Sticky Mashed Potatoes

Subject: Sticky Mashed Potatoes
Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking

From: spence7878 at aol.com (Spence7878)
Date: 02 Jan 2001 18:27:08 GMT
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Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like glue. Do you think it's the type of potato I'm using or the fact that I didn't use enough water in the pan when I boiled them?

From: Young (qwerty at mail.monmouth.com)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 13:36:44 -0500
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Spence7878 wrote:
> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue. Do you think it's the type of potato I'm using or the fact that I didn't
> use enough water in the pan when I boiled them?

Sounds as though you used a mixer. That will give you gluey mashed potatoes.

nancy

From: Ellen Smith (ellen at nytestar.com)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 11:00:35 -0800
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> Sounds as though you used a mixer. That will give you gluey mashed
> potatoes.
> nancy

On the other hand I always use a [hand] mixer and never get gluey or sticky mashed potatoes. Go figure.

From: sue at interport dotnet (Curly Sue)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 21:36:22 GMT
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Ellen Smith wrote:
>On the other hand I always use a [hand] mixer and never get gluey or
>sticky mashed potatoes. Go figure.

I also use a hand mixer and they come out fine. Perhaps it's a matter of degree; I know a blender will for sure make them gluey because it breaks up the starch granules.

The type of potatoes also matters. There are "starchy" potatoes and "waxy" potatoes. "Waxy" potatoes will be gluey when mashed. Don't ask me which types are waxy and which are starchy because I can't remember stuff like that ;> Except that I'm pretty sure that the red ones are waxy and not good for mashed.

From: Ellen Smith (ellen at nytestar.com)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 14:35:37 -0800
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Curly Sue wrote:
> The type of potatoes also matters. There are "starchy" potatoes and
> "waxy" potatoes. "Waxy" potatoes will be gluey when mashed.

Yeah. What you said...lol. I am not wild about waxy mashed potatoes although I guess they are okay of you're adding garlic or horseradish and lots of cream.

My potato of choice is either russet or idaho (are those the same or different), aged for at least a week in my tater drawer. Peeled, cut into 8ths, covered with water and brought to a boil, then the heat is lowered to a high simmer til they are tender.

I drain them and then return them to the empty pot and then back on the burner for a minute so the heat sorta does this drying thing. While that's going on I heat up some butter and milk in the microwave. I move the pan to a trivet and mash them well with one of those hand mashers that sorta rice them coarsely, until I've removed all the lumps of any size. I then dump in my milk and butter, generously salt and pepper them and whip them on high with my mixer for no more than I would say 45 seconds. It's enough to fluff them up so they have a consistency of a potato souffle. Very very light and smooth. Sorta dry too, not real wet. I call these gravy catchers cuz they work sooo well with gravies and pan sauces.

From: Kendall F. Stratton III (k3 at maine.rr.com)
Date: Tue, 2 Jan 2001 13:36:59 -0500
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Spence7878 wrote:
> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue.

To avoid over-starchy mashed potatoes I'll skim off the smegma (foam) that forms when boiling the potatoes and add small amounts of cold water to prevent over-cooking. When the taters are done I drain well, add whole milk, salt, ground white pepper, a spoonful of sour cream and lots of "real" butter. Whip 'em in the Kitchen-Aid mixer for a minute-or-so -- don't over-whip!. Mmmmmmm!!! Just had 'em last night made with new russets!

From: zxcvbob (bob at a51web.net)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 13:24:05 -0600
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Spence7878 wrote:
> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue.

Try using a potato ricer to mash the 'tatoes.

Regards,
Bob

From: janic412 at aol.com (JANIC412)
Date: 02 Jan 2001 21:01:08 GMT
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I never use a mixer. It sounds like you beat them to death. LOL. I just use a potato masher and they almost always come out lump free and fluffy. I think when they come out lumpy, I didn't cook them long enough. I found a wonderful old potato masher at a flea market years ago and it has been one of my better finds (except for my cookbooks). So, just mash, add real butter, warm milk or cream and salt and pepper and you have great mashed potatoes. Jan

From: Ruddell (ruddell at unibase.com)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 23:28:05 GMT
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janic412 at aol.com says...

> I never use a mixer. It sounds like you beat them to death. LOL.

I have to agree with you. Mixer = whipped potatoes...not mashed

> I just use a
> potato masher and they almost always come out lump free and fluffy.

That's how I've always done it and never had a problem. In fact, I always make lots so to make potato pancakes/fried the next day...

Dennis

From: Peter G. Aitken (peter at pgacon.com)
Date: Tue, 02 Jan 2001 21:01:25 GMT
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Spence7878 wrote:
> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue.

Sounds like too much beating. I understand that if you beat the potatoes for too long this is what happens. Try a hand masher, of it you are adverse to lumps, a ricer.

From: Dan Berry (sapphire591 at home.removetoreply.com)
Date: Wed, 03 Jan 2001 00:14:25 GMT
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I tried making mashed potatoes in a microwave and had "sticky" mashed potatoes. I have a theory that when you boil them, cutting the potatoes a little thinner exposes more of the potato to the boiling water and removes some more of the starch but I haven't done any scientific experiments,

I cut my taters in 1/2 inch thick slices, boil until fork tender, drain (reserve some of the water for gravy), I add butter and milk (cream when really wicked), salt, and fresh ground pepper. I also mash by hand until it's the right consistency, and leave a small amount of lumps. Sometimes I use sour cream, sometimes roasted garlic. Perfect mashed potatoes every time.

Cheers!
Dan

From: aquari at aol.comNOJUNK (Aquari)
Date: 03 Jan 2001 01:16:24 GMT
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Dan Berry wrote:
>I cut my taters in 1/2 inch thick slices, boil until fork tender,
>drain (reserve some of the water for gravy), I add butter and milk
>(cream when really wicked), salt, and fresh ground pepper. I also
>mash by hand until it's the right consistency, and leave a small
>amount of lumps. Sometimes I use sour cream, sometimes roasted
>garlic. Perfect mashed potatoes every time.

Sounds right to me. Somewhere (probably here) someone said to add a dollop of horseradish to mashed taters. Delish!! Especially with roast beef.

Libby from Idaho

From: Peter G. Aitken (peter at pgacon.com)
Date: Wed, 03 Jan 2001 02:56:55 GMT
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Dan Berry wrote:
> I have a theory that when you boil them, cutting the
> potatoes a little thinner exposes more of the potato to the boiling
> water and removes some more of the starch but I haven't done any
> scientific experiments,

I don't think this is true. Cook's Illustrated did a mashed potato article recently and they recommend cooking the spuds whole in their skins, then peeling. By reducing the amount of water absorbed, the texture of the mashed potatoes is improved.

From: Dan Berry (sapphire591 at home.removetoreply.com)
Date: Wed, 03 Jan 2001 03:46:40 GMT
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My microwave experiments have been less than stellar. I've looked at the microwave again (largely) because of you, Peter. Your microwave posts have been insightful and made me reconsider the device for more than just warming leftovers and melting butter. I cooked the potatoes in the skins and then mashed them. The texture wasn't right. It could be just that it's not what we are used to, but it wasn't what we expected. Admittedly, I should probably try it a couple more times before making my final determination, but in any case it doesn't seem to save any significant amount of labor...

From: limeyno1 (limeyno1 at look.ca)
Date: Wed, 03 Jan 2001 04:01:52 GMT
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> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue.

Sounds like either too much water or over beating.

The Limey in the Beautiful Suburbs of Stoney Creek

From: bonehead at newsguy.com (Bruce Hollebone)
Date: 3 Jan 2001 15:01:58 GMT
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Spence7878 wrote:
>Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky,
>almost like glue.

What potatoes are you using? Avoid the "waxy" types with smoother skins, the reds and new potatoes. Use spuds with a coarser texture, such as russets or Yukon golds.

Do you add anything to the mashed potatoes? Adding butter or cream smoothens the texture. Using just water or nothing at all results in a pasty mash.

Kind Regards,
Bruce.

From: abel at sonoma.edu (Dan Abel)
Date: Wed, 03 Jan 2001 10:14:59 -0700
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spence7878 at aol.com wrote:
> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue.

From what I've read, overbeating breaks up the starch into glue. A food processor works well for this. I just buy my glue in the store, though.

I use a potato masher. I like lumps, though. A potato ricer works really well if you don't like lumps. An electric mixer will give more of a "whipped" texture, which some people like. Note that overuse of the electric mixer will produce glue with a little inattention, whereas the other two methods would be unlikely to produce glue because of the physical effort required.

From: Martha Hughes (bastzine at worldnet.att.net)
Date: Thu, 04 Jan 2001 15:32:12 GMT
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Dan Abel wrote:
> I use a potato masher. I like lumps, though. A potato ricer works really
> well if you don't like lumps. An electric mixer will give more of a
> "whipped" texture, which some people like. Note that overuse of the
> electric mixer will produce glue with a little inattention, whereas the
> other two methods would be unlikely to produce glue because of the
> physical effort required.

I like the peels and I like lumps. I also use a hand mixer but I don't over beat. There's a fine line between over beating and perfect.

From: Ceil Wallace (CTYankeeBulldog at worldnet.att.net)
Date: Tue, 16 Jan 2001 21:31:53 GMT
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> Sometimes when I make mashed potatoes they come out so sticky, almost like
> glue. Do you think it's the type of potato I'm using or the fact that I didn't
> use enough water in the pan when I boiled them?

I always use a "baker", e.g., a russet, and after draining them I put the pot back on the burner to burn out the excess moisture, shaking the pot so they don't burn.

From: Phil(NM) (goldpnr at yahoo.com)
Date: Wed, 17 Jan 2001 00:48:50 GMT
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Peel and cube them
Boil them
Drain them
Put in an oven at 250 degrees for 10 minutes to remove moisture
Then, use a potato ricer! Never beat them with a mixer, even a hand mixer.
Add sour cream or heavy cream, a smidge melted butter, 2 smashed garlic cloves, your herbs and spices, and by the time you've gently stirred those in, your mashed potatoes are perfection!
You will get rave reviews!