How to Boil Potatoes for Mashed Potatoes
To make yummy mashed potatoes, you have to ensure that you get well-cooked potatoes to make it easy for you. The right potatoes will provide a great consistency and give you a fluffy mash. You also want to ensure the ones you use will easily absorb other ingredients you will be using.
Equipment
- Cooking pot
Ingredients
- Potatoes
- Salt
- Cold Water
Instructions
Step 1: Prepare the potatoes
- Here it would help if you made the potatoes ready for boiling. Such includes cleaning the outside to remove all the dirt. You should also peel the potatoes, especially if they have thick skin.
- If you are using red potatoes, you only need to clean them, and they will be good to go. Otherwise, the rest, such as Yukon gold, will be better for mashing when they do not have the peels.
- After peeling, you can slice the potatoes into cubes or boil them whole. It is up to you. But remember, when cooking them in small pieces, they will take less time to get ready, unlike when not cut.
Step 2: Place the potatoes in the cooking pot
- Once the potatoes are ready, you should add them to the cooking pot. After this, add enough water to them to partly cover them. Ensure there is enough space in the cooking pot to allow them to boil well.
- You can go ahead and add some salt to the cooking pot. Ensure you do not add too much; it should be just enough for the boiling potatoes.
Step 3: Bring them to boil
- Set the stove to medium-low heat and place the cooking pot on it. Cover the cooking pot loosely when boiling. Allow them to simmer for 15 to 20 minutes or more. The period will depend on the type of potatoes and their sizes.
Step 4: Check if they are ready
- You should check whether the potatoes are ready after a while. Please do this by piercing them with a fork. They should break when you insert the pork in them. If they are ready, drain the excess water, add the rest of the ingredients and start mashing.
- Some people will prefer first to boil the water then add the potatoes. While this is a viable option, it will result in the potatoes cooking outside.
- The inside remains uncooked. You will then be required to boil the potatoes for more time so that the interior can cook. So, it is always better to cook them with cold water to cook evenly.