The Secret to Better Baked Potatoes? Cook Them Like the British Do.

TOP said:
Adobong pato? I'm so going to try this;)
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There's one additional step I take that you may not like but it really kicks up the flavor profile. When you kill the duck save the blood and add a little vinegar or citrus to keep it from congealing, when the adobo is done the last stem is to add the duck blood and stir till it thickens to the right consistency. It's amazing the difference that makes.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
There's one additional step I take that you may not like but it really kicks up the flavor profile. When you kill the duck save the blood and add a little vinegar or citrus to keep it from congealing, when the adobo is done the last stem is to add the duck blood and stir till it thickens to the right consistency. It's amazing the difference that makes.
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I'll go with less flavor profile on this one...;) Unless I can purchase a block of blood;) Which I suppose is possible...but I'd probably pass;) I appreciate the tip though...I might consider it if we were talking wolverine adobo;)
 
Damocles said:
All the article really says is to stop microwaving your baked potatoes and you'll like them better...

Since I am allergic to potatoes I don't cook them either way.
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Oh, man, in a way you are lucky, potatoes, I love them, too much.
 
TOP said:
I'll go with less flavor profile on this one...;) Unless I can purchase a block of blood;) Which I suppose is possible...but I'd probably pass;) I appreciate the tip though...I might consider it if we were talking wolverine adobo;)
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That’s why it took me a long time to talk my brother in-law into telling me the secret ingredient of his sauce.

He knows if you tell most people it’s blood the won’t eat it but honestly it didn’t have that minerally, metallic flavor at all. If anything it has a buttery flavor.
 
Cooking great potatoes requires a little knowledge about potatoes. The starch of the potatoes are composed of fibers of long chain polymers of starch. These fibers have amazing hydrodynamic properties. They can absorb amazing amounts of fluids. The fibers can absorb swell to 30 times their dehydrated diameter via absorption of fluids.

However if that fluid is water they are pretty tasteless. So the secret to cooking tasty spuds is to cook them till just tender and have absorbed a maximum of water, the next step is to remove the water and replace the water with a fluid the potato fibers can absorb that do have flavor. Usually an oil. What you want avoid is any technique that will breakdown the fibers. So don’t use an electric mixer unless you like a gluey or pasty texture.

Example for mashed potatoes. Boil till tender and drain. Don’t over cook them. Then put them back on the stove on low heat and let the water in the potatoes evaporate until the have a dry flaky appearance.

Then add the oil of your choice, and you’re only limited by your imagination. Add some butter or cream or milk or cream cheese or all of them. Then mash with a hand masher. Add your oils and mash while adding fluids till desired consistency but don’t over mix to avoid breaking down the fibers. Season to taste and you’ll have a killer mash.

Same with French fries. Ever peel potatoes, slice them into fries and drop them into hot oil until golden brown only to find them mushy and greasy? That’s why restaurants blanch the fries, let them dry, then fry them. Sometimes they double fry them. When you do that they become the crispy fries with a creamy inside that we all know and love.
 
Mott the Hoople said:
Cooking great potatoes requires a little knowledge about potatoes. The starch of the potatoes are composed of fibers of long chain polymers of starch. These fibers have amazing hydrodynamic properties. They can absorb amazing amounts of fluids. The fibers can absorb swell to 30 times their dehydrated diameter via absorption of fluids.

However if that fluid is water they are pretty tasteless. So the secret to cooking tasty spuds is to cook them till just tender and have absorbed a maximum of water, the next step is to remove the water and replace the water with a fluid the potato fibers can absorb that do have flavor. Usually an oil. What you want avoid is any technique that will breakdown the fibers. So don’t use an electric mixer unless you like a gluey or pasty texture.

Example for mashed potatoes. Boil till tender and drain. Don’t over cook them. Then put them back on the stove on low heat and let the water in the potatoes evaporate until the have a dry flaky appearance.

Then add the oil of your choice, and you’re only limited by your imagination. Add some butter or cream or milk or cream cheese or all of them. Then mash with a hand masher. Add your oils and mash while adding fluids till desired consistency but don’t over mix to avoid breaking down the fibers. Season to taste and you’ll have a killer mash.

Same with French fries. Ever peel potatoes, slice them into fries and drop them into hot oil until golden brown only to find them mushy and greasy? That’s why restaurants blanch the fries, let them dry, then fry them. Sometimes they double fry them. When you do that they become the crispy fries with a creamy inside that we all know and love.
Click to expand...
Everything good is a process....and worth the time;)
 
Mott the Hoople said:
Cooking great potatoes requires a little knowledge about potatoes. The starch of the potatoes are composed of fibers of long chain polymers of starch. These fibers have amazing hydrodynamic properties. They can absorb amazing amounts of fluids. The fibers can absorb swell to 30 times their dehydrated diameter via absorption of fluids.

However if that fluid is water they are pretty tasteless. So the secret to cooking tasty spuds is to cook them till just tender and have absorbed a maximum of water, the next step is to remove the water and replace the water with a fluid the potato fibers can absorb that do have flavor. Usually an oil. What you want avoid is any technique that will breakdown the fibers. So don’t use an electric mixer unless you like a gluey or pasty texture.

Example for mashed potatoes. Boil till tender and drain. Don’t over cook them. Then put them back on the stove on low heat and let the water in the potatoes evaporate until the have a dry flaky appearance.

Then add the oil of your choice, and you’re only limited by your imagination. Add some butter or cream or milk or cream cheese or all of them. Then mash with a hand masher. Add your oils and mash while adding fluids till desired consistency but don’t over mix to avoid breaking down the fibers. Season to taste and you’ll have a killer mash.

Same with French fries. Ever peel potatoes, slice them into fries and drop them into hot oil until golden brown only to find them mushy and greasy? That’s why restaurants blanch the fries, let them dry, then fry them. Sometimes they double fry them. When you do that they become the crispy fries with a creamy inside that we all know and love.
Click to expand...

Again, if you have decent potatoes like Maris Piper then you don't need any oil.
 
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