A great treat for feeding a crowd, these irresistible Cheese and Bacon Muffin Tin Hash Browns are made even tastier with the addition of cheese and bacon! Plus you can make them ahead and they’re freezer friendly. Win, win, win!
There are some things in life that you think just can’t get any better. Like hash browns. With a golden, crunchy crust and moist inside, hash browns is one of those things in life that appeals to both little kids and grown ups.
So – can you improve on the classic hash brown? YES, YOU CAN! By adding cheese and bacon!
Then you up the stakes again – by making them in muffin tins. Because anything in miniature form that you can eat with your fingers just tastes better!
The added benefit is that you can make stacks of these Cheese and Bacon Muffin Tin Hash Browns at the same time so it’s great to feed a crowd. Plus you can make them in advance then reheat them in the oven to make the crust crisp again. They even freeze well!
Another idea for making hash browns for a crowd without having to slave over a hot stove making individual ones is the Giant Hash Brown that I posted a few weeks ago that has proven to be quite popular! As the name implies, instead of making small individual hash browns, you make one giant one then slice it up like a cake to serve.
I’m getting distracted! Back to this recipe……
Two main tips for this Cheese and Bacon Muffin Tin Hash Browns recipe:
1. Make sure you use the right potato! You need to use starchy potatoes for hash browns as they breakdown when cooked, becoming nice and fluffy inside and golden and crunchy on the outside. The best to use are Russet (common in the US), dutch creams, King Edwards or red delight. However, great all rounders like golden delight, coliban, red rascal and Sebago (the dirt brushed potatoes popular in Australia) are also great.
Do not use waxy potatoes like red pontiac and desiree – when cooked, they hold their shape making them perfect for things like using in casseroles and potato salad, but are not suitable for things like hash browns.
2. Spray the muffin tin! The first time I made this, I was convinced because my muffin tin is non stick, it would be fine. Talk about a “fail”. I used a knife to loosen the edges then tried to use a spoon to pry them out but they were so stuck they literally fell apart as I was removing them! So learn from my mistakes – make sure you spray the tin!
OK, enough chatter! Here’s the recipe. Hope you enjoy it! Love to hear from you if you try it – or if you have any questions, just leave a comment below and I’ll be sure to respond.
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Cheese and Bacon Muffin Tin Hash Browns
Ingredients
- 1 kg / 2 lb starchy potatoes (see notes)
- 2 1/2 tbsp olive oil , separated
- 1 cup grated cheese (any melting cheese)
- 3 bacon rashers , finely diced
- 3/4 tsp salt
- Pepper
- 1 tbsp parsley , finely chopped (for garnish - optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Heat 1/2 tbsp of olive oil in a pan over high heat. Add the bacon and sauté until crispy. Remove and drain on a paper towel.
- Peel and grate the potatoes and place in a colander. Rinse under cold water for a few seconds (to remove starch which helps make them fluffy inside and also stops the potatoes from browning).
- Working a handful at a time, squeeze out the excess water and place into the bowl.
- Add most of the bacon (reserve some to garnish), 2 tbsp olive oil, salt, pepper and cheese. Mix well to combine.
- Spray a 12 hole muffin tray with oil.
- Place 1/3 cup (packed) of the mixture into each hole. Pat down lightly with the back of a spoon.
- Bake for 30 minutes until dark golden brown on top.
- Let stand for a few minutes before turning out from the muffin tray.
- Garnish with parsley and remaining bacon, and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Hi Nagi, this looks delicious. Wondering if I make this in a big pan instead of muffin tins, would I need to increase the temperature or cooking time? Thanks in advance!
Hi Nagi,
Im hoping to make these for school holiday treats. Just wondering if they will work in silicone muffin trays?
Hi there! I’m so excited to make these this weekend! Quick question—what’s your preferred shredded cheese? Thanks so much!
Hi Meribeth, any melting cheese will work, I usually use cheddar or tasty – N x
Hello. im looking forward to making and eating these but im wondering… how many slices of bacon is it then?!
im finding that a “rasher” of bacon can either mean a thin slice or 3 slices. 3 thin slices of bacon doesnt seem to be enough for this recipe, in my opinion, so im thinking it might be the latter?! as 9 slices sounds better. thanks! 😉
I ended up going through all the comments and found your answer to someone else asking.
I finally made these earlier but they came out pretty soggy on the bottom, not sticking together all that wonderfully. unsure if they were cooked well enough. :-/
I used russets. I used a stainless muffin pan, greased. the only things I can think of is that the potatoes were a little on the older side, tho didnt seem bad, werent all soft of growing eyes or anything. The other thing is that instead of rinsing them in cold water, I soaked them. BUT I did squeeze them out pretty good. Any thoughts?! I now have them out of the muffin tin, upside down on a cookie sheet, back in the oven to see what happens.
Hey there! I was hoping to make these today, anyway of including a vegetable of some sort that won’t impact texture?
Thanks!
Laura
It depends on the vegetable 🙂 The wetness may affect it, what are you thinking?? 🙂 N x
That’s what I was thinking to, wouldn’t want the moisture to impact the crispness! Maybe kale or shredded carrot or red pepper? hmm open to suggestions tho 🙂
Hi, These look so good and want to try them for an early morning meeting at my church.
Would prepping them the night before and refrigerating in the muffin tin overnight, then baking them in the morning work?
I see you say reheating will work, but would rather cook it for the first time in the morning.
Can’t wait to try them!
Hi Karen! I would just worry that the potato would dry out a bit so wouldn’t hold together as well when baked. I promise they reheat really well because they are nice and juicy from the cheese and bacon!
Hi Nagi, have you tried adding eggs to add protein?
I haven’t but I am pretty sure that will affect the crispiness 🙂
Ok, thank you! I’ll give it a try…
I made these this week to use up potatoes I had. Added some salami I also had leftover. Perfect!
Salami would be SO GOOD in this!!! YUM!
Very tasty. I used IDA-ORA shredded hash brown potatoes to cut prep time. I added some cream and red onion because I had some on hand. Unlike my regular muffins, these shrank quite a lot. Maybe I needed to squish them more but the recipe exactly filled my standard muffin tray. Will be making these again.
Hi Nagi! I just wanted to let you know that I made these not once, but twice for breakfast (American) football tailgates. I used mini muffin tins so they were bite-sized (and I used the frozen, pre-shredded potatoes) and they were a huge hit! Pretty sure they’ll be expected at every breakfast tailgate this coming season as well. I also made your cheese dip (for some homemade pretzel bites) that I added a drained can of Rotel to. Also a huge hit. It was pretty cold that day, and the dip didn’t harden! Definitely a keeper. Thanks!
Woah! Thanks Meghan! So glad you enjoyed it!!!
Hi Nagi, can I line the muffin tray with muffin paper cup? Thanks
You sure can! That’s a good idea actually, nice way to serve them too!
Thank you for lovely recipe, we really enjoyed these!:))
I’m so glad! Thank you for taking the time to come back and let me know!!
YUMMMMMMMMMMYYYYY!!!
YES THEY ARE!!! 🙂
I made these today, seriously yum, thanks for the recipe!
SO GLAD you loved it Laura!! Thanks so much for coming back and letting me know!! N x
By “rasher of bacon” , do you refer to slices? I researched and found both 1 slice and 7 oz of Canadian style bacon to be identified as a “rasher of bacon”.
Hi Mary! Yes I mean a slice of bacon. A rasher is what we call it here in Australia! Must update the recipe 🙂
I made this on Monday. They needed longer to cook and looked and tasted wonderful—when I managed to get them out of the pan with a spoon. I used Pam but that didn’t help a bit. I was hoping to serve them this weekend but have had to abandon the recipe. I grated my own Canadian aged cheddar and am wondering if that was the problem. I will try again but really need them to hold up as finger food.
Hi Jenny! I’m sorry you had a problem getting them out of your muffin tin. The muffin tin I use has a non stick coating. Between that and the bacon fat + olive oil + oil spray should be more than enough for the muffins to slip out of the pan fairly easily. Some bits of cheese might stick – i.e. the bits on the top edges that brown – but the rest of the muffin should slip out.
Oh – the other thought is – did you use the right potatoes?? If you use waxy potatoes, the muffin doesn’t hold together as well. N x
Just popped them out of the oven. Delicious! Will be making many more & mixing them up with sausage, onion & bell pepper also. Will keep a variety in freezer for a quick breakfast with fried eggs. To reheat after freezing, do you thaw in fridge or room temp? Do you reheat in muffin tin or on cookie sheet? I’m 57 & just starting to take a real interest in experimenting w/cooking as I now have the time. SO HAPPY TO HAVE FOUND YOUR WEBSITE ….I LOVE, LOVE IT!!
Hi Linda! SO GLAD you loved them! And I’m SO GLAD you found my website too!! I have some of these in my freezer right now 🙂 I generally thaw them in the fridge overnight because I take them out of the freezer the night before. Even if it is not completely thawed through by the morning they heat through perfectly. I just reheat them on a cookie sheet because they hold their shape perfectly.
Isn’t it fab, having the time to experiment with cooking? Get creative and experiment! Woo hoo! N x
Hi Nagi, just finished cooking your cheesy, bacon hash brown muffins wow it is delicious change a few things because trying to lose weight so I used butterball fully cooked turkey bacon (30 cal) simply potato southwest style has Browns and Kraft fat free cheddar cheese (45 cal) and the rest followed your recipe and it came out amazing thank you sooooo much. God Bless You
Hi Jucara – thank you so much for coming back to share your thoughts! I am so glad you enjoyed it so much even though you very cleverly turned it into a low cal version! I must give that a go – I really need to work on my waistline 🙂 So I’ll try YOUR take on MY recipe! Ha ha ha! 🙂
I use hash browns from the refrigerated section of my local store (where the eggs and canned biscuits are). They are actual potatoes and I fry diced bacon with onions and sometimes peppers and line muffin cups and bake them til crisp, then crack an egg in each one and top with cheese and bake until the eggs are just “set” – about 8-10 minutes. Just my way.
Yours are way more loaded than mine Dorothy!! Maybe I should post a Loaded Hashbrown Muffins, courtesy of Dorothy…??!! 😉
I’d be honored!
OK! Adding that to my list of things to make!! 🙂 It will be next month, my breakfast line up for this month is pretty full!!
Thank you for the recipe Nagi, couldn’t think what to make for tea (Aussie for evening meal). Will try them 2nite. Sound yummy – who wouldn’t love all the ingredients together. I’m like you, love my spuds!! Carol
Tea! I haven’t heard dinner referred as tea in years! N xx
I’d like to make these for a team dinner this weekend for 30. Question: Do you squeeze dry your potatoes after they have been rinsed? Someone taught me to do that but wanted to make them the way you do to ensure they come out. Thanks and let me know!
Hi Ronna! I totally forgot that step in this recipe – I have it in all my other hash brown recipes! You don’t need to do it with paper towels or anything, but yes you need to squeeze the water out using your hands before placing in the bowl. I’ve added that step – glad you asked!
made these for New Year’s Eve. They were awesome. To make them I took a chance and used frozen seasoned hash browns a lot less work and also used a pound of bacon then baked them in my mini muffin tin which made them bite size. Thank u for this awesome recipe. Wish I could post a pic to show everyone
When using the mini muffin tin, did that reduce the cook time? Also, did you thaw the frozen hash browns first?
Hi Katelyn! I didn’t use frozen hash browns, I used fresh. Using a mini muffin tin will reduce the time – I’d say around 8 minutes? I used an ordinary muffin tin (cupcake tin). 🙂
Thank you! What do you think about making these the night before, refrigerating overnight and then reheating them in the morning? I see your note about freezing them but I wasn’t sure if that was really necessary for just one night.
Hi Katelyn – defiantly no need to freeze them overnight! Just refrigerate as you say, then pop them in the oven to reheat so they get nice and crispy again! 🙂
Oh wow, thank you for coming back to share how much you enjoyed these TJ!! What an AWESOME treat for NYE!!