My Favourite Mashed Potatoes
The magic is in the ricer.
by Erin Henderson
I almost didn't write this post.
I mean... it's mashed potatoes. Who needs a recipe for that?
Then I talked to a dear friend who told me about her electric potato masher. I hadn't heard of such a thing, so I asked her to explain. She was referring to an immersion (handheld) blender. That is not an electric potato masher.
In fact, if you get overly aggressive with mashed potatoes, say by adding them to a blender, hand-held or otherwise, the potatoes can release too much starch and become gluey, sticky, and gross. And once that happens, there's no easy way to fix them.
So let me tell you a few simple chef tricks that require any extra effort (in fact it may even be easier), but elevate your potatoes from the heavy, sticky mess of your holiday buffet to the creamy and rich restaurant-style mashed you happily shell out $15 for. And once you know the basics, the world is your, uh, potato.
You may also like: Classic Colcannon
Chef's Tricks
- Get a potato ricer (or food mill.) This may seem like an extra gadget, but it makes mashing potatoes a breeze and you don't even have to worry about peeling! (I use this one from OXO, but I also really like the Joseph Joseph brand)
- Use Yukon Gold or red potatoes as they have the best moisture content for mashed
- Leave the skins on for boiling to reduce water logging the potatoes
- Use similar sized potaoes or cut large ones cut in half (cutting too small will make potatoes too watery)
What to do with Leftovers:
- Croquettes: mix in finely diced ham or turkey into the leftover potatoes and roll into cigars. Dip them in flour, then beaten egg, then bread crumbs and fry until golden.
- Duchess: These are super old school but super delicious: Place mashed potato in a piping bag fitted with a star tip. Swirl onto a parchment lined baking tray and bake at about 375°F for 20-30 minutes until golden and cripsy on top.
- Vichyssoise
- Topping for shepherd's pie
Mashed Potatoes
Years and years ago, when I started taking cooking courses at George Brown College in Toronto, my first course was literally Cooking 1(01.) As the foundation for everything to come after, we needed to learn mother sauces, knife techniques, and a staggering amount of old school classic recipes. (We're also required to wear tall hats and ugly pants, but that's a story for another day.)
Duchess Potatoes were among those foundational recipes. These are mashed potatoes that are piped into rosebuds and baked. Super old fashioned, but honestly? Really delicious.
Even if I'm not making Duchess potatoes, I've still added egg yolk to my mashed ever since.
Makes: about 1 litre
Chef level: easy
Ingredients:
- 16 oz/500g similar sized potatoes, such as Yukon Gold, larger ones cut in half for same sizing
- ½ Tbsp Kosher salt
- 3 whole garlic cloves, optional
- Bay leaves, optional
- 1 egg yolk
- 3 oz/90g salted butter
- ¼ cup whole milk or cream
- Fresh herbs such as parsely or chives, optional
How to Make It:
- Add the potatoes to a large pot and cover with cold water by one inch.
- Add optional garlic cloves or bay leaves, if using.
- Bring to a boil, add salt, and cook until the potatoes can be pierced with a knife tip, about 20 minutes.
- Drain the potatoes, discarding the optional bay leaves (if using garlic you can leave them in the potatoes if so desired.)
- Allow the potatoes to dry out slightly (I place the colander with the potatoes over the hot, empty boiling pot) for about 5 minutes.
- Return the empty pot to low heat.
- Pour in the milk and add the butter, seasoning lightly with salt and pepper.
- Slip the skins from the potatoes and pass bald potatoes through the ricer set on the finest setting into the warm cream and butter in the pot.
- Stir the potato through to incorporate cream and milk.
- Add in the egg yolk and stir well to incorporate.
- Taste for salt, adjust to your liking and serve warm, sprinkled with parsely or chives, if so desired.
Wine Pairing
Likely you are not having just the potatoes on their own (though I've been known to.) If you are having this as part of your holiday dinner, pair the wine to the strngest flavours on the table.
For something like Thanksgiving, where there's a roast turkey (or other poultry), a classic pairing is buttery Chardonnay, to compliment the creamy textures of the food and the earthy flavours on the table.
Red wine lovers can go for Pinot Noir, which is also a great pairing if the buffet inclludes roast beef, tenderloin, or salmon.