Vegan Mexican Breakfast Potatoes
Add a bit of spice to your mornings with these vegan Mexican breakfast potatoes! With jalapeños, Mexican spices, fresh cilantro, tomatoes and avocado, they’re a taste sensation. Enjoy them alongside homemade tofu scramble and sautéed kale.
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What are Mexican breakfast potatoes?
Vegan recipes may not exactly come to mind when thinking of Mexican food – it can often be heavy on meat, or at the very least on eggs and cheese. But I promise that you won’t miss the meat and dairy in this vegan Mexican breakfast recipe!
This Mexican breakfast hash is simple but so full of flavour. It’s a twist on traditional pan fried breakfast potatoes with juicy tomatoes, bold spice, smokey paprika and fresh cilantro. Inspired by both my love of potatoes, and my love of Mexican food, it’s so hearty and hits the spot all year around.
It makes for a great breakfast or brunch, but is also a delicious lunch or side dish. It’s really great for cooking on a budget as potatoes are so cheap. They’re a humble food, but are so delicious and versatile.
Mexican breakfast potatoes are perfect for lazy mornings, as they don’t need too much prep. This recipe uses roughly 2 russet potatoes, but can easily be doubled to serve 4 if you are feeding the family.
Why I love this Mexican skillet breakfast
- It’s a healthy and wholesome breakfast which is perfect for the weekend. Served with scramble and kale, it’s well rounded with fibre, protein, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals.
- You only need a couple of easy steps to make these Mexican fried potatoes, and they’re ready in less than half an hour.
- This spicy Mexican potatoes recipe only uses two pans, so it is super easy to clean up.
- It’s dairy free, egg free, vegan, and gluten free.
- It’s great for serving a crowd. Multiply the recipe and use a larger pan for crispy Mexican potatoes which will blow everyone away.
What ingredients are needed for Mexican breakfast potatoes?
Potatoes– I like to use starchy potatoes such as russets (or Idaho potatoes) for this Mexican style potatoes recipe, but really any white potato works. I leave the skins on for extra fiber, but you could peel them if you prefer. If you choose to leave the skins on, just give them a quick scrub to remove any excess dirt.
Onions– Use a medium sized brown onion or red onion. If you prefer a milder onion flavour, opt for a sweet white onion.
Jalapeño– Jalapeño makes this vegan Mexican breakfast dish a little spicy. You can remove the seeds for a milder breakfast dish.
Spices– I’ve used garlic powder, smoked paprika and cumin in this skillet recipe. You often get chorizo in this kind of Mexican breakfast dish, so paprika works well to replicate that smokey flavour.
Cherry tomatoes– These add some juicy freshness. We’ll cook them until they blister and begin to burst, but you could also add them raw at the end if you would rather.
Avocado– I just slice this and serve it on top of the Mexican breakfast potatoes, but you could make guacamole if you prefer.
Cilantro– I love cilantro (or coriander), and it’s the perfect herb for this Mexican skillet breakfast. Sprinkle generously on top or stir through at the end (or leave it out if you hate it!).
Equipment needed
You’ll need a good knife and chopping board to chop the vegetables. You’ll also need a saucepan to parboil the potatoes, and a sauté pan, frying pan, or skillet to fry them off.
How to make Mexican breakfast potatoes
Making this Mexican breakfast hash is so easy, and takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
Begin by bringing a pot of well salted water to the boil, and boil the chopped potatoes for 5-10 minutes until they are just tender. Make sure you don’t over-boil the potatoes or they will fall apart when fried.
Next, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the par-boiled potatoes and fry for 5 minutes, turning occasionally, until they are lightly brown and crispy on all sides, but not burning.
Add the diced onion and jalapeño to the pan and fry for 3-4 minutes more until they begin to soften. Next, add the spices, stir to coat, then add the tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes more until the tomatoes blister.
Serve the spicy Mexican breakfast potatoes immediately, topped with the avocado and cilantro.
Serving suggestions
These potatoes make a really wholesome vegan Mexican breakfast breakfast when served alongside silken tofu scramble and sautéed kale. However there are so many other ways to enjoy them! Try:
- Drizzling them with a sauce such as enchilada sauce, salsa or vegan sour cream.
- Serving with a plant-based protein such as vegan chorizo sausage, bacon or refried beans.
- Adding cubes of vegan queso fresco on top.
- A breakfast burrito or vegan breakfast tacos– serve it up in warm tortillas with tofu scramble, avocado and salsa.
- Scattering the Mexican breakfast potatoes on top of a salad.
- For an extra filling meal, eat alongside Mexican rice.
Tips for the best Mexican breakfast potatoes
The key to the best breakfast potatoes is making sure that all of the potatoes cook and crisp up evenly. To ensure this, chop potatoes to the same size as each other so that they cook evenly. I like to use half inch chunks so they don’t take too long to cook
If you don’t do this, some will be mushy and some will be too firm.
I’ve made this Mexican skillet breakfast recipe quicker and easier by part-boiling the potatoes, which gives them fluffy edges which go even crispier when fried in a skillet. Boiling the potatoes also helps to get rid of some of their starchiness. Make sure that you pat them dry before frying, so they crisp up nicely.
Ingredient substitutes or additions
- Remove the seeds from the jalapeño for milder Mexican breakfast potatoes, or just remove it completely if you don’t like spice at all. You could also swap this out for a poblano pepper if you can get hold of them.
- To change things up a bit, swap in chunks of sweet potato instead of white potato. These may need slightly longer at the parboiling stage, just keep checking them until they are just tender.
- Add some kidney beans or black beans with the tomatoes for a boost of protein.
- Spices– try Mexican oregano, chili powder or cayenne, or sweet paprika.
- Veggies– I like my breakfast potatoes with tomatoes, but you can add in your favourite veg, such as peppers, corn, spinach, or mushrooms. Add these in at the same time as the tomatoes, making sure you use a high enough temperature to cook off any water they release.
FAQ’s
For the best results, I wouldn’t recommend making this Mexican breakfast hash in advance. However, if you want to speed up the process in the morning, you could parboil the potatoes the night before and store them in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to cook.
Leftovers of this dish work well for lunches, although they do lose some of their crispiness. Keep them in an airtight container for up to 5 days in the fridge. Reheat them in the pan or oven to bring back some crispiness, or otherwise microwave until piping hot.
You do need a little bit of oil to make your Mexican breakfast potatoes crispy. If you decide to use less oil or no oil, make sure you use a non-stick pan, as the potatoes will stick to a skillet without oil. Without oil, use a splash of water or stock (the vegetables will cook, but they won’t crisp up).
Looking for some more vegan breakfast ideas?
You might like…
- Gluten-free sheet pan pancakes.
- Vegan shakshuka.
- Hummus bread with grilled portobellos.
- Dairy free coconut milk crepes.
- Vegan Spanish omelette.
Pin it!
Vegan Mexican Breakfast Potatoes
Equipment
- Chefs knife
- Chopping board
- Medium saucepan
- Medium skillet or frying pan
Ingredients
- 350 g russet potatoes (approx 2 medium) cut into ½ inch cubes
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 brown onion diced
- 1 jalapeño finely chopped
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 150 g cherry tomatoes (approx 15-20)
- 1 avocado sliced
- 1 bunch coriander/cilantro chopped
Instructions
- Bring a pot of well salted water to the boil, and boil the chopped potatoes for 5-10 minutes until they are just tender. Make sure you don’t over-boil the potatoes or they will fall apart when fried.
- Next, heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the par-boiled potatoes and fry for 5 minutes, turning occasionally, until they are lightly brown and crispy on all sides, but not burning.
- Add the diced onion and jalapeño to the pan and fry for 3-4 minutes more until they begin to soften.
- Next, add the spices, stir to coat, then add the tomatoes. Cook for 5 minutes more until the tomatoes blister.
- Serve the spicy Mexican breakfast potatoes immediately, topped with the avocado and cilantro.
Notes
Nutrition
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