Owen Han may be considered a “Sandwich King” in the digital sphere, but he is not trying to steal fellow Sandwich champion Jeff Mauro’s throne. Owen has carved his own lane in the culinary content creator space as a consistently positive personality that blends a passion for food with an interesting mix of Chinese and Italian influences, much like his personal background. He’s not just all sandwiches, all the time.
We caught up with Owen during the rollout for his first cookbook, Stacked — which, as the title suggests, is stacked with sandwich recipes from a diverse array of cultures and cuisines — to talk food. More specifically, a personal staple in Owen’s daily repertoire, a universal favorite for people that want to pack their morning with a hearty protein punch and big flavor, the breakfast burrito! Owen’s version features all the key ingredients for a potential flavor bomb to start your day or cure whatever you did the night before.
Make it this weekend and tag @UproxxLife on IG to share your results!
Why did you want to talk breakfast burritos? What makes it such a great dish?
Because I eat one probably every single day. It’s a great way for me to use up all my leftovers. You put it in a wrap and then you get to eat it with your hands. So there’s a huge convenience aspect to it. I think that also ties into why everyone likes it. It’s portable, it’s on the go. Anything you can eat with your hands, I’m all for. But it also just has everything I look for when it comes to breakfast: eggs, protein, carb source in forms of potato, and then you pretty much can customize it however you want.
Is there anything unique about your breakfast burrito recipe or how you typically approach a breakfast burrito?
Yeah, so I’ve eaten numerous breakfast burritos, not just ones I’ve made, but all throughout LA. I feel like it’s kind of a California thing, breakfast burritos. So in trying all of them, I’ve tried to essentially create my all time favorite variation of it and really what it comes down to is just the total balance of texture and flavor. So for me what makes it perfect is crispy potatoes, there’s also soft scrambled eggs, so major contrasting there. And then you’re getting creaminess from the avocado and melty cheese – the flavor profile to me is just unmatched.
Your version mentions a couple different protein options. When it comes to the protein, what is your favorite type of pork to use or do you switch it up frequently?
I definitely switch it up. If I had the same one, I probably would not be eating it every day and I would get sick of it. I tend to go towards bacon, turkey bacon as well. But my all time favorite has to be just classic breakfast sausage and really that just comes down to what I grew up eating. So my family is huge into Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage. I think it’s the most flavorful out there, so it’s super nostalgic. I’m using that giant roll, the log of meat.
You basically get to control the size you want. So if you like bigger chunks of sausage, then you can break it up however you want. If you want small crumbles, you can crumble it up too. So it’s pretty cool and really adds onto the whole customization aspect.
Do you switch it up how you do it or do you prefer the crumble to the chunks to other variations?
I definitely switch it up. So for me it also depends on how my hash browns are turning out. So if there’s relatively large chunks of hash brown, I tend to go for more of a crumble with the breakfast sausage, so it’s more uniform and not just a chunky burrito. You want it uniform in there. And vice versa, my hash browns, I make them a little bit closer to crispy shreds and if they aren’t holding up as much, then I’ll do bigger chunks of sausage. So it’s all about getting the right textures mixed in together.
Your recipe lists Russet potatoes as the best option for hash browns. Is there any reason behind Russets versus other type of potatoes?
I go for Russet because I find that they have a higher starch content. And that’s pretty key when making hash browns because you’ll be able to still get a crispy texture on the outside, but a light fluffy potato inside as well.
My fallback plan, this is mainly if I’m feeling a little lazy, I got a bag of frozen tots in my freezer, you can air fry those and get the job done.
Can you run us through your hashbrown cooking technique? You start with a low-heat right?
It’s literally so they don’t burn. Starting off slow, you ensure the potatoes are being cooked and then you crank up the heat to get that really crisp texture. So if you were to do the opposite and start with a high heat, you’ll achieve that nice golden crisp really quick. But then your potatoes themselves will be a little bit raw and obviously you don’t want to eat raw potato.
In your recipe you mentioned using potentially Monterey Jack or Cheddar cheese. Is there any reason that you didn’t pick a Mexican cheese or something that’s maybe more traditionally from Latin culture?
Yeah, a few reasons. One, I think the flavor profile is a little bit more mild and I think that helps with letting the other ingredients shine as well and not overpower the burrito and it melts really well. That’s also a great benefit obviously when eating a burrito. And then it’s more universal, you can go to any grocery store you’ll be able to find either of those cheeses, but once again, I keep falling back to customizable. This is my personal preference for those reasons, but if you like Gouda or Cotija, go for whatever you want.
Do you have any tips on picking out avocados at the grocery store?
Yeah, definitely. One, you’ve got to feel it. If it’s rock hard and you know you want to use it right away, that’s definitely not the one you want to use. You want it to be brown, not too soft. I am trying to find something to compare it to. Almost, it should feel like an orange. Say you’re going to squeeze an orange, how it has a little bit of bounce back but still kind of soft. That’s kind of what you’re looking for.
Your recipe mentions flour tortillas. Would you recommend to somebody that’s making this dish for the first time to try making their own tortillas or is that something that’s a little bit more of an advanced item to make at home?
It’s actually a lot easier than people think. It’s literally flour, water and then a fat component, whether it’s lard or vegetable oil. And it takes a little bit more time and you have to practice a little bit to get it perfect. So if I were doing it the first time, I would probably go with store bought. I mean, as someone who eats these pretty much every day, I very rarely will make the tortillas from scratch because when I wake up in the morning I’m trying to do something relatively quick and delicious.
What would you say are some of the challenges of the dish people who are making it for the first time might run into?
One of the biggest issues I could see happening has to do with the tortilla. I could see the tortilla ripping, and a big way to prevent that is control the amount of filling you’re putting in. If you overstuff it, obviously it’ll be very hard to roll up and maintain. And then a second tip with that is, I talk about heating up the tortilla beforehand and toasting it. So if you were to take it straight from the package, add your filling, most likely it would rip. Heating it up makes it incredibly more pliable and will ensure that it does not break.
Once you get the hang of the basics of making the dish and what you like from a customization standpoint, what are some other toppings that aren’t in your recipe that could be really tasty to add to the basic foundation?
Two things come to mind. One, if you want to get spicy, in the book, I also have a homemade hot sauce recipe, Tomatillo salsa. So I’m usually always adding hot sauce or salsa to my burrito. So that’s definitely a must. And then a little less traditional, I’ll add some pickled element. So there’s a whole chapter as well on pickling. So pickled daikon and carrots, pickled onions, super great addition to any burrito. That will add an acid element and as well as crunch.
My big tip though is that is if you are to go with the pickling element, make sure it’s not super wet. Obviously wet fillings going in the burrito doesn’t mix well and once again, could lead to the tortilla ripping. So definitely add it for crunch and acid, but watch out for the amount of excess liquid.
How To Make The Best Breakfast Burrito, According To Owen Han
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds/680 g baking potatoes, such as russets, peeled or unpeeled, shredded
- Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 4 tablespoons vegetable or canola oil
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
- 4 large eggs
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1 cup/100 g shredded Monterey Jack or mild Cheddar cheese
- 4 slices bacon, cooked and coarsely chopped
- 2 burrito-sized flour tortillas, warmed
- 1 ripe Hass avocado, pitted and sliced
- 1 scallion, white and green parts, sliced
- Mexican-style hot sauce, such as Cholula, for serving
Method
- Put the potatoes in a large bowl and add enough cold water to cover. Swish the potatoes in the water to release their starch. Drain. Repeat rinsing the potatoes a few more times until the water is mostly clear. Drain well. In batches, wrap the potatoes in a kitchen towel and wring to remove excess moisture. Transfer the shredded potatoes to a medium bowl and season with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
- Preheat the oven to 200ºF/95ºC.
- Heat 3 tablespoons of the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until the oil is shimmering. Spread the potatoes in the skillet into a thin layer. Cover and cook until the underside is crisp and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Uncover and flip the potatoes over in two or three sections. Increase the heat to medium-high. Cook, uncovered, until the other side is browned and the potatoes are tender, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer to a heatproof plate and keep warm in the oven. Wipe out the skillet.
- Melt the butter in the skillet over medium heat. Whisk the eggs, milk, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Pour into the skillet and reduce the heat to medium-low. When the butter subsides, add the eggs. Cook, stirring constantly, until the eggs are scrambled into moist curds, about 1½ minutes. (Do not overcook, as they will cook more from the residual heat.) Remove from the heat. Sprinkle with the cheese and bacon and cover with a lid to melt the cheese, about 1 minute.
- For each burrito, spoon half of the potatoes in a row in the center of the tortilla. Cover with half of the scrambled eggs, half of the avocado slices, and half of the scallion. Fold the tortilla up from the bottom to cover the filling. Fold the right and left sides 1 to 2 inches/2.5 to 5 cm over the filling. Roll up from the bottom to close the burrito, tucking in the corners as needed. The filling should be entirely enclosed. Transfer to a plate or baking sheet, seam side down.
- Wipe out the skillet. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon oil and heat over medium heat. Add the burritos, seam side down, and cook until the undersides are toasted, about 1 minute. Turn and toast the other side, about 1 minute more. Transfer to a chopping board. Cut each in half, transfer to plates, and serve immediately with the hot sauce on the side.
