how do i make mashed potatoe

GERMAN ROCKS

as the title says how does one make mashed potatoe. away from home this year at college and can boil spuds with a streamer but just wondering how do u make mashed spuds. i need every detail down to what number (1-6) should the cooker be one.

Ellian

As Rudyard said - "there are nine and sixty ways of constructing tribal lays and every single one of them is right" so with that in mind, here is how I make mash spuds.

1. Peel spuds. Halve or quarter them - about the size of a satsuma.
2. Place in water - add a little salt. Bring to boil. (Turn heat all the way up)
3. When they are hard boiling, I tend to lower the heat a little - back to about four on the gas.
4. Leave for about 15-20 minutes. It will depend on the type of spud you are using, handy way to check is stick a knife in one - if it slides in easily all the way through, they are ready.
5. Drain with a collander, or something equivilent (the lid of the saucepan if all else fails) I tend to turn off the heat, and put the saucepan back on for a minute or two to get rid of any excess water.

At this point, I am all for the theory that nothing succeeds like excess. Salt, butter, olive oil, creme fraiche, cheddar, chives, cream, combinations of above all good. Down to the conscience of the individual churchgoer. Mash really fine with a spud masher or a fork if that is the only thing to hand. If you want them really smooth you can push them through a sieve, but I think life is too short.

GERMAN ROCKS

i think my mother adds milk but not sure how much and they are savage

rebel10

GERMAN ROCKS wrote: »

as the title says how does one make mashed potatoe. away from home this year at college and can boil spuds with a streamer but just wondering how do u make mashed spuds. i need every detail down to what number (1-6) should the cooker be one.

Awww...is someone missing mammy's cooking?

maryxyz

Make sure you have mashed all lumps out of potatoes then just add a little milk until the mash is the consistency you prefer ! Stir like mad with a whisk to make it really light. Personally would only add butter & salt.

hondasam

GERMAN ROCKS wrote: »

as the title says how does one make mashed potatoe. away from home this year at college and can boil spuds with a streamer but just wondering how do u make mashed spuds. i need every detail down to what number (1-6) should the cooker be one.

If you were not such a mammies boy you would be cooking for her before you left home and you would know how to boil potatoes. go get a girl to teach you.:) better still just charm her and she will take over mammies role and you will not need cook at all;)

goat2

my advice would bepeel and quarter potatoes they cook faster that way, and since you are starting out, i would steam them if i were, one of those pots that have a pot on top with holes at base, i find them brilliant, as some potatoes fall to pieces in water, so this steam is a fail safe way to do it, you can have carrots, turnips, cabbage or parsnips in the water underneat, you will kill two birds with one stone that way, you save in your pocket that way as you will be using just one burner,when potatoes are boiled, have a hot pyrex dish or pot with a little milk warmed and a knob of butter melted in the milk, add salt and pepper, and toss in the potatois and mash, you can add a little cream if you wish, also parsley chopped in is beautiful also, as are fried onions folded in at the end.hope this helps, you could also boil a sweet potato with the potatoes peel and cut the same way it is a nice addition

P. Breathnach

hondasam wrote: »

If you were not such a mammies boy you would be cooking for her before you left home and you would know how to boil potatoes. go get a girl to teach you.:) better still just charm her and she will take over mammies role and you will not need cook at all;)

How do you know OP is not a girl?

hondasam

P. Breathnach wrote: »

How do you know OP is not a girl?

I dont but sounds more male than female!!

nompere

The Observer Food magazine printed this recipe 9 days ago. It looks like the ultimate mash, though I don't think I have the patience. As the intro says the chef has won a total of 25 michelin stars so who am I to say he's wrong. Here you go:

Joël Robuchon's Purée de pommes de terre (mashed potato)

French chef Joël Robuchon was named chef of the century by the guide Gault Millau in 1989, and has won no less than 25 Michelin stars. He has restaurants in Taipei, Hong Kong, Las Vegas, Macau, Monaco, New York, Paris, Tokyo and London. He has chaired the committee for Larousse Gastronomique. This is one of his most famous dishes.

Serves 6

potatoes, preferably rattes or BF15, scrubbed but unpeeled 1kg

coarse salt

whole milk 250ml

butter 250g, diced and kept well-chilled until use

salt and pepper

Put the potatoes in a saucepan with 2 litres of cold water and 1 tbsp coarse salt. Bring to a simmer, cover and cook until a knife slips in the potatoes easily and cleanly, about 25 minutes.

Drain the potatoes and peel them. Put them through a potato ricer (or a food mill fitted with its finest disc) into a large saucepan. Turn the heat to medium and dry the potato flesh out a bit by turning it vigorously with a spatula for about 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, rinse a small saucepan and pour out the excess water but don't wipe it dry. Add the milk and bring to a boil.

Turn the heat under the potatoes to low and incorporate the well-chilled butter bit by bit, stirring it in energetically for a smooth, creamy finish. Pour in the very hot milk in a thin stream, still over a low heat, still stirring briskly. Keep stirring until all the milk is absorbed. Turn off the heat and taste for salt and pepper. For an even lighter, finer purée, put the mixture through a very fine sieve before serving.

Faith

Jesus, that sounds amazing. I keep meaning to buy a ricer. You need to do a bunch of things at the same time though; how would you have enough hands?

nompere

Faith wrote: »

I keep meaning to buy a ricer.

They're great, though messy to clean up afterwards.

If you're careful when using one you can create mounds of potato strands on a baking tray and pop the whole thing into a hot oven for about 10 minutes.

Then you slide the mounds onto the dinner plates. They look great, all brown and crispy, and are so light. It looks like lots, but it really isn't.

phormium

Nompere - love this idea, must try it.

When I was a child we loved piles of potato straight from ricer to plate with white sauce, we called them potato maggots!

cc-offe

I've started to use a ricer all the time now for mashed potatoes, simply because my 7 month old is eating the same food as us and i'd rather not add any butter to it, I got my ricer in Ikea