Bacon and Potato Skillet Frittata
Crisp golden potatoes and bacon under a softly set egg, cooked in one pan. A savory, filling breakfast that comes together on the stovetop.
- Total
- 30 min
- Prep 8 · Cook 22
- Serves
- 1
- Difficulty
- Easy
You'll practice: Rendering fat · Dicing
- Savory
- Stovetop
- Oven
Instructions
-
Cut the potatoes into 1.5 cm cubes. Pat them dry with a clean cloth so they brown instead of steam.
~5 min
Drying the potatoes removes surface moisture so they brown by frying instead of steaming, which keeps them crisp.
Dry the potato cubes well before they hit the pan: surface moisture steams them and they will not turn golden.
Dicing Cut potatoes into uniform 1.5 cm cubes so they cook at the same rate. Irregular pieces leave some raw while others overcook.
-
Put the bacon slices in a cold non-stick skillet and set it over medium heat. Cook until the fat renders and the bacon is crisp and browned, about 6 minutes, turning once. Lift the bacon out onto a plate, leaving the fat in the pan.
~6 min
Starting bacon in a cold pan slowly renders its fat, giving crisp bacon and flavorful fat for cooking the potatoes.
Rendering fat Start bacon in a cold pan over medium heat so the fat melts gradually and the bacon crisps evenly. Rushing with high heat burns the outside before the fat renders.
-
Add the olive oil and the potatoes to the skillet with the bacon fat. Season with half the salt and half the black pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring every couple of minutes, until the cubes are golden outside and tender when pierced with a knife, 10 to 12 minutes.
~12 min
The potatoes are cooked in bacon fat and oil over medium heat so they turn golden and tender without burning.
-
While step 3 cooks
While the potatoes cook, crack the eggs into a bowl, add the remaining salt and black pepper, and beat with a fork until the yolks and whites are just combined. Crumble the bacon.
~2 min
-
Spread the potatoes into an even layer in the skillet and scatter the crumbled bacon over them. Pour the eggs over the top and cook over low heat without stirring until the edges are set and the center is just barely soft, 5 to 6 minutes.
~6 min
Cooking over low heat without stirring lets the eggs set gently, keeping the frittata tender instead of rubbery.
Keep the heat low once the eggs go in. High heat puffs the frittata and makes the bottom rubbery before the center sets.
-
Slide a spatula under the frittata and fold it in half, or cut it into wedges straight from the pan. The egg should be fully set with no runny white. Serve hot.
~1 min