The Proper Potato

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GinnyPNW

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For many years, I've been of the mind that one should use the proper potato for any given dish. I've always used Russets for baking, waxy (white, gold or red skins) for potato salad, and so on. Until recently. We had friends over for a BBQ and they brought their homemade potato salad. It was very tasty. When I asked about the recipe, she said she uses Russet. Who knew!?

So, opinions? Is there such a thing as the proper potato for salads, baking, casseroles? Or should we try new things, every now & then?
 
Never keen on russets. The skin is leathery and often scabby. Since we don't eat much in the way of steaks, etc. we seldom bake potatoes.

For years, I've grown Yukon Golds, which have a thin skin and store well, and various red potatoes. This year's crop is La Soda from Gurney's. The Yukon Golds are my all-purpose spud, while the reds are good for boiling, potato salad, etc.

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They get cellared in a basement closet, in greenhouse flats with good air circulation. The reds last 'til March, while the Yukon Golds are still good into early June.
 
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The answer is, there is definitely the proper potato for every dish, and it's called the one you like, not the one somebody decided you should use.
 
As a person who loves potatoes in all its glorious forms (roasted, mashed, chipped, crushed, baked, sliced, crisped and anything I have missed in this list), I have to say it mostly doesn't matter what potato you use. But sometimes it does. If you know your spuds, you cook them for the dish you are preparing. So if you know they are a "floury" type, you parboil them less if you are making a roast potato because they will fall apart. (It is very difficult to make roast potatoes from floury spuds - but if you are in a pinch, then you can.) If you want to make mash with a non-floury potato you will have to cook it for longer than a recipe states because they will be deeply unpleasant otherwise.

My "all rounder" spud is a red called Desiree. It works well for both roasted and mashed. Just adjust that initial cooking time.

For a potato salad, you need a good, solid spud - a Charlotte is my favourite. It's a similar size to a baby potato, but is full grown so has a full grown potato flavour. No need to peel, just cook it till soft and it will keep its texture and keep well in the fridge until needed.

I am not an expert in potatoes. I don't grow them (though I keep trying). I am just a fan of them and have experimented a lot with them.
 
Hi Hi Katy! Soup. You forgot soup. I make one kind that is basically runny mashed ladled over small chunks of cheddar cheese, topped with tiny mince of a sweet onion, and drizzled with a bit of cider or malt vinegar. Warms you to your toes!
 
Hi Hi Katy! Soup. You forgot soup. I make one kind that is basically runny mashed ladled over small chunks of cheddar cheese, topped with tiny mince of a sweet onion, and drizzled with a bit of cider or malt vinegar. Warms you to your toes!

I knew I forgot something! Thanks CG!

So wait, I was thinking potato is a good thickener for soups, but this is something else...

I have copied it and will duly try it. "runny mashed potato" as a recipe ingredient.... so just overcook the potato?
 
Here's what I've learned along the way.

When using Russets in a Soup or a Stew, they do not freeze well.
When re-heating they disintegrate.
So for me there's a choice, if I want to keep some texture to the Spud portion of said Soup or Stew, either eat the whole pot today (and share too ;)) or use a waxier Potato for freezer storage.
 
It's just a tad more than that, Katy. I usually use a fluffy potato like a
Russet because it will practically melt into the water - but don't cook it long enough for the slices to fall apart. Any old (and I do mean old - wrinkly ones work good, too) potato will work. Anyway, a recipe in bullet points:

-peel and slice enough potatoes for as many people as you are feeding, plus one more
-when very tender, drain off AND SAVE the cooking water
-mash potatoes until lumps are gone
-slowly add back water to the mash until it is very loose
--you can substitute some milk for the water if you want to make it richer or bump up the nutrition
-melt some butter in a pan, then add enough flour to make a golden brown roux for thickening
--do not skip this step. You might think it would just be easier to add less liquid to the mashed potatoes. It would work OK, but the flavor with the roux does make the soup a little richer tasting.
- add roux to simmering potato water and cook until thickened a bit. You don't want runny, but you don't want fork-able mashed

While the spuds are cooking, cut up cheese such as cheddar. The more flavorful, the better - especially if it has a bit of a bite. Pile those in the bottom of a bowl and pour the soup over when it's ready.

Sprinkle a little bit (one or two tablespoons) of finely minced onion. I've used yellow cooking, shallots, and sweet onions and prefer the sweet the best. I do not like raw onion, but this soup really needs them and it actually works for me.

You can splash a bit of vinegar on top of it all. I prefer cider or malt, but I have tried it with white, balsamic, and white balsamic. Apple is my favorite.

I suppose you can dress the soup up with other toppings. Bacon or tiny ham chunks come to mind. But I've never done that. It's a simple soup, but it is just so danged satisfying. In fact, I think I might make it sometime this weekend!

And...in the time it took you to read this, there's a pretty good chance you could have made the soup! :LOL:
 
For thickening soups, often, I will take some of the soup (a cup or so), run it thru the super blender and just add it back to the soup. No change in flavor, but it is slightly thicker all the same. Ta-da!
 
It's just a tad more than that, Katy. I usually use a fluffy potato like a
Russet because it will practically melt into the water - but don't cook it long enough for the slices to fall apart. Any old (and I do mean old - wrinkly ones work good, too) potato will work. Anyway, a recipe in bullet points:

-peel and slice enough potatoes for as many people as you are feeding, plus one more
-when very tender, drain off AND SAVE the cooking water
-mash potatoes until lumps are gone
-slowly add back water to the mash until it is very loose
--you can substitute some milk for the water if you want to make it richer or bump up the nutrition
-melt some butter in a pan, then add enough flour to make a golden brown roux for thickening
--do not skip this step. You might think it would just be easier to add less liquid to the mashed potatoes. It would work OK, but the flavor with the roux does make the soup a little richer tasting.
- add roux to simmering potato water and cook until thickened a bit. You don't want runny, but you don't want fork-able mashed

While the spuds are cooking, cut up cheese such as cheddar. The more flavorful, the better - especially if it has a bit of a bite. Pile those in the bottom of a bowl and pour the soup over when it's ready.

Sprinkle a little bit (one or two tablespoons) of finely minced onion. I've used yellow cooking, shallots, and sweet onions and prefer the sweet the best. I do not like raw onion, but this soup really needs them and it actually works for me.

You can splash a bit of vinegar on top of it all. I prefer cider or malt, but I have tried it with white, balsamic, and white balsamic. Apple is my favorite.

I suppose you can dress the soup up with other toppings. Bacon or tiny ham chunks come to mind. But I've never done that. It's a simple soup, but it is just so danged satisfying. In fact, I think I might make it sometime this weekend!

And...in the time it took you to read this, there's a pretty good chance you could have made the soup! :LOL:

I am definitely going to try this CG. I don't generally make soup. But this is so unusual, it has piqued my curiosity!
 
For whatever reason, I really don't care for the flavor of canned potatoes. I like canned sweet potatoes though. I don't find the flavor of potatoes bad in canned stew, or soups, just canned new potatoes.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
For whatever reason, I really don't care for the flavor of canned potatoes. I like canned sweet potatoes though. I don't find the flavor of potatoes bad in canned stew, or soups, just canned new potatoes.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

I'm with you on the canned sweet potatoes! I love them. Fortunately, I have a recipe for fresh that is even better, but still reminiscent of canned.
 
I'm with you on the canned sweet potatoes! I love them. Fortunately, I have a recipe for fresh that is even better, but still reminiscent of canned.

Sadly, due to kidney issues, i can no longer eat sweet potatoes, or winter squashes. I also love mashed rutabaga, with a bit of grown sugar, butter, and black pepper (along with bread stuffing/dressing, my favorite Thanksgiving side dish). Rutabaga is also one of the foods I now have to avoid. Potatoes have to be soaked for three hours, or more, then double boiled to remove the potassium before I can eat those. Kidney issues are so restrictive.:(

Eat healthy, and avoid high fructose corn syrup. Move that body, whether it be through outdoor activity, dance, the gym, martial arts, whatever. Highly processed foods can kill you, literally. Don't make the mistakes I made. I was very active, and so thought I could eat whatever I wanted. I didn't eat a lot of sweets, but too much breads, pasta, refined starchy foods. I am now paying the price.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
Sadly, due to kidney issues, i can no longer eat sweet potatoes, or winter squashes. I also love mashed rutabaga, with a bit of grown sugar, butter, and black pepper (along with bread stuffing/dressing, my favorite Thanksgiving side dish). Rutabaga is also one of the foods I now have to avoid. Potatoes have to be soaked for three hours, or more, then double boiled to remove the potassium before I can eat those. Kidney issues are so restrictive.:(

Eat healthy, and avoid high fructose corn syrup. Move that body, whether it be through outdoor activity, dance, the gym, martial arts, whatever. Highly processed foods can kill you, literally. Don't make the mistakes I made. I was very active, and so thought I could eat whatever I wanted. I didn't eat a lot of sweets, but too much breads, pasta, refined starchy foods. I am now paying the price.

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North

I'm very sorry to hear of your health issues and restrictions too. And, I totally agree with you on the HFCS and highly processed foods. My father taught me these things, growing up. My mother had other thoughts though. Sigh.
 
My wife thought that foods like spaghettios were part of a well balanced diet, and insisted on having highly processed junk food in our home. Fortunately, I was always the cook, and made sure there was fresh veggies, high quality proteins, legumes, fresh fish, and a wide variety of foods, and lots of dairy. My kids grew up strong, and healthy, and thankfully, know more about good nutrition than I did, even though I made the best that I could with the knowledge I had.

Example, wifes sloppy joe recipe - 1 can Campbell's tomato soup mixed with 1 lb. browned ground beef.

Chief's sloppy joe recipe -
Ingredients:
1‑4 oz. can tomato paste
1‑6 oz can Tomato Sauce
1‑12 oz. can dark red kidney beans
½ clove minced garlic
½ medium yellow onion, diced
3 heaping tbs. chopped green pepper
1/4 cup dark brown sugar (for Diabetics, substitute an equal
amount of Splenda brand sweetener and a tsp. of molasses)
1 tsp. Chili Powder
½ tsp. Salt
1 tbs. Worcestershire Sauce
1 bay leaf, crumbled
2 tbs. olive oil
1 lb. ground beef

Which would you rather eat"

Seeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
Potatoes are available all year round, 24/7. I have to admit, I would never, ever buy a can of potatoes. Never.
Still - everyone to their own - that´s what makes the world go round.
 
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