The “Seriously Brilliant” Way to Use Up Leftover Mashed Potatoes (No, It’s Not Pancakes)

Ashia Aubourg
Ashia Aubourg
From the moment I started remixing ramen noodles into gourmet meals and spending hours watching cooking shows as a puny six-year-old, I knew I found a deep passion for food. While I realized — after taking on a two-year high school internship in an award-winning kitchen — that a…read more
published Nov 28, 2024
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Close up view of mashed potatoes topped with chives and a pat of butter.
Credit: Photo: Alex Lepe ; Food Stylist: Brett Regot

If you plan to enjoy delicious holiday dinners this year, keep reading! You’ll want to save this clever leftover mashed potato hack for later. And, no, the trick doesn’t involve turning them into tender pancakes or crispy waffles (even though those are tasty routes!). Instead, it’s an ingenious storage tip that’ll give you a head start on making an ultra-cozy recipe this winter. 

A few days ago, Lindsay Ostrom, the founder of the food blog Pinch of Yum, shared a trick for your holiday leftovers. The hack involves spreading day-old mashed potatoes into a thin disc that mimics the shape of a pot. Then you freeze the creamy spuds in a freezer-friendly storage bag or container, and take them out whenever you’re in the mood for — *drum-roll please* — a hearty yet cozy shepherd’s pie. 

The Instagram clip showcasing this hack racked up over 70K views. One person commented on the post, saying, “This is seriously brilliant. I just pulled out a brick of frozen mashed potatoes tonight, and it was not easy to bring that brick back to life.” The viral appeal of this trick is that it’s really difficult to work with a hunk of frozen mashed potatoes, so this route allows you to reheat it with little effort. Another user called out, “Omg, this is actually so genius.”

If you’ve never savored a shepherd’s pie, here’s everything to know: The classic casserole starts with a flavorful stew of ground beef, peas, carrots, and other veggies and aromatics — but you can really use anything for the base, like curry chicken or saucy lentils. The kicker is that this dish is topped with a thick layer of creamy mashed potatoes (and sometimes a sprinkle of shredded cheese like cheddar or Gruyere) and baked until the top begins to turn golden brown.

With this simple freezer mashed potato hack, you can add the spuddy disc to a flavorful shepherd’s pie base and bake it off. This cozy casserole is the ultimate cold-weather comfort food, and with this clever trick, you’ll be able to prepare it this winter with little effort.