s sweet potato hash and a skillet I had in Chicago that paired the poblanos with duck and Yukon golds. I got super attached to Rachel’s quick-cooking sweet potato skillet recipe and started making (somehow lazier) versions of it for years. When I had the poblano and duck skillet? Added some flair to my daily obsession.
Poblanos are awesome, smokey, earthy peppers that taste a bit different than zingy bell or spicy jalapeño. However, they require a little bit more work. Not that you couldn’t roast and steam bell peppers or jalapeños, but it isn’t required for cooking with them. If you don’t roast a poblano, it will taste bitter.
That being said:
The best way to make this an efficient brunch
First - the poblanos can be roasted ahead of time. You can do this in a hot oven or under the broiler (faster) and up to 4 days in advance. Put the peppers under the broiler, rotating until each side is charred, then pop them into a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Steam until the skin slides off (this isn’t as graceful as it sounds, by the way) and then save in a plastic bag until you’re ready to make the skillet. This saves nearly 30 minutes in the morning.
If you aren’t able to do this step ahead of time, don’t worry: do it first thing, before even slicing any potatoes. Broil the peppers while you chop the veggies, then steam them while you prep the salsa. By the time you have the potatoes in the skillet, the peppers will be ready to peel.
So, your morning will look like this:
Turn on the broiler, get the coffee going, gather the ingredients
Add the peppers to a foil lined baking sheet and pop in the oven
Peel and dice potatoes, drain the beans, get the chorizo out of the casing
Steam the peppers in a bowl
Slice the onions, halve the tomatoes, squeeze the lime, and chop the avo
Add the potatoes to the skillet; grab a cup of coffee
Peel and dice the peppers, add the chorizo to the skillet, then the beans, then the peppers.
Season everything.
Crack and steam the eggs. More coffee. Or clean up the kitchen a bit, it’ll save you sanity later.
Serve.
Not bad, right? What if I just wrote recipes like this?
Add-ons, like cheese
If you add cheese to the skillet, do so right after cracking the eggs, so the cheese gets all melty in the steam. The best cheeses for this skillet are queso fresco and pepperjack, which pair well with the peppery flavors of the dish. The next best will be Monterey Jack, fancy shredded cheddar, and white cheddar, which will be sharper, saltier, and more of that “super cheesy” taste and texture. And if you want something more salty, less melty? Cotija.
Otherwise, try:
salsa verde
red onion instead of white
bell peppers instead of poblano
radishes
kale, spinach
ground beef or pork instead of chorizo
sour cream, or Mexican crema
corn
sweet potato and poblano skillet ingredients
poblano peppers: These are dark green, waxy peppers that look like big, fat jalapeños. They aren’t spicy and have more of a roasted, smokey flavor. They have to be roasted and peeled before consuming, or they will taste bitter. Trust me.
If you don’t have time for roasting poblanos, just swap for green bell peppers.
sweet potatoes: Two large sweet potatoes will feed 4 easily. Dicing is easiest for a large portion, but I also love slicing wheels or half-moons for a different texture. This recipe is best with sweet potato, which is less starchy and a little sweeter than other potatoes, but feel free to swap for Yukon gold or russets for a more picadillo feel.
chorizo: I’m mega-picky about my chorizo. I like the squishy kind sold in casings, and the thinner the sausage, the better, for some reason. I’d strongly urge against buying whatever your grocery store is selling in the butcher case next to the ground pork; it’s dry, bland, and sad. Go to the Latin American market and get yourself some decent chorizo. The kind that stains your fingers red with spices. You know the one.
Also, the vegan links from Trader Joe’s are legit — vegetarians, vegans, this recipe can easily be made with just that simple swap.
black beans: Why not add a little more protein? I find adding black beans helps bulk up a dish that might be a bit light for 4. With a can of black beans, you’ll have no problem getting 4 servings out of this. You could swap in pinto or kidney.
spices: Cumin, chili powder, onion powder, coriander — that’s about it. Chorizo is spiced meat, so it carries a lot of the flavor here. You can certainly add more of anything you’d like, like smoked paprika, cayenne, or even cinnamon.
cherry tomatoes: The salsa can definitely be made with any kind of chopped tomato, but the cherry tomato works especially well with chunky avocado. Try it, it’s refreshing.
avocado: I used one, if you love avocado, use two. Cut it as close to last as you can — I actually prep everything and cut the avocado last just to be sure it doesn’t go brown. Luckily, the lime juice in the salsa keeps it looking fresh for quite a while.
lime juice: Just half a lime to add to the salsa. Use fresh, it will be much better.
oil: You’ll need olive oil for the salsa and any kind of oil for cooking the potatoes. Not a lot - maybe a couple spoonfuls.
white onion: Like in the salmon and couscous recipe, we are adding raw onion to this dish. I’m sorry, I love raw onion! Just slice it super thin and give it a good soak in the olive oil-lime juice mixture. It’ll be delicious, and the freshness will remind you of your favorite tacos.
cilantro: If you hate cilantro, leave it out, but otherwise, a must-have. Adds a great fresh flavor to the salsa and the skillet.
eggs: Optional, technically, but adds great protein to the skillet. Of course, you can fry your eggs in a separate skillet, scramble them, or even poach them, but this egg-in-a-hole method is a whole lot easier. Just drop them in and steam until set.
sweet potato and poblano pairing options
You don’t have to eat this for breakfast, by the way! You can have this at any time, with or without eggs. It’s a full meal in itself, but here are some things to serve with:
homemade tortilla chips
fruit salad
coffee
jalapeño poppers
queso
grilled corn, or elotes
