Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with potato

I will not eat green potatoes and ham.

Toekneesan — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 06:27:29 -0800

Garden/Botony/KitchenFilter: If your potatoes turn green, can you safely turn them back to brown? Some of the potatoes we grew this year were left exposed to the sun in the kitchen. Subsequently the skin has gotten kind of green. More than just a few small spots. This makes them poisonous. I'm wondering if we can root cellar them to turn them back to brown, and would that affect the amount solanine in the potatoes? Can we eat these, eventually, or should they just be thrown away?

Consider the lowly potato... now make it awesome.

1f2frfbf — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:01:58 -0800

Not necessarily my grandmother's potato salad... What are your tips, tricks and recipes for awesome potato salad? I'm a reasonably experienced and equipped chef, I'm open to vegan, vegetarian and meat options.
Kind of previously.

Knot a potato?

Toekneesan — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 08:29:11 -0800

GardenFilter: We just harvested some potatoes and came across these potato-like knot things. We found about five or six in a bed that hosted both potatoes and garlic, though they were found kinda far from the garlic and well under ground—at least four inches. What are they? Cut-up old potatoes, and babies from last year's harvest that we cellared, were what we seeded with. We grow organic and did get a slight case of the potato bug, but again, not sure it's relevant

Inside they have the consistency of a potato or a root. Didn't see them obviously attached to a plant. Thought about them being garlic heads but they seemed too deep when we found them, and they're more solid than a garlic seed head, unless it fused together.

I joked with my wife that maybe they're truffles, and while I really doubt that, I wouldn't rule out a fungus of some kind.

Anyone else ever find these?

One potato, two potato, three potato, more???

purpletangerine — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:25:55 -0800

What do I do with all these potatoes? I need recipes that keep, and/or storage tips for tons of small to medium sized potatoes. I recently bought a 5 pound bag of red potatoes, yay! potatoes for a month. Later that same day, my husband picked up our CSA bag, and I now have a total of about 7 pounds of small-med potatoes. Most of them are red, with a handful of yellow. I thought I'd make a nice soup... but it's so hot it just doesn't appeal to me right now. Can I go ahead and make the soup and freeze it? Should I just put them in a drawer and use as needed? They tend to sprout in the drawers in my kitchen; I know it's not a problem, but, I like to prevent it just so there's less spots to trim off.

How do I make BBQ flavoring for potato chips?

Caviar — Wed, 29 Apr 2009 18:14:50 -0800

How do I make BBQ flavoring for potato chips? I love BBQ flavor potato chips. I've recently acquired a deep fryer, and would like to take a stab at making my own. I realize that every brand will have a slightly different formulation, yet there's something instantly recognizable as "BBQ chip seasoning".

The "Dirty" brand chips are pretty good, though not perfect. They all seem to be some variation on onion powder, paprika, salt, smoke flavoring and the like, but many of them also contain "spices", which is not helpful.

I think I tend to lean towards liking mesquite varieties better than other flavors.

I would like to do this without some of the more common processed ingredients, like maltodextrin.

Anyone have an actual recipe I can start from?

Not sweet potatoes. Potatoes that are sweet.

Orinda — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 20:10:09 -0800

Is there anything palatable I can cook to use up potatoes that have turned sweet while stored in the fridge? Last summer I bought a bagful of small, white potatoes at my local farmers' market and I stored them in the lower produce bin of my fridge (a mistake I won't make again). A few weeks ago I boiled and mashed some of them. Contrary to O9scar and Cook's Illustrated, I found that the potatoes had a distinct sweet taste. The mash was edible but strange-tasting.

Is there any conventional (or unconventional) wisdom on how to use up potatoes that have turned sweet? They're in perfect shape otherwise, with no green skin, no sprouts, no rot. I hate to throw them out. So far my best guesses are that they might be suitable for making needhams or latkes but then again, the presumably low starch content of the potatoes (whose starch has partially converted to sugar) might make them unsuitable even for those uses.

Ideas, anyone?

Latkes sound awesome!

Mastercheddaar — Tue, 23 Dec 2008 07:45:42 -0800

Good Latke recipes or any helpful hints in general? I have to be honest, I am not Jewish but Catholic. Why would I want to make Latkes then you ask? This question got me interested. I was helping with the menu planning and we needed something warm and crunchy. I figured that I could try and make something special, some different, something that would make the in-laws think "Why are there latkes at a traditional Christmas dinner?!?!?" My only problem is that I have no idea how to make them. Sure I did a little google fu but it seems that a lot can go wrong with this simple dish. Could I please get some tips, hints, recipes, suggested wines to help me bring a little cultural diversity to the dinner table this year?

One potato, two potato, Mr Potato Head

le morte de bea arthur — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 04:38:28 -0800

Help me pick a potato. This year my sister gave me a nice potato barrel for my birthday. And I have a few unused plastic bins that I can repurpose for my first potato-growing experiments.

I have some Maris Piper seed potatoes, and I'm planning on getting some Anya spuds, because they're lovely.

So what other varieties should I consider? I'm looking for something tasty, versatile, and with a reasonable yield.

Where can I find light weight potatoes made of foam/plastic/etc?

Seeba — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 12:42:32 -0800

Where can I find light weight potatoes made of foam/plastic/etc? I am looking to find potatoes made of a light-weight material (obviously not for consumption) so that I can mail what looks like a "five pound bag of potatoes" and not get hammered with shipping costs.

I'm in the Houston area, and don't mind using the internet.
Thank you.

po-tay-to, po-tah-to

kidsleepy — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 07:37:20 -0800

Pimp my potato soup! I've successfully managed to make potato soup. It's yummy, but the most basic recipe I could find: potatoes, onions, salt, pepper, water, and a little bit of milk. What are your favorite potato soup variations? Cheese, spices, vegetables, and/or weird ingredients welcome!

French fries and cooking with oil on the range

zeek321 — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:25:04 -0800

French fries on stove top because my oven is broken? I don't want to die. I have maybe three cups of olive oil, though I'd prefer not to use too much of it. (Can I fry but not deeeep fry?) I have a bag of frozen french fries. I have a small-to-medium dutch oven with a lid. I have a stove top. I have a plastic spoon and hardwood spatula thingy.

I have a tendency to burn and maim myself in the kitchen. Please help me make this a happy story.

Do I need additional tools?

What is a reasonable sequence of steps to minimize spattering and potential for horrific accidents?

(google--skillet french fries, stove top french fries, range french fries+safety--was not too helpful, and had no tips to avoid oil splattered into my eyes and death)

I need a kumara fix

iguanapolitico — Sat, 26 Apr 2008 16:50:03 -0800

Is there a place in the US to buy kumara? I enjoyed many kumara dishes while vacationing in New Zealand. They are the yummiest variety of potato I've ever tasted. But you aren't allowed to bring such items back to the States. Is there a legal kumara outlet anywhere? If I could get my hands on some, I could grow them myself. Anyone?

I can't believe I'm asking a question about Tater Mitts.

beaucoupkevin — Wed, 09 Jan 2008 12:13:14 -0800

Do Tater Mitts work? Yes, I love mashed potatoes. No, I am not joking. Yes, I'm generally very skeptical of infomercials. (And yes, I know it's better to leave the skins on, but the person I live with hates that with an unbelievable passion.)

I want paprika potato chips!

edjusted — Thu, 17 May 2007 11:03:42 -0800

Paprika chips: are these available in the U.S.? I was in Europe last year and it seemed like every country had paprika potato chips from different brands (even Pringles). I can't seem to find any store/brand in the U.S. that has these. They're so good! Yeah there...I just used my ask mefi question on potato chips.

Butch Cassidy and the Spuddance Kid

idiotfactory — Mon, 14 May 2007 11:56:10 -0800

Hey Mouse Potatoes! What does this tshirt mean? I saw someone wearing a t-shirt over the weekend that I can't figure out. Basically it boils down to an outlaw potato "holding-up" three other potatoes. I drew a picture of it on an online sketchboard so all of you visual types can see what I am talking about.

Potato Chip Bags - Ziploc?

tdabbott — Tue, 08 May 2007 16:42:02 -0800

[ObviousFilter?] Why haven't potato chip bags adopted Ziploc-type seals? Chip-clips are just "ok," and yet I see every other fresh product adopting the Ziploc-type seals. Is this a conspiracy to make my chips go stale (aka inedible) sooner?

Fried whole potato, anyone?

JABof72 — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 11:51:32 -0800

A neighbor was telling me of a restaurant in Missouri, whose "baked" potatoes were very popular. Turns out they're deep fried. Has anyone tried such a tuber, and what did you think?

sprouted potatoes

reklaw — Fri, 21 Jul 2006 06:50:51 -0800

So I bought this big (5 kg) sack of cheap potatoes, ate a few, and then left them for a few days. When I looked at them today, they'd all grown little green sprouts. If I remove the sprouts, are these potatoes safe to eat? I tried Google, but answers seemed to range from "throw them away" through to "it won't kill you" and "it's fine if you remove the sprouts". So will I be alright?

Let's Call The Whole Thing Off

Jon Mitchell — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 12:42:58 -0800

Which accent or dialect commonly pronounces "pot-tay-to" as "poh-tah-to"? Yes, exactly like in the song "Let's Call The Whole Thing Off". I say "to-mah-to", all Canadians and Americans I've met say "to-may-to", but I pronounce "po-tay-to" in exactly the same way, and, thinking about it, I have never heard anyone say "po-tah-to" outside of that song. Not once.

Is it just a conceit for the song?

What's funny about potatoes?

interrobang — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 14:01:40 -0800

What is funny and/or interesting about potatoes? I've been given the opportunity to draw a weekly strip for a magazine with a very limited audience: potato farmers.

The obvious thing to do would be to make a strip about a potato and his adventures. So I'm not going to do that. Off the top of my head, I think the adventures of some sort of personified blight might be more interesting, though that could change.

The thing seems to be completely open—I just need to make a strip that would "give a potato farmer a chuckle". I need to learn about potatoes, I guess; probably the only way to make something that's funny about potatoes is to know a lot about them.

So, does anyone know any interesting facts about potatoes, or little bits of interesting trivia?

Is the SlingBox crap?

keep it tight — Thu, 01 Jun 2006 05:21:22 -0800

Has anyone had any experience with the Sling Box? I heard about this device any was curious in anyone had any real world experiences with it....

Thanks.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?type=product&id=1142290455625

Looking for a Japanese GIF

fire&wings — Sun, 06 Nov 2005 18:15:56 -0800

Japanese animated gif search filter... Trying to find an animated gif I once saw. It was on a Japanese website - possibly linked from Metafilter - that was some sort of meme back in the day. Maybe in the past 2-3 years. Possibly a site about cat helmets/headdresses.

It was a transparent gif featuring a line drawn cartoon. It was a beige colour and featured a potato, or potato shaped thing running down the street towards the viewer, cars passed at one point, and it "spoke" as Japanese (Chinese?) symbols appeared as if in a speech bubble. It lasted maybe 15 seconds and seemed to have a storyline, and it had an intoxicatingly happy vibe about it.

If anyone knows what I am talking about, do reply. Extra points for anyone that just posts the damn thing in the thread as their answer.

That boils?

mzurer — Mon, 19 Sep 2005 14:32:13 -0800

Has anyone here ever eaten a potato boiled in rosin? Does that taste good? It's in the Joy of Cooking, apparently vestigial from a time when twenty gallons of boiling rosin would not be considered unusual.

Potatoes blowing up

dpcoffin — Sat, 02 Apr 2005 11:58:36 -0800

We can't seem to keep our baked potatoes from bursting in the oven in our new rental. White or sweet, always poked with forks, or even cut in half, inevitably bits of the potato wind up all over the side walls. What's the matter with our oven?

Slicing and Dicing Mashed Potatoes

adrober — Sun, 02 Jan 2005 14:55:12 -0800

If you were a food scientist, and a chef at a restaurant handed you a bowl of mashed potatoes and challenged you to figure out how many potatoes were in there and what kind of potatoes they were, how would you go about it? (Bonus if you can do it without leaving the restaurant.)