One of my favorite ways to cook is using leftovers to create something new. Thanks to the holidays, we had a lot of ham leftovers — and I mean a LOT. We had ham for every meal for a week and we were getting sick of it.

In order to make it more interesting, I started experimenting with ham breakfasts and dinners. I came up with this ham & potato hash, which is very reminiscent of diner food. Every time I eat it, I feel like I should be sitting in a cracked vinyl booth with a ceramic coffee mug full of black coffee and a paper placemat covered in advertisements for local businesses.

Here’s what you’ll need for about two servings:

• Two russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• Half a small white onion
• 1/4 cup cooked ham (I kept the skin on, but you can take it off if you prefer)
• 1/8 cup chicken stock
• 1-2 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/8 cup black beans
• 1-2 cloves garlic
• Cooking oil
• Salt and pepper as needed
• Egg, if desired
• Parsley, if desired
• Hot sauce, if desired

Step One: Cook Your Taters

Heat your pan with the oil. Once the pan is hot and your oil shimmering, add your potatoes. Spread them out on the pan so they are touching the surface in order to get a good crisp. Stir them occasionally, but don’t stir them too much in order to allow for browning. As they cook, you’ll notice the edges start to turn translucent.

Step Two: Add Ham & Onion

Once the majority of your potatoes are fully translucent, add the ham and onions. You want the ham to render out some fat, and you want your onions to gain some color.

Step Three: Partial Deglaze

At this point, you may notice some brown bits sticking to the bottom of your pan. This is full of flavor, between the crispy potato starches, oil, and ham fat. In order to incorporate some of that back into the dish, you’re going to deglaze some of the pan while your food is cooking.

I used chicken stock to do this, but you could also use veggie stock or bone broth. I wouldn’t recommend using water, as it will dilute some of the flavor.

Deglazing a pan sounds fancy, but it’s really quite simple. All you have to do is add the chicken stock, and use either a wooden or rubber spatula to scrape the brown bits until they release. They should release easily with the help of the liquid; you shouldn’t have to force them.

Don’t stress about getting all the brown bits up at this point. I only deglazed about half the pan and then moved on because I’m *lazy.*

Step Four: Add Black Beans, Tomato Paste, and Garlic

Add 1/8 cup black beans (roughly three spoonfuls), 1-2 tbsp tomato paste, and 1-2 cloves of garlic (roughly 1 spoonful) into the pan. Make sure to drain your black beans as best you can before tossing them in.

All you’re doing in this step is heating the beans, cooking some of the garlic to release the flavor, and incorporating the tomato paste. Garlic burns very quickly, so make sure your pan heat is on a medium-low setting at this point. The tomato paste will help slow down any possible burning, but you’re only cooking these through for about a minute.

Step Five: Season & Add An Egg

At this point, you’re pretty much done! Just add salt and pepper to taste, and some parsley if you wanna be fancy. I added a sunny side up egg to the top of my bowl, but you can skip that if you’re not an egg person. This dish is also really yummy with some hot sauce, if you’re looking for an added kick.

I forgot to take a photo of the final dish because I was so excited to eat it — typical.

Enjoy!