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How To Make Mashed Potatoes

Question:

How to Make Mashed Potatoes

What’s the best way to make mashed potatoes? Can you use potatoes with white sprouts when making mashed potatoes?

Answer:

Making mashed potatoes is a great way to start cooking. They’re easy and delicious, mashed potatoes are a true comfort food. To make mashed potatoes, perfect every time, just follow the steps below.

Mashed Potato Ingredients

Ingredients To Make Mashed Potatoes

To make mashed potatoes you will need potatoes, a liquid – like milk or cream (or even chicken broth), and flavorings – like butter, salt & pepper. Figure about 3 potatoes, a Tbs of butter and 1/4 cup of cream to make mashed potatoes for 2 people.

Mashed potatoes can be made from any type of potato, but most chefs agree that the best mashed potatoes are made from Yukon Gold Potatoes.

You may use potatoes with sprouts when making mashed potatoes, just cut the white sprouts off with the skin. They are safe, although these are older potatoes and so they will not have as many nutrients or flavor as younger potatoes. [1].

How to Make Mashed Potatoes

Steps to make mashed potatoes:

1) Wash the Potatoes.
Wash and peel your potatoes with a potato peeler. (Washing is necessary, but peeling is not. Mashed potatoes with skins are also delicious and more nutritious, but this recipe is for creamy mashed potatoes.)

2) Chop the potatoes into a pan of salted water.
Chop the potatoes into uniform chunks. About 1″x1″ works great, much bigger and the centers won’t get cooked and much smaller and they will get mushy and disappear (dissolve) into the water.

As you cut each potato place the pieces into a large pan of salted water. You want enough water to completely cover the potatoes plus an inch or two, but also leave a few inches until the top of the pan.

3) Boil the potatoes.
Boil the potatoes – bring the potatoes to a full boil on medium high/high and then lower the heat to medium/medium low for 15-20 minutes or until a fork pierces the cube easily, depending on how many potatoes you have in the pot.

Use a medium boil, as a full boil will break the potatoes apart and could force the water to boil over and make a mess of both the pan and the stove.

4) Drain and Season the Potatoes.
Turn the burner off and drain the potatoes, then place the pan back on the burner. Pour milk or cream (you can warm it first if desired, but it is not necessary) and butter (melted if desired, but it is not necessary as the hot potatoes will melt the butter) into the pot.

5) Whip the Potatoes.
For textured mashed potatoes – use a potato masher to smash the pieces of potato into the milk and butter. For smooth mashed potatoes – use an electric beater (or a metal whip excessively by hand) to make mashed potatoes that are extra smooth and lump free.

Yum!

Additional Information

The best way to boil potatoes and other vegetables is to use a pasta pot so you can drain all the water and keep all the boiled potatoes in the pot for mashing.

There are several reasons why making mashed potatoes is one of the easiest and most rewarding things you can do:
1) you don’t have to measure anything because you can tell by looking if it’s right for you or not
2) they can be made all in one pan which really benefits messy chefs who don’t like to clean and
3) you really can’t go wrong (with one exception – you put too little water and then boil the potatoes for way too long, as in forget about them, until all the water is gone dry and then the potatoes stick and burn in your pan).

To find out how long other foods are good for, please visit the Dairy, Drinks, Fruits, Grains, Proteins, Vegetables and Other sections of Eat By Date or use the search function below.