Potatoes

This is an easy fix.

Now you know.

It’s all about the technique.

For your best mashed potatoes yet.

Here’s to the humble, dependable spud. It has to be one of the top kitchen staples of all time, loved for its versatility — giving us creamy mashes, comforting hashes, cheesy gratins, crisp fries, crunchy chips, fluffy bakes to load with butter and sour cream, and much more. We tend to take this kitchen stalwart for granted, stashing it in the pantry with little care and expecting it to be there at our beck and call. But that doesn’t always pan out.

No peeler, no problem.

Of all the ingredients in all the world, potatoes happen to be my favorite. Fried, mashed, and nestled under a roasting chicken, I love them no matter the preparation. I even love them frozen. And that’s because, when it comes to making a quick, filling snack, there’s no better item to have on hand than shredded hash browns. Frozen hash browns have chameleon-like properties. When fried or baked, they add a surprising pop of crunch to an otherwise texture-less dish.

They're both comforting baked potatoes casseroles, but they're not one and the same.

When we picture a baked potato, we picture it wrapped in shiny aluminum foil. Why is that? Because restaurants serve them that way? Because our parents did it? We think we must have done it out of habit, without knowing the reason. Not anymore… Some say wrapping baked potatoes in aluminum foil helps them cook faster (aluminum conducts heat, then traps it), and it does keep them hot for longer once they come out of the oven, which is why we think restaurants use this method.

You really don't have to make mashed potatoes day-of for them to come out perfect.

A simple and clever way to bring your appetizers to the next level!

It's nearly effortless.

For years I had heard that the way to get the fluffiest, lightest mashed potatoes did not involve a masher, a wooden spoon, or (shudder) a food processor. The magical tool was a food mill. Last year I finally acquired one and I can say that the stories are true; for the lightest, fluffiest potatoes, a food mill is the way to go. I am a big fan of this food mill made by OXO. It’s dishwasher-safe, which is a major bonus when you’re talking about mashed potatoes and other purées.

Make them last with our handy storage tips.

And what exactly are potato eyes, anyway?

I grew up thinking that mashed potatoes came from the dehydrated flakes in a box. When I finally made my own from scratch, the result was such a revelation that I haven’t looked back since. But transforming a potato into the delicious, comforting magic of mashed potatoes really starts at the grocery store. You need to pick the right potato so you end up with light, fluffy mashed potatoes. There are three basic categories of potatoes: starchy, waxy, and in-between.

The winner was absolutely perfect.

Save yourself a lot of hassle by using this easy trick.

They'll be good as new even weeks later!

Just remember waxy is better than starchy!

Yes, really, for months.

I like to think I have a pretty good sense of what will freeze well and what won’t. So you could have knocked me over with a spatula when I discovered, during prep for my recent freezer meal party, that twice-baked potatoes freeze beautifully and heat up perfectly. I had no idea! Twice-baked potatoes take a fair amount of work and time to make, but making them in bulk and freezing makes so much sense. Here’s how to freeze stuffed potatoes — they’re my new favorite lunch!

If you're cooking Thanksgiving dinner for just two, you can easily whip up mashed potatoes without making a Thanksgiving-sized pot-full.

If you’ve ever cut into a sweet potato and the flesh was white, you’re in for a treat. The flesh of sweet potatoes come in different colored hues including orange, purple, yellow or white. The term white sweet potato is used to describe any variety of sweet potato that has white flesh. The two most common white-fleshed sweet potatoes are Boniato, also called batata, or Cuban sweet potato, and the Japanese sweet potato, also called the satsuma-imo.

And you most likely already have what you need in your pantry.

Amp up the flavor!

They look so dreamy!

If you’re like me, you’re always looking for a quick but filling and nutritious meal on a busy day. One thing I’ve learned to do is to tuck a few sweet potatoes into the oven whenever I’m baking something. That way, I have a head start on a delicious, nutritious meal, ready to go whenever I’m hungry but pressed for time. Read on for several suggestions for how to use a baked sweet potato.

Getting the sweetest sweet potatoes isn’t about picking out the ripest or most promising potatoes in the bunch. Nope! Rather, a little culinary magic trick will transform your toughest tubers into delicious treats. Here’s how! If you like your sweet potato casserole extra sweet, all you have to do is bake the sweet potatoes low and slow! Raw sweet potatoes are mostly starchy fibers, but they also contain an enzyme that will break down the starch into sugar at certain temperatures.

This simple trick will seriously improve your mashed potatoes.

You won't even need a knife to make it happen.

Perfect baked sweet potatoes await you.

It's a serious game changer.

One step might surprise you.

Whether your mashed potatoes are watery, lumpy, over-salted, or gluey, we'll show you how to fix them and make them delicious.

Here's how to cook sweet potatoes so they hold their shape in salads and grain bowls instead of turning to mush.

Listen for the sizzle.

Peeling is actually easier afterward: We'll show you how.

We looked at texture, taste, ease, and time to find the method mostly likely to lead to success.

We compared the time, texture, and taste of each method.

This tip has almost 50,000 likes on TikTok.

I'm both scared and impressed.

Effortlessly brilliant.

They should be stick-to-your-ribs tasty, not stick-to-your-mouth gluey.

Eight times our test kitchen went to the mat and came back with a clear winner.

It’s the sort of cooking tip that is sometimes frowned upon amid today’s predominant fresh-is-best philosophy.

If your potato game is lagging, we can help.

Créme de la créme!

Want to make your mashed potatoes really pop? Try a hint of nutmeg.

Frozen potatoes are one of my all-time favorite freezer staples. Unlike corn and strawberries, they’re aren’t just something I buy when potatoes are out of season (especially since potatoes, being well-adapted to long storage, don’t really ever go out of season). I keep diced potatoes in the freezer year-round for the convenience. They can be turned into a variety of different meals, and most of the time they can be used straight from the freezer.

I always thought the key to the perfect potato pancake was hand-grating the potatoes and onion, as opposed to using a food processor. But Ben’s Best Kosher Deli says the real trick is using paper towels to soak up the excess liquid of the grated potato and onion. Put a double layer of paper towels together, and press down on the grated mixture, repeating a few times until a majority of the liquid has been removed.

With a lemoniness that walks the line of almost being too tart without actually being so, creating authentic Greek lemon potatoes became an obsession of mine when I first moved to the Greek haven of Astoria, Queens. I marinated, roasted, and boiled the potatoes in a hefty amount of lemon juice, never happy with the subpar results. So when I started working on my cookbook, Queens: A Culinary Passport, I knew I had to delve into the secret of the lemon potatoes.

Roasting potatoes doesn’t seem like something that would require a degree from culinary school. Usually it’s a simple process of cleaning the spuds, dicing them, tossing them with oil and herbs, and then roasting them until they reach crispy perfection, right? Right. That’s what I thought too until I saw Jamie Oliver make his version, and I won’t lie — I learned more than a few tricks! Want to see how he makes the most magical roast potatoes?

Last week, we talked about how starches are used to thicken sauces, puddings, pie fillings, and soups like the one above. This week, we’ll check out the different kinds of starches that get used in cooking and why you might choose to use one over the other…Starches can vary widely in terms of how quickly they thicken, how much they thicken, the quality of the thickening, and their flavor after thickening.

Can mashed potatoes really qualify as a meal by themselves? If you mix in enough other ingredients, we think they certainly can! Mashed potatoes are really just like polenta, rice, or any other starchy side, and they make the perfect foil for just about anything we have in the fridge. Here are a few of our favorites extras!We realized mashed potatoes could be a meal unto themselves when we got hungry while making a batch of Twice Baked Potatoes.

Since it’s Soup Week it seems like an appropriate time for a confession. I Sarah Trover am not a huge fan of soup. I’d much prefer a hearty bowl of stew or chowder, something with a little body, instead of a thin broth-based meal. That isn’t to say that thin or creamy soups aren’t tasty, but when given the choice, I’ll go for thick over clear and thin every time. Because of that, potato starch is my go-to thickener and — dare I say — my soup BFF.

I was floored when I opened up the April issue of Bon Appétit and read a confession from Andrew Knowlton, the BA Foodist, about his love of one of my own guilty pleasures: cottage cheese with potato chips. It’s a funny little snack that my husband often sets out when he has friends over — and even the most skeptical are always converted.What makes it so good? As I scoop yet another chip into the tub of cottage cheese, I often ask myself that same question.

Ah, potato rolls. Those old-fashioned, reliable, slightly squishy American treasures are making a slow comeback, satisfying bread cravings beyond crusty baguettes or sourdough slices. I’ve long known about using potato in baked goods because my mom made us a chocolate cake for each and every birthday that was made with grated potatoes. She called it her “secret ingredient” and we soon realized not to reveal it to friends because it sounded pretty odd.

You say potato, I say yes please. Fried, baked, and Hasselback’d, there are no shortage of recipes that feature this root vegetable. But just like space travel, there’s so much more territory to explore. As someone who must steer clear of most wheat and processed products, I’m always on the lookout for a substitute that adds crunch where croutons and toasted baguettes no longer can.

Q: What are some uses for sweet potato flour? Either sweet or savory. Curiosity got the better of me (for a change) and I brought sweet potato flour home but now I’m not sure what to do. Found a pancake and a crepe recipe, but still looking for more. Sent by Susana Editor: Readers, what do you make with sweet potato flour?