Hash Browns Potato Pie (Kljukuša)

Hash browns potato pie (kljukuša), (optionally topped with a butter or sour cream garlic sauce), is a perfect blend of comforting flavors we all love. The golden-brown crispy crust is slightly crunchy, giving way to the melt-in-your-mouth softness. Shall we?

Background

Like hash browns? You'll love today's hash brown pie! This simple dish is made with potatoes and onions, seasoned with lots of black pepper, and (optionally) topped with garlic and butter (or sour cream) sauce.

Beloved in Sarajevo and beyond, this hash brown dish locally goes by kljukuša or kljuka.

• Fun fact! In true Balkan fashion, our dish has several names. Moreover, we held a poll on FB to find out just how many! People reported over forty (4-0!) regional names such as uljevak, razljevak, uljevuša sa krompirom, and more.

Hash browns potato pie (kljukuša) is usually served for breakfast, or an early lunch. It's a great standalone dish that goes splendidly with plain yogurt, or with a side salad, or a soup.

Ingredients

Here are the ingredients to make the hash potato pie (kljukuša).

• Potatoes: look for starchy potatoes like Russet or Yukon Gold. Older potatoes are your best bet! Avoid red, young potatoes, or fingerlings.

• Onion: white or yellow. Avoid red. (We've tried it, and the taste just isn't kljukuša!)

• Flour: regular, white flour is best. (If you decide to use substitutes like almond flour, let us know in the comments!)

• Oil: sunflower, vegetable, avocado, coconut oil or lard. Avoid olive oil due to high temperatures.

• Ground pepper: look for some high-quality ground pepper (the coarser the better) as it really elevates the flavor.

• Butter: regular butter, ghee, or lard work well.

• (Optional) Garlic and/ or sour cream.

Instructions

Here are the easy instructions for our hash brown potato pie (kljukuša).

Step 1. Preheat oven to 480°F (250°C). Peel and grate onions and potatoes. Squeeze in batches to get the starch out. Transfer to a mixing bowl.

Step 2. Add seasonings, flour, and water. Mix thoroughly until the batter is slightly wet but not completely fluid. Lower temperature to 400°F (200°C).

Step 3. Grease a baking pan. Place in the oven for 1-2 minutes, until the oil gets hot. Carefully transfer the hash browns pie batter into the hot pan and even it out.

Step 4. (Not pictured.) Bake for 15 minutes, then turn the pan around. Bake another 15-20 minutes. Lower temp further if necessary.

Step 5. (Not pictured.) Smear with butter generously and keep in a warm, turned-off oven for 10 minutes.

Step 6. (Optional) Mix melted butter and garlic, or sour cream and garlic, and spread over kljukuša.

Handling

Here's the best way to handle today's pie.

• Serving: serve hash brown potato pie as hot as you can handle it. (Some people like it colder though, so adjust to your preference.) Kljukuša is amazing any way you eat it.
  
  As previously mentioned, you can make a simple sauce by mixing sour cream and minced garlic, or butter and minced garlic, and top kljuka with it. Some like to pour plain yogurt over it.

• Storing: store at room temperature for a few hours, and transfer to the fridge in an airtight container for up to 24 hours, but not longer. (Kljukuša is best the same day you make it.)

• Heating: reheat using your preferred method.

Recipe FAQs

Potatoes We Like

In addition to kljukuša, here are a few more potato dishes to tantalize your senses:

Thoughts?

If you made our hash browns potato pie (kljukuša) and liked it, please consider giving it a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5-star) rating. This helps others find the recipe more easily!

Also, feel free to leave a comment (I read each one!), and don't forget to tag a photo #balkanlunchbox, or us @balkanlunchbox, on IG.

Prijatno and bon appetit!

Hash Browns Potato Pie (Kljukuša)

Aida

Kljukuša: a comforting hash brown dish with a golden-brown crispy crust and melt-in-your-mouth softness.

5 from 3 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 35 minutes mins

Total Time 55 minutes mins

Course Main Course, Side Dish

Cuisine Bosnian

Servings 3

Calories 695 kcal

Equipment

• ▢
  1 20-inch round baking pan or 17-inch square baking pan. Sizing is not set in stone, and similar pan sizes will work. The batter should be about the thickness of a ring finger once spread out in the baking pan.

Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

Hash Browns Pie Batter

• ▢ 2-3 tablespoons oil vegetable, almond, avocado, or coconut oil; avoid olive oil
• ▢ 1 pound potatoes (plus a little more) potatoes should weigh about a pound after peeling
• ▢ 1-2 yellow or white onions medium; avoid red onion
• ▢ salt and pepper to taste preferably coarse pepper
• ▢ 10.5 ounces flour
• ▢ 10-11 ounces lukewarm water a little more is fine too
• ▢ 2 tablespoons butter

(Optional) Topping

• ▢ 3-4 garlic cloves peeled and minced
• ▢ 8-10 ounces sour cream
• ▢ 4-5 tablespoons butter* *instead of sour cream

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 480°F (250°C).
• Peel and grate onions and potatoes. Then squeeze them in batches to release as much of the liquid (starch) as possible. Discard this liquid and transfer the onions and potatoes into a large mixing bowl.
• Add seasonings, flour, and water to potatoes and onions. Mix thoroughly until the batter has a slightly wet feel, and is easily manipulated, but not completely fluid. Lower the temperature to 400°F (200°C).
• Generously grease a baking pan with oil and place it in the oven for 1-2 minutes so that the oil heats up.
• Take the pan out of the oven carefully and pour batter into it. Using a spatula spread the batter out so it's evenly distributed in the pan.
• Return the pan to the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Rotate the pan, and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes. If the pie starts blushing too much, lower the temperature and cover it with parchment paper. A finished pie should have a golden crust with some crunchy, darker edges. (You may have to add a few more minutes to the baking time.)
• Paint the top of the pie with butter generously and return to a warm, turned-off oven for 5-10 minutes.
• (Optional) In a small bowl, mix melted butter and garlic, or sour cream and garlic, and spread over kljukuša. Alternatively, individuals can take as much as they want.
• Serve hash brown potato pie as hot as you can handle it. (Some people like it colder though, so adjust to your preference.) Store at room temperature for a few hours, and then transfer to the fridge in an airtight container for up to 24 hours. Kljukuša tastes and keeps best on the same day you make it. Reheat using your preferred method.

Video

Notes

• Video vs. Recipe 

Please note that the cooking process may be a little different in videos. (As we learn of new techniques and tasty updates to our dishes we update the written recipe first.) 

• Serving Size 

Serving size will vary greatly depending on how much an individual can eat so we decided to leave it at 3 servings. The recipe can easily be 4 smaller servings.

• Nutritional Information

Nutritional information is an estimate, calculated for 3 servings without the optional topping(s)! 

Nutrition

Serving: 1of 3Calories: 695kcalCarbohydrates: 109gProtein: 14gFat: 22gSaturated Fat: 7gPolyunsaturated Fat: 9gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gSodium: 77mgPotassium: 852mgFiber: 7gSugar: 5gVitamin C: 35mgCalcium: 63mg

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

More Recipe 💙