New Chef Mashed Potatoes
"These delicious mashed potatoes are as basic and easy to make as you'll find anywhere. I have provided detailed instructions to keep new chefs out of trouble! You can modify this basic recipe as you wish. Enjoy!"
photo by Baby Kato
- Ready In:
- 45mins
- Ingredients:
- 5
- Serves:
-
10
ingredients
- 10 medium potatoes
- 1⁄2 lb butter
- 1 cup whole milk
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1⁄2 teaspoon white pepper
directions
- Boil 1 gallon of water in a 2 gallon cooking pot, covered. Do not add salt.
- Meanwhile, peel the potatoes and then cut each in half. Rinse them and drop them into a bowl of cold tap water. (You should be using nice-sized potatoes, large enough to bake -- sized between medium and large).
- When the water begins a good rolling boil, drain the potatoes from the cool water and drop them into the pot. Cover the pot until it begins to re-boil, then remove the lid and reduce the heat until the potatoes are cooking at a low boil, uncovered.
- When the potatoes are "fork-tender," drain them in a colander and return them to the pot (no heat). Cut in the two sticks of butter, add the salt and pepper, and then begin mashing the potatoes with a hand masher. (Do not use a hand mixer -- this generates "whipped" potatoes which can be a bit gluey).
- When the potatoes are pretty well mashed, begin adding the milk, 1/4 cup at a time, and stir until the desired consistency is achieved. You may not end up using the entire cup, or, you may end up using a bit more -- potato moisture varies widely.
- If you get them too thin, just re-warm them over very low heat, stirring frequently, uncovered, until they stiffen back up.
- Serve hot.
- NOTE: As you choose, you can modify these mashed potatoes by adding sour cream, garlic salt (not too much!), Parmesan cheese, etc. Honestly, I like the basic recipe, with no additions, the best.
Questions & Replies
Got a question?
Share it with the community!
Reviews
-
I love Mashed potatoes,and I fix mine like this,most of the time.I don't use a mixer,whenever I want little (very small),pieces of potato in my mashed potatoes. I also use Mrs.Dash's Table Blend. Delicious. Weezy -
There is nothing better than this! I like texture in my mashed potatoes and you are right, the potatoes are gluey, good but so smooth in a mixer. This is a good basic mashed potato recipe. Sometimes I keep 1/2 cup potato water and use with 1/2 cup whole milk. I save the other water for breads. Thanks for posting! Some of the basic recipes need to be posted because many new cooks are getting away from the fast prepared box foods. I have used a little sour cream or cream cheese but usually the recipe is as posted and it is never a failure!
RECIPE SUBMITTED BY
<p>I am a retired State Park Resort Manager/Ranger. <br /><br />Anyway, as to my years in the State Park System (retired now), I was responsible for 4 restaurants/dining rooms on my park and my boss at Central Headquarters said I should spend less time in my kitchens and more time tending to my park budget. I spent 25 years in those kitchens and worked with some really great chefs over those years, (and some really awful ones too!) <br /><br />I spent THOUSANDS of hours on every inch of that park and adjacent state forest (60,000 acres) and sometimes I miss it. But mostly I miss being in that big beautiful resort lodge kitchen. I miss my little marina restaurant down on the Ohio River too. I served the best Reuben Sandwich (my own recipe -- posted on 'Zaar as The Shawnee Marina Reuben Sandwich) in both the State of Ohio and the Commonwealth of Kentucky down there and sold it for $2.95. Best deal on the river! <br /><br />They (friends and neighbors) call my kitchen The Ospidillo Cafe. Don't ask me why because it takes about a case of beer, time-wise, to explain the name. Anyway, it's a small galley kitchen with a Mexican motif (until my wife catches me gone for a week or so), and it's a very BUSY kitchen as well. We cook at all hours of the day and night. You are as likely to see one of my neighbors munching down over here as you are my wife or daughter. I do a lot of recipe experimentation and development. It has become a really fun post-retirement hobby -- and, yes, I wash my own dishes. <br /><br />Also, I'm the Cincinnati Chili Emperor around here, or so they say. (Check out my Ospidillo Cafe Cincinnati Chili recipe). SKYLINE CHILI is one of my four favorite chilis, and the others include: Gold Star Chili, Empress Chili and, my VERY favorite, Dixie. All in and around Cincinnati. Great stuff for cheap and I make it at home too. <br /><br />I also collect menus and keep them in my kitchen -- I have about a hundred or so. People go through them and when they see something that they want, I make it the next day. That presents some real challenges! <br /><br />http://www.dnr.state.oh.us/parks/parks/shawnee.htm</p>
