Freezing mashed potatoes...?

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Cheryl J

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My little local produce stand had freshly dug Yukon golds last weekend, and I bought more than I should have. :yum: :) I was wondering if anyone here has ever made a batch of mashed potatoes and frozen them successfully. I know they have tubs of frozen mashed potatoes in the stores, but I've never bought any so can't say if there is any change in taste or texture from fresh. I know fresh is always better, but I hate to see any of these go to waste.

I was thinking of cooking what I have left, mashing them, and using my FoodSaver to bag and freeze them. I guess my question is, should I make them as normal with milk and butter and freeze? Or should I just mash them and freeze, then add the milk and butter after I take them out and they have thawed? Thanks for any suggestions. :)
 
If you have a cool dry place to store them, they will last a long time. Most root vegetables can be stored. Back in colonial/early American times, you had a root cellar for storing root vegetables over the winter. These root veggies fed the family all winter.
 
The next time you are at the grocery store, take a look at the list of ingredients in the mashed potatoes. Let that be your guide. :angel:
 
Thanks for responding, Andy. I live in the desert so there is no cool and dry place to store them. During the late fall and winter I keep potatoes, garlic, and onions in a basket in the garage, but that's not an option now as temps are up to 107-110.
 
Thanks for responding, Andy. I live in the desert so there is no cool and dry place to store them. During the late fall and winter I keep potatoes, garlic, and onions in a basket in the garage, but that's not an option now as temps are up to 107-110.

Good grief! Sounds like your produce needs their own A/C. :angel:
 
The next time you are at the grocery store, take a look at the list of ingredients in the mashed potatoes. Let that be your guide. :angel:

Hi Addie. Like I mentioned, I know there are tubs of frozen potatoes in the stores. I imagine they are loaded with salt and other preservatives, without even looking at the ingredients. Just curious if anyone else has ever tried this at home. :)
 
I've frozen Thanksgiving leftovers which included mashed potatoes, and they were just fine. They were a layer in the usual TG casserole, and had been made with butter and milk. I'd give it a shot!
 
My little local produce stand had freshly dug Yukon golds last weekend, and I bought more than I should have. :yum: :) I was wondering if anyone here has ever made a batch of mashed potatoes and frozen them successfully. I know they have tubs of frozen mashed potatoes in the stores, but I've never bought any so can't say if there is any change in taste or texture from fresh. I know fresh is always better, but I hate to see any of these go to waste.

I was thinking of cooking what I have left, mashing them, and using my FoodSaver to bag and freeze them. I guess my question is, should I make them as normal with milk and butter and freeze? Or should I just mash them and freeze, then add the milk and butter after I take them out and they have thawed? Thanks for any suggestions. :)
Yes, I often freeze mashed potatoes. Not sure if it matters to the freezing results but I mash mine with butter and a little milk (or cream if I have any) because I like them that way.

They are very successful. I usually freeze them in single portions because that's convenient for me but I have frozen a large container full for, say, Christmas Dinner. I reheat in the m/wave as they don't get a "crust" on them as they would in the oven.
 
I have successfully frozen mashed potatoes. I also used to blanch and freeze cubed potatoes (three minutes boiling, three minutes ice water, drain on paper towels and put on trays to freeze for an hour then into bags) for "stew packs" we made up for our homeless ministry. We did all veggies like this and they were like fresh when we poured them frozen into the stock for the stew.
 
Just going by my own experience with leftover mashed potatoes, I think milk makes them taste funky. I'd mash a small portion with just butter, freeze them and see how it turns out. If they seem ok, add milk.

Potatoes generally don't freeze well in chunks like in a stew.
 
I was wondering if anyone here has ever made a batch of mashed potatoes and frozen them successfully.

Well, lets see: There is Banquet, Swanson, Birds Eye, Marie Callender, Ore-Ida, Country Crock, Roy Rogers, Bob Evans, Alexia, and Trader Joes, just to name a few.
 
Thank you all so much for your replies. :)

I ended up steaming the Yukons, and mashed them with just a tiny bit of butter and a little salt and pepper. Those babies were so tender that they mashed up very creamy on their own. I put a cup each into FoodSaver bags for individual servings and ended up with about 6 cups - enough for 6 dinners, and frozen in flat little bags which don't take up much room in my little freezer. :)

Kay...that's what I was thinking, that the milk would end up being funky and create a very watery thaw for just plain mashed taters as a side.

Dawg, I've used leftover mashed in TG casserole often, and I love it! I'll need to remember that next TG. Love those!

LP, thank you for your suggestion, and I'm sure the folks at the homeless ministry appreciated those meals very much. :innocent:

Mad, you cook like I do. Individual freezing. Another one here who cooks just for one! :) Thank you!

Sir Loin, I'm impressed with your knowledge of frozen foods. If I wanted pre-frozen, processed taters, I would have bought them. I was just asking for suggestions on freezing the fresh taters which I had. Thank you for your response.
 
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Sir Loin, I'm impressed with your knowledge of frozen foods. If I wanted pre-frozen, processed taters, I would have bought them. I was just asking for suggestions on freezing the fresh taters which I had. Thank you for your response.

And my point was, if they can do it, you can too!
 
I guess my point was, anyone can freeze anything. :LOL: Those brands you listed use an incredible amount of salt and processing, so I don't care about them. :LOL: I only wanted to freeze a few mashed potatoes with minimal processing and ingredients, and asked for help with those who have done that. No harm, no foul. :)
 
I'm a little late...I would boil and mash with no additives, thaw and butter/ cream/salt as needed after heating them. The food saver is a fantastic appliance for single folks.
 
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