How do you make fab, restaurant quality mashed-potatoes?

[Heated]

I can't believe I'm asking this but it must be a closely guarded culinary secret!!

How do you make your mashy-p airily light & smooth??? Mine were so heavy they could have sunk a battleship!

Mas, mash and mash and mash and mash - add dash of milk and mash more until forever - and if you are putting it on top of a pie - use a teaspoon and put it on bit by bit - honestly!!

Lots of good butter, some salt and pepper and a v good masher. Bit of cream/creme fraiche for special occasions.
Or get a potato ricer - def no more lumps!

Have you seen this thread?

HTH

ooh and a bit of parmesan and olive oil is good too!

Bit of cream

butter and lots of it

olive oil and butter, mash and mash, then a bit of cream or milk, then whip with a fork. salt and pepper.

get the right sort of potatoes, king edwards not new.

Oh yes, King Edwards are great. Maris Piper not bad either.

Boil until really soft (but watch it with KE's as they can boil away to nothing before you know it). Drain and leave in the pan to steam for a minute or two to dry out. Mash well with a little milk and butter. This should be easy if they are boiled well enough. Give them a good old beating with a wooden spoon over the heat. Bob's your uncle!

King edwards or maris pipers. Boil em till they start to 'collapse', drain, mash mash mash with butter and whole milk.
I tried them with olive oil last week and it just didn't seem right to me.

Thanks for this ladies, epecially the link and am off to the promised land, aka Lakeland, as soon as poss!!! Will get King Eds too.

Can't believe I'm so excited about a potato ricer!

Reasonable potatoes

Cooked for quite a long time

You don't need a good masher but you do need to mash energetically

A small amount of butter

A rather larger amount of single cream

Tiny bit of truffle oil for special occasions makes them super super good.

A metal masher works best as they don't bend away from the force of your stroke. But obviously dont use with non-stick.

Never use milk, always double cream.

once you are fed up with using the masher beat them with a wooden spoon

and warm the milk/cream before adding it too

Buy a potato ricer, you pop them in and push and it makes them really smooth and lump free without the goo you get from a blender. I bought mine at a local department store but I am sure if you google it you will find one. I used it instead of a mouli for DD when first weaning and it was great for all sorts of food.

Can I just add something re lakeland and milk - my friend has just designed a top to go on plastic milk bottles - like a flip lid - easy for kids to use - called a topster

Potato ricer followed by beating with an electric mixer. Warm the milk before you add it, and put in twice the anount of butter you first thought of.

Someone told me once the potatoes have been drained pop the pan and potatoes back on the heat for a few seconds, gentley shake the pan to get rid of any excess water. Have done this ever since, works a treat.

Right, adding double cream to the list.

I already warm the milk and butter but use any potatoes (maris piper tonight's disastrous effort) and mashed vigorously for about 3 minutes - obviously not long enough!

But thank you ladies, potato heaven & my family' undying gratitude just around the corner

If you have the right potatoes boiled for long enough you should only need to mash for around half a minute. And the beating with a wooden spoon bit is essential too.

To have the perfect mash you have to accompany it with really great sausages and gravy, IMO.