Instructions: Quick Fix debuts today to help launch Taste, the new name of The Bees Food section. Quick Fix is here to provide harried cooks with easy, time-saving answers to workday dining in todays short-order, 20-minute-menu world.

With so much attention being paid to comfort foods and retro menus, it is surprising the word "hash" is not being pronounced more often.

Maybe its because so many people disdain leftovers these days, and hash is truly memorable only when made from leftovers.

The trinity of corned beef hash, roast beef hash and chicken hash once were equally popular in tony restaurants such as 21 in New York and Chasens in Los Angeles, as well as in family restaurants across Middle America.

The classic formula, recorded by James Beard, is three parts cooked and cubed beef, two parts cooked diced potato and one part chopped onion. Optional ingredients might include chopped parsley, chopped celery and a dash or two of red pepper.

Restaurant diners of yesteryear might have begun their meal with chilled tomato juice. Update that to a prepared fresh tomato soup or gazpacho from your favorite deli. Also, keep hash in mind for a weekend brunch main course.

Menu

Tomato soup or gazpacho

Roast beef hash

Sauteed green beans

Cookies

Iced tea

Time-saving tips

Cook extra potatoes a day or two ahead.

If purchasing cooked roast beef, ask the butcher to cut a slice at least 3/4 inch-thick.

To really speed things up, chop the ingredients in the morning; wrap and store them separately.

For best results with this recipe, use a cast-iron skillet to obtain a crispy crust on your hash. (A skillet with a 7 inch diameter is perfect for this amount of hash.)

sauce with this.

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