The mashed potato dish is one of the necessary side dishes of a lunch/dinner table or on a night when you’re hankering food of your choice. If you take a look at the types of mashed potato recipe, you’ll be amazed by their variety. Probably the options are overwhelming! You’ll find yellow potatoes, Milk or cream, Sour cream, Cream cheese, Butter, and Fluffy, creamy, etc. The options are endless and it’s not too difficult to remember their preparation techniques.
Apart from the above varieties, there are also some subtle variations like, substituting Yukon potatoes, mixing roasted garlic in the milk or cream or pleating in some freshly chopped herbs at the end. Whether it’s a special occasion or simply a family dinner, you can prepare one of these dishes for your family.
What kind of potato?
Today, there are a number of potato choices are available at grocery stores, but what’s the right type for mashed potatoes? According to the experts, there are two general types of potatoes after boiling.
– Waxy
– Starchy
Some, like Russets, Idaho potatoes, red potatoes and Yukon golds. You should choose starchier potatoes that can be easily mashed with a stainless steel potato masher. While cooking, it should become thick and creamy. Waxy potatoes and red potatoes are great for roasting and salad.
Things to add:
According to the type of recipe, you can add, liquid, fat and other spices. For a basic preparation, you can add buttermilk or cream or milk. Butter can be a nice addition and, probably, there is no replacement of butter. You can choose salted or non-salted butter in the right ratio and just the right amount. It will make your mashed potato tastier.
What else you can add? You can add cheese, sour cream, scallions, onion, bacon, and the list goes on. If love garlic, use roasted garlic, herbs along with olive oil to make potato cakes. Use a stainless steel garlic press and peeler to keep your hand away from garlic smell. You can use red skin potatoes, rosemary, thyme, salt and pepper as your ingredients.
What is a perfect ratio? Although it’s an easy to prepare dish, you have to make sure that it tastes good and the ingredients are in right proportion. One pound of potato serves four people and you have to add four tablespoon butter, half cup liquid, and two tablespoon spices according to your choice or taste.
A few tips:
– Peel, cut and rinse potato before boiling. It will help the potatoes from getting gluey
– Add melted butter instead of cold butter
– Mix hot liquid to hot potato
– Add liquid after adding butter
However, potato mash is a great dish for holidays. It will overpower your meal and it can be served with pork roast or seared duck breast for a more traditional taste.
