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Mashed Potato


DanCole42

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In line with my "killer short ribs" post, does anyone have a top secret mashed potato recipe that's amazingly delicious?

For the record, I have my OWN short rib and mashed potato recipes... I just know there's so much talent out there on this board that I'd be a fool not to listen. And yes, I have many cookbooks and recipe sites I frequent, but that doesn't tell me if they're any good or not :blink:

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In line with my "killer short ribs" post, does anyone have a top secret mashed potato recipe that's amazingly delicious?

For the record, I have my OWN short rib and mashed potato recipes... I just know there's so much talent out there on this board that I'd be a fool not to listen. And yes, I have many cookbooks and recipe sites I frequent, but that doesn't tell me if they're any good or not :blink:

Two ideas: 1) If you can get to Penzeys, they have an herb mixture I think called Parisian -- it's really good to add to potatos anyway they are prepared; and 2) smoosh a head of roasted garlic into the mash.

If you are serving them with something like braised short ribs which have their own sauce/gravy no point in guilding the lilly too much.

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Exactly... I'm looking more for that one secret technique for fluffy, creamy potatoes.
Do you use a ricer or a masher? The ricer is the way to get to more fluffy, so long as you don't over do the mixing in of the other ingredients once the potatos have been rendered into submission. I haven't used a hand held electric mixer in a long time, but some say that is the implement that will get you to a higher degree of fluffyness.
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Mmm... Mmmmashed potatoes...

Lately I've gotten totally hooked on a smashed potato thingy I threw together one night: Chop a potato, boil, skin on, in salted water. Warm some full-fat milk and butter in the microwave. Drain potatoes when done. Put back in pan and shake to steam any excess water off. Pour in milk and butter. Smash liberally with fork. Mix in salt, pepper, worcester sauce, and--the secret--crumbled bacon bits. If you're in the mood, parmesan and/or horseradish can be a nice touch, but this is pretty darn good on its own.

If it's fluffy and creamy you seek, mom always made Thanksgiving mashed potatoes with a hand mixer, sometimes going half and half with turnips, along with the usual milk-butter-salt trifecta. The mixer fluffs it without making it gummy, and the turnips always made it seem a little less heavy and starchy. That's a mighty fine and simple dish as well...

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I haven't used a hand held electric mixer in a long time, but some say that is the implement that will get you to a higher degree of fluffyness.
My mother always used a handheld mixer for her mashed potatoes, and they always came out great. She poured in milk as she mashed them and some butter as well, I think, plus salt and pepper. That was it. I wish I could remember the specifics now.

I could never understand why people claimed that a mixer turned potatoes into glue, because hers never had that problem at all. Unfortunately, I believed that and stopped using the mixer and now I don't remember how she did it.

There's one whipped potatoes recipe I like (using a mixer). It's from Bon Appetit 15 years ago, but it doesn't seem to be online. It's not what I think of as being terribly conventional, but it's very good. It uses chicken broth, olive oil, parmesan, and has chives. I'll post the amounts, etc., later in case anyone's interested. It's more creamy than fluffy, though.

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Extensive Research on which type of potato is best has led to this discovery from the Cooks Illustrated website:

I Say Potato

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Written: 9/2000

Does it make a difference in what type of potato you use for making mashed potatoes?

These related reviews might also be of interest: Potatoes for Soup, Are Frozen French Fries Worth Eating? and Sweet Potatoes -- Beauregards and Batatas.

We're an opinionated bunch here, but agreement isn't so difficult to reach in the test kitchen ... unless the issue at hand is what kind of potato to use for mashed potatoes. This is my story, and I favor russet potatoes. For those of you looking for a different potato to mash, here's the skinny on your options.

Round Red

Mashed potatoes made with red potatoes, usually available as Red Bliss, were absent any potato flavor except for a faint sweetness that appealed to a few tasters. The texture, which was extremely velvety and dense, proved an asset to some, a liability to others, especially those in the light and fluffy camp, who called these mashed potatoes gummy and pasty.

Round white (also called all-purpose)

All-purpose potatoes produced the lightest colored mashed potatoes. The lack of potato flavor--sweet, earthy, or otherwise--allowed the garlic flavor to come to the fore, where it met with the approval of some tasters. Others described the flavor as fleeting and one-dimensional. The texture was slightly dense, heavy, and pasty.

Russet

Mashed potatoes made from russets were the archetypal mashed potatoes. They had an earthy potato flavor coupled with a mild sweetness, and they were the creamiest and fluffiest of the bunch (although a couple of tasters characterized them as loose and watery). These were liked by some, loved by none . . . except me.

Yukon Gold

Yukon Gold potatoes have a buttery yellow color and a mildly sweet and buttery flavor to match, but they are very light on potato flavor. They mashed into thick and creamy--but neither dense nor heavy--mashed potatoes that met with neither jeers nor cheers.

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Exactly... I'm looking more for that one secret technique for fluffy, creamy potatoes.

What degree of "fluffy" are you looking for? There really isn't much to making fluffy, creamy potatoes.

  1. Use a "starchy" baking potato - Russetts preferred. "Waxy" potatoes don't fluff or absorb dairy as well.
  2. Mash 'em properly. If you're using one of those bent-wire mashers, donate it to Goodwill. They're crap...the rounded edges don't cut the potato fibers so much as smush them around. Use a masher with a stamped (I like the OXO) or cast grid, or use a ricer.
  3. Milk and/or cream.

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Wow, no clear winner or a recommendation? Strange for CI. I am surprised that they did not mix a few together.

Extensive Research on which type of potato is best has led to this discovery from the Cooks Illustrated website:

I Say Potato

Add to Favorites | Printer Friendly

Written: 9/2000

Does it make a difference in what type of potato you use for making mashed potatoes?

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Cooks Illustrated advocates using a ricer or food mill. What do you think the meat grinder attachment on my Kitchen Aid would do?

Try it and find out. A ricer is like a giant garlic press, forcing the cooked potato through very small holes. A food mill does the same thing. The smallest plate for your meat grinder would be the one to use for your experiment.

I am wary of methods that beat or whip potatoes mechanically. It's easy to end up with gluey mashed potatoes because you've developed the gluten too much. And use lots of butter, along with hot milk or cream. I remember reading a story about Michel Richard critiquing the mashed potatoes prepared by one of his chefs: "Plus de buerre!" was his recommendation.

If you want to get fancy, I used to get raves when I would bring a dish to potlucks called "Pommes de Terre Montrouge"--it's a Dionne Lucas recipe. Basically, it's potatoes, carrots and celery root in a 1/2, 1/4,1/4 ratio, cooked separately because they each have different cooking times. Then, all three are run through a food mill to mash and strain out any stringy bits from the celery root, then mixed with butter, creme fraiche or sour cream, roasted garlic, an egg yolk, parmesan cheese and Dijon mustard. Then it is baked in an earthenware casserole. Variants could include boiled onion, parsnips, turnips or winter squash. It's a bit of work, but it can be done earlier and then baked later. It's really heaven on a plate.

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Whipped Potatoes with Olive Oil and Parmesan (Bon Appetit, Sept. 1992)

Boil 2 lbs. russet potatoes until tender. Drain, peel, and put in a large bowl. Add 3/4 cup hot chicken broth and beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Gradually beat in 6 tablespoons olive oil and then 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese. (Add more broth if too thick.) Stir in 1/2 cup chopped fresh chives. Season with salt and pepper and additional parmesan. Serves 6.

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I am wary of methods that beat or whip potatoes mechanically. It's easy to end up with gluey mashed potatoes because you've developed the gluten too much. And use lots of butter, along with hot milk or cream.
Does the rate at which you add the liquid have anything to do with the gluten development? My mother used to pour cold milk from the jug into the potatoes as she mixed them. The milk didn't go in all at once. And she threw a couple of chunks of butter in there somewhere too. She made wonderful mashed potatoes.
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Does the rate at which you add the liquid have anything to do with the gluten development? My mother used to pour cold milk from the jug into the potatoes as she mixed them. The milk didn't go in all at once. And she threw a couple of chunks of butter in there somewhere too. She made wonderful mashed potatoes.
If you add all the liquid at once (and this goes for anything you're mixing), you're going to need more revolutions to incorporate it all than if you added the liquid gradually. So yes, more gluten will develop simply because you will be mixing more.
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I'm looking more for that one secret technique for fluffy, creamy potatoes.

Here it is (From Shirley Corriher, but I've seen some other food science type give the same advice):

"Precooking potatoes at 140-160° and then cooling swells (gelatinizes) and recrystallizes the starch, making it no longer soluble in water, therefore you have fluffy mashed potatoes."

In other words, you cook the potatoes in two stages. Like 15 minutes at 160, cool and then cook again until done. It does make a difference, but I'm generally satisfied with potatoes cooked once and run through a ricer.

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Wow impressive post (seriously). Where did you learn this? Very Alton Brown like....

If you add all the liquid at once (and this goes for anything you're mixing), you're going to need more revolutions to incorporate it all than if you added the liquid gradually. So yes, more gluten will develop simply because you will be mixing more.
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What degree of "fluffy" are you looking for? There really isn't much to making fluffy, creamy potatoes.
  1. Use a "starchy" baking potato - Russetts preferred. "Waxy" potatoes don't fluff or absorb dairy as well.

Here's the rub.

Julia Child also recommends Russets, doesn't she? We'll hear soon enough in the annual NPR airing of the Thanksgiving dinner with all the chefs ringing the doorbell.

I, personally, find Russets insubstantial and I know I'm not alone since I've read quite a few recipes that explicitly call for waxy vs. starchy potatoes. Cf. Zuni Café. There's more junk in their trunk, which for me is desirable, but in the fluffy, lighter-than-air school, this is not a good thing.

It's the waxy, boiling potatoes that don't take kindly to aggressive, mechanized beating and whipping. Cf. Zora re "gluey". Thus, the development of low-impact hand tools such as the ricer which does wonders.

For those of you who prefer both Russets and rich dishes, these may not be cloud-like, but Pioneer Woman Does Cream/Cheese.

* * *

P.S. Waitman likes to ask: "Organic vs. Local: which is best?" The NYTs recently listed five foods that the reporter recommended for folk to consider in thinking about the dilemma. Conventionally grown potatoes usually involve a lot of chemical pesticides, etc., so you might consider buying organic Russets shipped from afar or the sweet little yellow ones from Heinz.

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Here it is (From Shirley Corriher, but I've seen some other food science type give the same advice):

"Precooking potatoes at 140-160° and then cooling swells (gelatinizes) and recrystallizes the starch, making it no longer soluble in water, therefore you have fluffy mashed potatoes."

In other words, you cook the potatoes in two stages. Like 15 minutes at 160, cool and then cook again until done. It does make a difference, but I'm generally satisfied with potatoes cooked once and run through a ricer.

I learned by accident how well this works. A few Thanksgivings ago, it was the typical zoo at our house with the in-laws visiting. I'd boiled the potatoes as usual (peeled and chopped into ~1" chunks, cooked until easily pierced with a knife), drained them and then got distracted with something else (most likely the perennial battle with my mother-in-law as to exactly who is in charge of my kitchen :blink: ). By the time I got around to ricing the potatoes, they had completely cooled to room temperature. Riced them anyway, added copious amounts of boiling hot butter and cream and ended up with the best mashed potatoes ever.

For special occasions, I've made them this way ever since.

For everyday mashed spuds, I mash them hot in the kitchen aid with the flat beater. However, mixed as little as is necessary because you can still make them gluey that way if you mix them long enough (although a food processor is the most efficient means of rupturing the cellular structure and making potato glue).

Whip in as much butter and cream as you possibly can.
Ditto.

In "Happy in the Kitchen", Richard calls for 16 Tbsp. (8 oz.) and 7/8 cup heavy cream per 1 pound of potatoes. :P (Caution for those trying this at home: he does warn that the butter/cream must be added slowly so it will all fully emulsify!)

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(most likely the perennial battle with my mother-in-law as to exactly who is in charge of my kitchen :blink: ).

In my case, it's complicated by the fact that my kitchen used to be her kitchen. And Jonathan built the kitchen to her specifications and her color choices many years ago. Choices that in some cases bug the s--t out of me. Bile-green formica, anyone?

In "Happy in the Kitchen", Richard calls for 16 Tbsp. (8 oz.) and 7/8 cup heavy cream per 1 pound of potatoes. :P (Caution for those trying this at home: he does warn that the butter/cream must be added slowly so it will all fully emulsify!)

Plus de buerre! It's Michel's secret for deliciousness in so many cases. His chicken faux gras recipe calls for one pound of chicken livers and half a pound of butter.

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Joel Robuchon's Pommes Puree. I don't think you'll be able to get anything better than that.
At the 'Post Modern Dinner', they did the Robuchon potatoes, but instead of butter they used foie gras.

Has anybody brought up drying the potatoes after boiling? Dry potatoes soak up more butter and cream. Baking the potatoes works very well, too. One of my chefs advocated boiling the potatoes whole rather than cutting them up, and that always produced very good puree, though now I don't remember the rationale (besides not having to chop up however many potatoes).

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I mash mine by hand first and then use hand mixer for adding milk and butter. I agree with adding the milk gradually. A good secret is to boil/scald the milk first and then add it a little at a time while blending with the hand mixer. Also room temperature butter adds to creaminess, like 2 or 3 sticks(!!).

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Has anybody brought up drying the potatoes after boiling? Dry potatoes soak up more butter and cream. Baking the potatoes works very well, too. One of my chefs advocated boiling the potatoes whole rather than cutting them up, and that always produced very good puree, though now I don't remember the rationale (besides not having to chop up however many potatoes).
Cook's Illustrated advocated both boiling the potatoes whole and drying them after boiling. It was a long time ago, so I don't remember which issue -- Jan/Feb 2002 or 2003, maybe? Their reason for boiling whole was that the skin would prevent the potatoes from absorbing water and becoming sodden during cooking. They also advocated using half-and-half for the dairy, and melting the butter before adding. Theirs became my go-to recipe because the potatoes were so fluffy and flavorful. Even more so on those occasions where I got distracted and the butter had time to both melt AND brown before I remembered to turn off the heat.
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Boiled some whole russets, unpeeled.

Let them cool slightly, then removed skins (if you do them when they're still hot enough, you can just use your fingers and the skin will come right off).

Sliced them, then passed them with TONS of butter through the small attachment of my Kitchen Aid's meat grinder.

Added some cream, salt, and pepper.

Best mashed potatoes EVER!

Had them with black truffle oil from Wegman's the second day... to die for.

2087594088_7966a7bd35.jpg

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It's easy to end up with gluey mashed potatoes because you've developed the gluten too much.

While late to the party, I would like to point out that potatoes contain no gluten, the glueyness is caused by a starch called leucoplast (a carbohydrate) as opposed to gluten (a protein).

As for the best method to breakdown the potatos before adding the milk based fat products, I have found that using a medium screen tamis (aka drum sieve) gives far more consistent results with less effort than a ricer or food mill.

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While late to the party, I would like to point out that potatoes contain no gluten, the glueyness is caused by a starch called leucoplast (a carbohydrate) as opposed to gluten (a protein).

As for the best method to breakdown the potatos before adding the milk based fat products, I have found that using a medium screen tamis (aka drum sieve) gives far more consistent results with less effort than a ricer or food mill.

Thank you for correcting misinformation that I provided regarding glue-tenous mashed potatoes. Better late (like 3+ years...) than never. :)

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Thank you for correcting misinformation that I provided regarding glue-tenous mashed potatoes. Better late (like 3+ years...) than never. :)

I know how you like to correct people’s cooking questions, so I figured that I would do the same for you, and the state of the nature of being gluey is to "glutinosity" as opposed to glutinous which since the mid 19th century has come to mean “containing gluten.” Other than me being a complete ass, why would this matter? Because there are plenty of people that could read this, see that you (someone they may trust) says that potatoes contain gluten and avoid eating them for that reason – so in this case words can indeed matter.

As for the tardiness of this post, I guess someone should have locked the topic if it is not OK to reply at this late date.

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Since we're arguing, I'll point out that both answers are off the mark. :) A leucoplast is the generic term for a colorless plastid in plant cells, one type of which is an amyloplast. Starch grains form within the amyloplasts inside plant cells. The starch is the culprit, not the plastid.

It's so unusual that my esoteric work is relevant to a discussion, that I couldn't resist. :)

Edited to say - Dan's potatoes were so good because he put in the butter first. It coated the starch grains so they didn't get sticky. I think Alton Brown did a program about that.

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Don't worry I KNOW potatoes don't contain gluten, mmmmm.

BTW while we are resurrecting a three year old post for posterity:

My Mother always uses Russet, my aunt tried to start using Yukon Gold and was nixed from doing that again. Makes them in a big Le Cruset Dutch Oven. She uses a hand mixer, but an old style with a little thicker blades (not like the whisk ones on a Kitchen Aid), but the thing that made hers really good was that she used room temperature Eagle Brand evaporated milk in place of milk or cream, and butter (and s,p). And after years of telling my Mother that she did not make things as good as my Amish Nanny, I would have no shame in saying that they weren't awesome, but that would be a lie. She also always says that keeping everything room temperature is important so the potatoes aren't cooled quickly.

At all family occasions, no one but my Mother is allowed to make the mashed potatoes because hers are the best. They are lighter and fluffier than any others I have ever had, not just individuals, but chefs. When we go to Hubby's parents for Thanksgiving the only thing I ever truly really miss is my Mother's mashed potatoes. I have never found anything better. I do recreate them though with much success on occasion, but Hubby likes skin on parsleyed potatoes and those are so much easier I often bypass all the peeling. Just simple hot quartered russets, evaporated milk, butter, salt and pepper and hand mixer.

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Since we're arguing, I'll point out that both answers are off the mark. :) A leucoplast is the generic term for a colorless plastid in plant cells, one type of which is an amyloplast. Starch grains form within the amyloplasts inside plant cells. The starch is the culprit, not the plastid.

It's so unusual that my esoteric work is relevant to a discussion, that I couldn't resist. :)

Edited to say - Dan's potatoes were so good because he put in the butter first. It coated the starch grains so they didn't get sticky. I think Alton Brown did a program about that.

Wonderful!

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