Boniato Hash with Pasture-Raised Eggs
Boniato, Florida's sweet-natured white-fleshed potato, crisps up beautifully in a cast-iron skillet with smoked paprika and scallions. Nestle in a few pasture-raised eggs, cover the pan, and let the yolks set just enough to stay runny. This is the kind of breakfast that makes you glad it got cold enough to warrant turning on the stove.
One skillet, one good morning: boniato hash with runny-yolk pasture-raised eggs.
From about October through March, boniato shows up at the farm stands down the road from us in LaBelle and Immokalee, and we start making this hash on weekend mornings almost every week. Boniato is a Cuban white sweet potato, starchier and less sugary than the orange kind, and it gets genuinely crispy in a cast-iron pan in a way that most sweet potatoes never quite manage.
We crack Altamont eggs right into the wells at the end, cover the pan, and pull it off the heat the moment the whites are set. The yolks stay runny and they run into the hash and that is the whole point. Simple food that tastes like the season. You can read how we raise them here.
Ingredients
Method
- 1
Heat the lard or oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the diced boniato in a single layer, season with the salt, and press down gently with a spatula. Let it cook undisturbed for 5 minutes so the bottom side gets a proper golden crust.
- 2
Flip the boniato pieces in sections, press down again, and cook another 4 to 5 minutes until the second side is browned and the cubes are tender all the way through. Lower the heat to medium if anything looks like it is darkening too fast.
- 3
Scatter the scallion whites, smoked paprika, and red pepper flakes over the hash. Stir everything together and cook for 1 minute until the scallions soften and the spices are fragrant.
- 4
Use the back of a spoon to make four shallow wells in the hash. Crack one egg into each well and season the eggs lightly with salt.
- 5
Cover the skillet with a lid or a sheet pan and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the whites are just set and the yolks are still runny. Pull the pan off the heat immediately.
- 6
Scatter the scallion greens over the top and serve straight from the skillet.
Notes from our kitchen
- Boniato is drier and starchier than regular sweet potato, which is exactly why it crisps so well. Do not skip the undisturbed browning time or you will steam it instead of searing it.
- If your skillet does not have a lid, a large baking sheet set on top works perfectly and holds in just enough steam to set the whites without murking up the yolks.
- Boniato oxidizes quickly after peeling. Have your skillet hot and your oil measured before you start cutting.
Common questions
Can I use regular sweet potato instead of boniato?
You can, but the texture will be softer and sweeter. Boniato holds its shape and crisps in a way that orange sweet potatoes do not. If boniato is unavailable, a waxy white potato like a fingerling or a small Yukon gold is a closer substitute.
How do I know when the eggs are done the way I like them?
Two minutes covered gives you very runny yolks. Three minutes gives you yolks that are just beginning to thicken at the edges but still flow when you break them. Beyond three minutes and they will be mostly set, which is fine if that is what your table prefers.
Where do I find boniato in Southwest Florida?
Most Latin grocery stores in Fort Myers, Cape Coral, and Immokalee carry boniato year-round. Farm stands around Alva and LaBelle often have it from October through March. It looks like a blotchy brown-pink tuber with white flesh inside.
