Mashed: Lumpy Mashed Potatoes?
Subject: Lumpy Mashed Potatoes?
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: XQDA24A at prodigy.com (Miss Elizabeth Lightfoot)
Date: 18 Mar 1997 20:17:15 GMT
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I realize this is probably a basic question, but hey one has to start cooking somewhere. Whenever I make mashed potatoes, they still have little lumps in them. How does one prevent these or get them out so the potatoes are smooth? Many thanks for any help.
Liz
From: The Wheats (maddog at epix.net)
Date: Tue, 18 Mar 1997 21:25:26 -0500
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I have been cooking for my family for more than 15 years and I just learned the answer to your question. Cook the potaotes until tender. Mash them with your mixer THEN add your butter, milk, ect.. I hope this works for you!
From: Susan.Brooks at AtlantaGA.NCR.COM (Susan Brooks)
Date: Wed, 19 Mar 1997 18:17:52 GMT
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If my mashed potatoes didn't have lumps included, my family wouldn't eat them. The lumps also help disguise the mashed turnips I sometimes include...:-)
From: harryd at telusplanet.net (Harry Demidavicius)
Date: Thu, 20 Mar 1997 05:13:41 GMT
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Mash Harder; Add more milk; add more butter; in that order
From: chuck at cei.net (chuck groetzinger)
Date: Wed, 19 Mar 1997 18:16:04 GMT
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An electric mixer will get out the little lumps, though I actually prefer the little lumps. Probably comes from the days when my mother passed off boxed potatoes to us, and the only way of visually telling was by looking for the lumps.
From: lea at sirius.com (Lea)
Date: Sat, 22 Mar 1997 20:52:55 GMT
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I actually disaggree with the posters. The reason your potatoes are lumpy is because they probably are not cooked long enough.
The secret to great mashed potatoes is picking the right potato. Sometimes it's a matter of season, as any potato can lack sufficient starch, so that it falls apart if cooked enough. This is the reason why people undercook the potatoes, but with good ones you can get them a lot more done before mashing!
Try THIS:
Get Yukons or even better yellow fins if you can find them. Both work better than russets. red potatoes can be ok too. DO NOT cut up. Peel and boil whole. If you cut them up you loose starch into the water and you can't get them well done.
Boil until soft, completely but not falling apart. If the potato falls apart but still isn't really soft, or if it kind of disintegrates you have just got potatoes that are too young or too low in startch and there isn't much you can do, but try again with different potatoes.
I use half and half and a generous amount of butter, (and salt and pepper , of course), and a simple hand held potato masher with some muscle, and NO LUMPS.(or if their are , they are so well done they melt in your mouth!
People undercook their tates or cut them up in small pieces, and that is not right! Be Patient and allow time!!!
From: Lyndon Watson (L.Watson at csc.canterbury.ac.nz) (Lyndon Watson)
Date: 24 Mar 97 09:21:10 +1200
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Lea writes:
> The reason your potatoes are
> lumpy is because they probably are not cooked long enough.
Yes, that's what I would put it down to, too. Fully cooked potatoes prctically fall apart under the masher; but those hard centres of undercooked potatoes are just about impossible to mash down completely.
> The secret to great mashed potatoes is picking the right potato.
> Sometimes it's a matter of season, as any potato can lack sufficient
> starch, so that it falls apart if cooked enough. This is the reason
> why people undercook the potatoes, but with good ones you can get them
> a lot more done before mashing!
If you're having trouble cooking potatoes fully without turning them to mush, you could also try steaming rather than boiling. Since the potatoes are not actually in the water, you can help the cooking along by dicing them first. This method works well in a pressure cooker.
From: The Fantastic Mr Aristotle (kenningd at which.co.uk)
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 18:05:53 -0800
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Lyndon Watson wrote:
>Lea writes:
> > The reason your potatoes are
> > lumpy is because they probably are not cooked long enough.
I *must* disagree.
> Fully cooked potatoes
> practically fall apart under the masher
How long are you cooking them for? If they're falling apart that easily they must be *well* overcooked. The trouble is once they have been cooked this long they become very sticky. Ideally you want them to remain quite dry after cooking.
> The secret to great mashed potatoes is picking the right potato.
Absolutely. Pick a floury potato (such as desiree) rather than a waxy type. It shouldn't matter about the season -- as potatoes are grown all year round there should always be a suitable variety in season.
The other important factor is the method of mashing: after the initial breaking down of the cooked potatoes, beat them using a wooden spoon. Alternatively, push them through a sieve or use a mouli (vegetable mill).You could use a food processor, but be careful because it is easy to break them down too much, giving the same sticky mess as if you had overcooked them.
From: Ross Lipman (rl1856 at ix.netcom.com)
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 13:43:49 -0500
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I dice potatoes with skins left on. I cook the potatoes in boiling water until soft. Then I put into food processor with whatever else (olive oil, fat free sour cream, garlic and rosemary usually) and process until desired consistancy.
The results are always fantastic and never lumpy. The first time I prepared with this method, my wife and I ate out of the processor bowl while the rest of dinner was cooking.....
From: Richard Mckee (MCKEE at webtv.net)
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 14:36:05 -0800
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The wet ingredients you add to the potatoes should be warmed first, such as butter, milk, etc. Cold ingredients can and will cause lumpiness
From: Lyndon Watson (L.Watson at csc.canterbury.ac.nz)
Date: 27 Mar 97 08:28:44 +1200
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The Fantastic Mr Aristotle writes:
> How long are you cooking them for? If they're falling apart that easily
> they must be *well* overcooked. The trouble is once they have been cooked
> this long they become very sticky.
They are not overcooked and not sticky. Properly cooked potatoes of the right variety mash easily with an ordinary masher. They can easily be tested for doneness by pushing a table knife into them as they cook - it will slide easily through a potato that is ready for mashing, while the hard centre of one that will make lumpy mash can easily be felt.
There's hardly any more to it. A properly cooked potato will make smooth, non-sticky, non-lumpy mashed potato without needing to be beaten with a wooden spoon, or sieved, or dismembered in a food processor. The level of difficulty is about on a par with that of toasting a piece of bread.
From: vera at Eng.Sun.COM (Vera Lewis)
Date: 27 Mar 1997 01:43:22 GMT
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Try an electric hand mixer and add a little milk. Personally though I like the lumps the tell me it's real potato not boxed dehydrated stuff.
From: Madeline (madelinesellers at worldnet.att.net)
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 1997 18:45:46 -0800
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Vera Lewis wrote:
> Personally though I
> like the lumps the tell me it's real potato not boxed dehydrated stuff.
I like lumpy mashed potatoes too. That's how my father used to make them. It reminds me of him. I miss him now.
From: jeanbhall at aol.com (JeanBHall)
Date: 8 Apr 1997 06:47:04 GMT
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Put potates through a Foley Food Mill (also called a ricer) before adding milk, butter, etc. Then, once you have added other ingredients, you will have NO lumps whatsoever.
I have a GREAT recipe for mashed potatoes made with whipped cream cheese and chives. And best of all, it can be made a day ahead of time and then simply heated in the oven. Anyone who's interested, e-mail me at:
From: nancy-dooley at uiowa.edu (Nancy Dooley)
Date: Mon, 14 Apr 1997 16:52:39 GMT
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Here's one (but it works best when it's NOT made a day ahead):
Prepare mashed potatoes for 6 people, only leave out about 1/4 C. of milk or whatever liquid you would ordinarily use, and leave out any butter in the preparation of the mashed potatoes.
Grease a souffle dish.
To the mashed potatoes, add one well-beaten large or bigger egg, and one regular (small) container of whipped cream cheese with onion and chives. Mix thoroughly; dot the top with 2 T. of butter, sprinkle with paprika and bake at 350 deg. F. for about 30 minutes, or until puffy and slightly brown on top.
Serve immediately.
These are really good left over, but don't maintain their souffle puffiness very well.
Subject: Re: Lumpy Mashed Potatoes
From: Veda Bushart (gramb at webtv.net)
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 15:00:17 -1000
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Cook until yhey fallapart
From: Mary f (maryf at earthlink.net)
Date: Wed, 26 Mar 1997 21:25:27 -0800
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get a ricer (a potato ricer). A heavy thing which looks like a huge cylinder and has a flat head that fits into the cylinder (kinda like a large garlic press). No lumps, nice fluffy potatoes :-). the Kitchen Aid or Cuisnart can make them gluey if you aren't careful. good luck. :-)
From: Heidi Awes (heidi at electriciti.com)
Date: Sat, 29 Mar 1997 07:37:32 -0800
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It may seem unusual, but I like lumpy mashed potatoes.
I boil the potatoes in their jackets,(about 35-40 minutes) so they retain their nutrients, peel them and mash them by hand. I Add a little minced onion, butter or sour cream, milk, salt and pepper, and eat them plain without gravy.
I never have liked mushy food or food that is drowning in sauce. It leaves me with the impression that the initial quality of the food was so poor that it had to be creamed, or that the flavor was so bad it had to be covered up with sauce.
It should be noted, however, that my husband does not share my view; I do serve gravy on the side at his request.
From: tweedledum at webtv.net
Date: Tue, 25 Mar 1997 18:37:39 -0700
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what's wrong with a few lumps? they're just like the ones grandma used to make.
From: stan at thunder.temple.edu (Stan Horwitz)
Date: 1 Apr 1997 20:08:16 GMT
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Lumpy mashed potatoes were something my grandma never made. If you prefer some lumps in your mashed spuds, that's certainly fine with me, but I prefer my mashed potatoes 100% lump-free. I like the mashed potatoes to be smooth and somewhat thick in consistency, but not like paste, with a slight butter flavor, and nice and hot.
From: Jean Middleton (jmidd at leton.demon.co.uk)
Date: Wed, 2 Apr 1997 23:19:17 +0100
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Stan Horwitz writes
> I like the mashed potatoes to be
>smooth and somewhat thick in consistency, but not like paste, with a
>slight butter flavor, and nice and hot.
That's how my grandma made them, and my mum, and I do it that way too.