Subject: Mashed potatoes?
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: Mary (pomeroy at earthlink.net)
Date: Sun, 29 Nov 1998 08:57:54 -0500
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When boiling potatoes to make mashed potatoes I have always put the potatoes in cold water, brought them to a boil and cooked until tender. Now, I have a friend who claims that they taste much better if the potatoes are not added to the water until it comes to a boil. Anyone heard of this? Are they better? Just curious---
From: sue at interport.net (Curly Sue)
Date: Sun, 29 Nov 1998 15:28:13 GMT
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What I'd heard was that you start young potatoes in cold water and old potatoes in hot water.
Unless I got it backwards. Anyway, that's what I do :>
From: hotel splendid Nice (splendid at nicematin.fr)
Date: Mon, 30 Nov 1998 19:03:55 +0000
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You can do an even better version
You cut up the potatoes as small as possible, thin slices for example, then you wash them thoroughly and put them in cold milk with a bit of nutmeg, and of course salt, etc
you have to keep an eye on them as they cook (about 20 minutes)
you should put enough milk to cover them, and eventually adjust
after 20/25, just put them in a blender and adjust seasoning to your taste...
bon appetit
michel
From: stan at thunder.temple.edu (Stan Horwitz)
Date: 29 Nov 1998 16:16:35 GMT
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Taste is a very personal issue so the only way you can really settle this question is to try preparing mashed potatoes both ways and see which way you like better. I suspect that most people wouldn't be able to taste any difference or notice any textual change between the two potato boiling methods, but I prefer to boil water first whenever I cook potatoes or anything else that requires boiling in water simply because it takes less time to bring the water to a boil that way.
From: aem (aem at worldnet.att.net)
Date: 29 Nov 1998 17:41:32 GMT
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The short answer has to be, what do you and your friend mean by better? I think the different methods produce slightly different results, but less than the differences that come from whether you use a ricer or a masher, a spoon or a mixer.
Starting the potatoes in cold water produces -- all else being equal -- a more even degree of doneness from outside to inside. Starting them in boiling water produces more difference in doneness from outside to inside. The first is consistent with an end result that is really smooth, whipped, homogenous texture. The second may add a tiny bit to the result of 'almost lumpy', hand mashed, less smooth.
However, the difference in doneness from outside to center is also affected -- and probably moreso -- by the size of the potato pieces. A big uncut potato will reflect this difference more, while if you cut it up the difference will be less. So the 'smoothest' would be small pieces started in cold water, the 'graduated texture' would be uncut potatoes started in boiling water.
But your friend said 'taste better.' Maybe that means the water tastes bad so it's good to minimize the exposure time to it......--aem