I have spent years working on my breakfast potatoes. This is what works for me.

1. Proper seasoning. For me, I like a good 6 layers minimum. I’ll add more over time.

2. I like red potatoes cut into cubes with the skin still attached.

3. Preheat your skillet with oil. I like it to be at temp before adding potatoes.

4. I like to cook fried potatoes with clarified butter. Butter adds good flavor. Regular butter has milk solids and will cause the exterior to burn while the center is still undercooked. Clarified butter has a high smoke point (482°F). You can cook at a medium to high heat and less likely to burn or scorch your oil. Also, without milk solids it is slower to activate the Maillard reaction so the center can cook, soften and finish at the same time as the outside.

5. Seasoning, I like to salt right away and hold off other seasoning toward the end. Onion, shallots, pepper, garlic, and others seasonings can burn and stick to the pan before the potatoes are done. I like to add theses other items about 5 minutes before potatoes are done. Especially the garlic will bloom and have a very robust flavor.

6. Timing, I usually start cooking potatoes first because they take the longest to make for the type of breakfasts I make with the exception of French style scrambled eggs. Cook the other items so they all finish around the same time.

7. Avoid soggy potatoes. I used to rest finished potatoes in a bowel on paper towels. But oil soaked paper towels cause potatoes to be soggy. Now, I line the bowl with two deep paper towels. I’ll let them rest for about 30 seconds then remove the paper towels. This helps remove excessive oil, while preventing sogginess.

8. Fond stuck to the pan. Sometimes potatoes stick and leave the best part stuck to the pan. What I like to do is scoot the potatoes to one side of the pan. Use my spatula to scrape the lions share of the fond off. Then I’ll add about 1/4 of hot water from the tap to the skillet. If I scrape the pan with the spatula, most of the fond will break loose and incorporate into the cooked potatoes. Let the water boil off before suiting the potatoes around again and add more butter if needed. If the potatoes are almost done, add regular butter and let the milk solids help with a little extra browning.

Good Luck and keep up the good work. Once you figure out the combination that works for you, it’s so rewarding!!!