Okay, so what's the best brand of hashbrowns?  Say if I want to stay legal and not smuggle in real potatoes, what would be the best potato substitute?  The real thing can be rather heavy - at least that's what I hear, no personal experience you understand. ;)

dlk

Potatoes are illegal ? is this true.

Potatoes are not illegal in Canada, but bringing them across the border is.

There really is no "best" brand of box hash browns.  They are all working from the same dried potatoes so it's more about how much you want to pay than it is about quality.

I used to buy the "higher-end" hash browns until I tried some "lower-end" ones and found no difference in taste.  Now I go to the bulk foods section of the grocery store, buy a gallon-sized box (which is never a name-brand), and I am set for several trips.

If you want to fancy them up at all, you can add dried onion (and they always need a little more onion if Old-Salt's in your group  ;) ) and/or dried bell peppers.

I like to start the potatoes rehydrating in cold water as soon as I crack into the food pack in the AM.  Generally by the time I'm ready to start cooking, the potatoes are rehydrated.  Then I pour off the water, add the butter, and start frying them up.  This method makes a very serviceable hash brown.  It's not like fresh, but it's good.

The box will also give you a method where you rehydrate and cook all at once.  Don't even *think* about it.  You don't want to go there.

The food pack is always packed at home and we're about 900 miles from put-in.  Usually our only stop in Canadian territory before our entry point is to pick up leeches when we use those.  I guess we could stop for some Canadian tators but we're usually in too big of a hurry to get on the water :).

Fried potatoes and fish just seem a necessary part of the trip for us - at least one or two meals.

Thanks for the tips SnowDog, we'll avoid those high priced ones.  I think the only time I've had dehydrated ones the person fixing them must have used the "reconstitute while cooking" method because they tasted a lot like paper or cardboard :-/.

dlk

I want to make sure I am clear on this, but you can bring dried hashbrowns(boxed) into Canada right?  Just not real potatoes?

Thanks

Yup.  Dried is OK.  Only fresh potatoes will land you in the pokey in the cell next to PJ and his bagpipes.

In case you wanted to know, real potatoes are banned from Canada because they are concerned with a blight.  Potatoes which have been processed will not carry the blight.

They will ask you at the border if you have potatoes.  If you lie will you get caught, probably not.  But if you lie and get caught, you just bought yourself a lot of trouble.

Westwood

last trip, i bought 4 big spuds in atikokan and some onions and just roasted in foil in campfire night before and sliced and fried later on.
if you spread a #5 bag out between a few packs it wouldn't be that much effort for the quality of taste?
but, since this is  about dried hashbrowns, i got out my food dehydrator and made my own using the Simply Potatoes brand of frozen hashbrowns.
i thawed in bag in refrigerator and then spread on fruit rollup trays in dehydrator.
there "treated" so they don't turn color and i rehydrated them like Snow Dog recommended.
having eaten "boxed" hashbrowns, i think these tasted much better IMO.
worth a try if you have dehydrator??

However you guys get your potatoes into Canada, you must try making Poutine. I made it for the first time on my last trip and it was amazing: make up some hash brown potatoes, fry them in corn oil, while they fry add onion powder, pepper, salt. Just before they're golden brown add chopped mozzerella and melt it in. On the side you should make some instant gravy which you'll pour over the fried potatoes as you serve them. Voila!

Handsome Bill, you must be a Canadian to go so far as to make   (You need to Login or Register on trail.  How does your trail recipe compare to the stuff you get in Canada at restaurants?  Does the mozzerella substitute well for the cheese curds?

:) :) :)Hey that sounds yummy and might even make dehydrated and/or boxed hashbrowns tolerable for the palate!

[smiley=dankk2.gif]Thanks for the cooking tips.

dlk

lotalota wrote on Aug 13^th, 2006 at 2:18am:

Handsome Bill, you must be a Canadian to go so far as to make   (You need to Login or Register on trail.  How does your trail recipe compare to the stuff you get in Canada at restaurants?  Does the mozzerella substitute well for the cheese curds?

Heh. It's no big effort to make it and it's good, tasty comfort food - warms you right up. I tried mozzarella and I tried cheddar. Mozzarella was the better of the two. Plus, you can use the same mozzarella on pita pizzas for another meal.

And remember folks if you want those taters to get "Golden Brown" you must use real WI Butter to fry them up! OnlY real butter will do, no Marg, magre ,magerin, cant say it!!!!

cedarboy

Mrs cedarboy is from WI where State Law dictates that resturants serve real butter.

Quote:

you must use real WI Butter

8-)Yum!  Wisconsin is a state after my own heart!  As much butter as I eat maybe I'll be forgiven for that Velveeta "cheese" comment ;).

dlk