Crispy, golden diced hash browns with smoky bacon are the best for breakfast! This easy Southern-style hash browns recipe is one pan and easy to make. Learn how to get restaurant-quality hashbrowns at home!
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The Quick Dish on Southern-Style Hash Browns
Prep: 15 minutes | Cook: 40 minutes | Total Time: 55 minutes
Cuisine Inspiration: Southern Comfort
Primary Cooking Method: Sheet Pan – Oven
Dietary Info: Gluten-Free, Family-Friendly
Key Flavor: Crispy, Buttery, Savory
Skill Level: Easy Peasy!
Making hash browns from scratch is easier than you think, and once you try them, you’ll never go back to frozen! I’ve tested this recipe over and over to get the perfect balance of crispy edges and buttery, tender potatoes—because what’s breakfast without diced hash browns?
I grew up on Southern-style hash browns (crispy outside, soft inside), and the secret is simple: a hot pan and a little bacon grease. (Because bacon makes everything better!) That’s how you get those golden, crunchy bites of pure comfort.
Serve them as a breakfast hash with eggs, crispy bacon, sourdough pancakes, or try Honey Butter Toast for a touch of sweetness. Or enjoy these crispy hashbrowns as a delicious side for dinner. However you eat them, they’re sure to be a favorite—and best of all, just one pan means easy cleanup!
Diced Hash Browns Ingredients
- Bacon – Cook diced bacon until crispy, then save the grease to mix with the potatoes for extra flavor. I use uncured, nitrate-and nitrite-free bacon for a cleaner option!
- Oil – Along with bacon grease, use avocado oil or olive oil to help the potatoes turn out crispy and golden brown.
- Potatoes – For a tasty mix, combine cubed sweet potatoes with a russet potato, peeled and diced. Want to switch it up? Swap the russet for four small red potatoes, cubed. If using Yukon Gold or red potatoes, no peeling is needed—just dice and toss them in! Onion – Add extra savory-sweet flavor with a medium red onion, or use sweet or yellow onion if preferred.
- Bell Peppers – Dice up your favorite bell peppers for color and flavor. I used a mix of red, yellow, and orange bell peppers for a vibrant touch. Seasoning – Keep it simple with kosher salt, black pepper, and Trader Joe’s 21 Seasoning Salute (or a similar all-purpose seasoning).
Get the full recipe in the recipe card below.
How to Make Hash Browns
Step 1 – Preheat and Cook Bacon
Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Cook diced bacon in a hot skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, then drain the pan, saving the bacon grease for later.
Make Ahead: Cook the bacon, reserve the bacon grease, chop the veggies, store everything in airtight containers or baggies, and refrigerate until ready to assemble.
Step 2 – Chop Veggies and Mix with Seasonings
Place diced potatoes, onions, and peppers in a bowl or ziplock bag. Drizzle with oil, bacon grease, salt, pepper, and seasoning. Mix or shake to coat evenly. Spread in a single layer on a lined baking sheet for easy cleanup.
Kathleen’s Tip: Place a serving dish in the oven during the last 15 minutes of cooking if desired. Then, once the hash is finished baking, transfer it to the warmed baking dish, toss in the crisp cooked bacon, and serve!
If you forget to save the bacon grease or prefer not to use it; add melted butter or double the oil.
Step 3 – Bake Homemade Hash Browns
If you added extra veggies, split the mixture onto two cookie sheets so the potatoes and vegetables will brown evenly. Rotate them halfway through cooking. Bake for 40-55 minutes, flipping hash halfway through.
During the last 10 minutes, stir in the cooked bacon to reheat. That’s it! Serve hot!
For more breakfast potato recipes, check out my easy Air Fryer Hash Brown Patties, this Cheesy Hashbrown Casserole Recipe (Funeral Potatoes), and the best copycat Cracker Barrel Hashbrowns recipe!
Variations & Substitutions
- Sheet Pan Breakfast Hash – Top with fried eggs or cheesy scrambled eggs for a hearty meal.
- Cheesy Hash Browns – Sprinkle hot potatoes with shredded cheddar, green onions, and sour cream.
- Mix It Up – Use sweet potatoes, yams, or russets. Yukon gold or red potatoes? No peeling needed!
- Protein Options – Swap bacon for sausage, ham, pancetta, or spicy chorizo.
- Veggie Hash Browns – Skip the bacon and use veggie oil. Add mushrooms, zucchini, or squash.
- Southwest Hash Browns – Spice it up with jalapeños, cayenne, paprika, chili powder, or hot sauce.
- Seasoned Hash Browns – Instead of Trader Joe’s 21 Spice Salute, use onion powder, garlic powder, parsley, basil, oregano, rosemary, and thyme.
Recommended Tools
- These USA Sheet pans are my favorites; they are non-stick, heavy steel, and they are made in the USA.
Can I make sweet potato hash recipe in a skillet?
Yes, over medium heat, preheat a large skillet. Cook your bacon until crisp; reserve 2-3 tablespoons of bacon grease. Add your oil and bacon grease to the skillet.
Once shimmering, carefully add the potatoes and other vegetables. I love using my large cast iron skillet (my favorite) and cooking over medium heat, stirring occasionally for 15-20 minutes.
Once the potatoes are soft and golden brown, remove with a slotted spoon and enjoy! Add some over-easy eggs to the top, making a small well around the hash, crack a fresh egg into each spot, cover and cook until the desired doneness.
Crispy Hash Browns FAQs
Make sure your oven is fully preheated, use oil, and finally, before baking the diced potatoes, pat them with a paper towel or let them sit on a paper-towel-lined plate for a few minutes. Removing the excess moisture will help them get extra crispy in the oven.
Russet potatoes are a classic choice when making diced hash browns, being starchy potatoes with less moisture, leading to extra crispy potatoes. Waxy potatoes, like Yukon golds or red potatoes, tend to be softer and less crisp.
Bacon grease is a great way to bring more flavor to oven hash browns while helping them brown and crisp better in the oven.
Yes, you can use frozen hash browns for this recipe! If you’re using frozen diced hash browns, there’s no need to thaw them first. However, keep in mind that frozen potatoes may release extra moisture, so give them a little extra time to crisp up.
Storage
Leftover Potatoes – Store leftover hash browns in an airtight container in the fridge or sealed plastic bag for three to four days and freeze after cooling completely for up to 3 months.
Best Way to Reheat Hash Browns
My favorite way to reheat these potatoes is to toss them into a lightly oiled skillet until warm. You may also reheat in the microwave in 30-60 second bursts until warm or even pop back into a preheated oven for 5-10 minutes.
Avoid overcrowding the pan to give the ingredients plenty of room to brown and cook evenly, resulting in perfectly crisp potatoes.
Our favorite breakfast recipes
Mock Eggs Benedict, breakfast sliders, Cinnamon Roll Casserole Cinnabon Cinnamon rolls. Check out all of my breakfast recipes.
More Bacon Recipes
- Green Bean Casserole Recipe with Bacon
- Whipped Goat Cheese with Bacon & Dates
- Bacon Beef Minestrone Soup
- Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta Salad Recipe
- Bacon Balsamic Macaroni Salad
I hope you loved this Diced Potatoes Hash Browns Recipe with Bacon — if you did, would you share your creation on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest? And be sure to comment below!
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Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ pound bacon diced, cooked crisp, grease reserved
- 1-2 tablespoons avocado oil or olive oil
- 1-2 medium Sweet Potatoes peeled and cubed
- 1 medium Russet Potato or 4 small Red Potatoes, peeled and cubed (no need to peel red potatoes)
- 1 medium red onion diced (or use sweet onion or yellow onion)
- 2-3 bell peppers color of choice, diced
- 2-3 tablespoons bacon grease reserved
- ½-1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 1-3 teaspoons 21 Seasoning Salute Trader Joe’s* or similar
Instructions
- Start by preheating the oven to 425°F (220 ° C), then cook the diced bacon in a preheated skillet over medium-high heat until the pieces are crisp. Remove to paper towel-lined plate. Drain the pan and save the bacon grease for later in the recipe.½ pound bacon
- place the diced potatoes, onions, and peppers, in a large bowl or ziplock bag and drizzle with oil, bacon grease, salt, pepper, and seasoning. Mix the ingredients or shake the plastic bag until the potatoes are evenly coated. Place them in an even single layer on a half-sheet baking pan.1-2 tablespoons avocado oil, 1-2 medium Sweet Potatoes, 1 medium Russet Potato, 1 medium red onion, 2-3 bell peppers, 2-3 tablespoons bacon grease, ½-1 teaspoon kosher salt, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, 1-3 teaspoons 21 Seasoning Salute
- If you added extra veggies, split the mixture onto two cookie sheets so the potatoes and vegetables will brown evenly. Rotate them halfway through cooking.
- Bake the hash in the oven for 40-55 minutes, flipping the breakfast hash halfway through. During the last 10 minutes, stir in the cooked bacon to reheat. That's it! Serve hot!
Notes
Nutrition
M Denis
Made this for a brunch buffet at work and it was such a hit! I was lazy and bought a bag of pre-diced hash brown potatoes – made the whole process so easy!
That sounds great! I love your short cut!
Beth
My kind of easy recipe. I can still see the egg yolk running down into all of that potato goodness!
Perfect!!!
Anjali
These hash browns turned out perfectly!! They were crispy on the outside, creamy on the inside, and went great with our french toast for breakfast this morning!
So perfect!!
suja Md
Perfect! I love this recipe! I haven’t made one in ages. Thanks for the idea!
So glad you liked it!
Sharon Chen
Nothing really beats crispy and well-seasoned potatoes! This was amazing, thank you very much!
So glad you loved it, Sharon!
Shadi Hasanzadenemati
The combination of crispy, golden-brown diced potatoes and smoky bacon creates a symphony of flavors that is simply irresistible. The potatoes are perfectly seasoned and cooked to perfection, resulting in a delightful crunch with each bite.
Thank you so much!
Thank you!!