NOW CLOSED: Talk to us about potatoes! What's your best potato based recipe? Share your top tatty tips to win a £100 Sainsbury voucher

[AnnMumsnet]

Tonight on BBC 2 at 8pm the "Great British Food Revival" is talking about potatoes and with this in mind Potato Council would like to hear about your best tips for cooking with potatoes and recipes featuring potatoes and to then include them on their Mumsnet hub (coming soon). In case you didn't know: "Potato Council is part of the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board working on behalf of British potato growers and purchasers to promote potatoes. We are funded through a statutory levy on 3,000 potato growers and potato trade purchasers and we aim to support the British potato industry."

Potato Council say that potatoes are "low in calories, they're naturally fat-free, bursting with vitamins and minerals, contain absolutely no cholesterol and when served with their skins are a great source of fibre"

They are going to be having a special page on Mumsnet soon and would love to feature some of your own recipes and tips for cooking for the family (and yourself) using potatoes.

Please share them here - everyone who adds tip or recipe to this thread will be entered into a prize draw where one lucky winner will win a £100 Sainsbury's voucher.

Many thanks and good luck

MNHQ

[ShatnersBassoon]

If you've made a chilli or other spicy sauce too spicy, put a couple of raw potatoes in the sauce and leave cooking for half an hour or so. The potatoes magically tone down the heat. I don't know how, but I've tried it and it works

[TragicallyHip]

Would you peel the potato first ShatnersBassoon?

[ShatnersBassoon]

Yes, sorry, I peeled the spuds. I don't know if they absorb the spiciness, or if they release something neutralising into the sauce.

[going]

My kids love wedges. I just chop the potatoes into wedges, spray on some loive oil and bake at 200 for about 35 mins.

[moonbells]

hmm having to read through these to see if anyone's pipped me to my favourite recipes.

But, having a German MIL, there are always lots of potato dishes in the house and of course I had to learn a few...

Kartoffel kloesse
Bit fiddly and do not work if you accidentally peel the potatoes! The idea is to keep the flesh as dry as possible. Floury potatoes a necessity. But they freeze really well once cooked, so I make in huge batches.
Managed to impress MIL with this one - she'd never made them!

Easiest one - Bratkartoffeln which is basically leftover potatoes (not mashed ones - they get turned into bubble and squeak!) cut into cubes and fried with onions, cubed sausage, bacon, anything else you find lying about that might have come off a pig, mushrooms, and finally a beaten egg. Eat for breakfast!

I grow my own salad and multicoloured potatoes. They're great - if you want fantastically tasty potatoes this summer, now is the time to think about getting a bag of seed potatoes and planting them. It can be done in an old compost bag (plant tubers in twos or threes, if bag big enough) with the edges folded down and a 6"/15cm layer of compost. Make some holes in the bottom so there is no waterlogging. As the plants grow, add more compost and roll the sides up. This will protect them from frost (if it's going to be frosty, cover any foliage completely with compost!) and encourage the side roots on which potatoes form. Keep going until the bag is full then leave plant to grow. Feed/water regularly. When the plants flower, stick a hand in and see if you can find some potatoes! Only pull out the largest ones; the plants will grow more if their roots aren't too disturbed.

[JulesJules]

I love potatoes, although tragically, since the first time I was pregnant, I can't eat mashed potatoes (which I love) as it makes me throw up. (Can't drink wine except fizzy stuff either. If only I'd known beforehand, eh?)

Anyway, lots of other lovely ways to have them.

I like baking small new potatoes in the oven with olive oil, garlic, sea salt and rosemary.

I love potato bakes, classic potato Dauphinoise - thinly sliced potato, garlic and onion, layered in a gratin dish with butter, cream and seasoning, bit of cheese on top and bake.

Or potato and leek bake - layers of thinly sliced potato and thinly sliced leeks with a layer of grated cheese in the middle, season with salt and pepper as you go. Finish with a layer of potato slices, grated cheese and a couple of knobs of butter on top, bake for about an hour.

Spicy spinach & potato bake - fry onion, add spices eg cumin, coriander, nutmeg, paprika, add spinach (I use fresh or tinned - rinsed and well drained. I find frozen spinach is a bit wet, although it does have a better colour than tinned) Layer in a gratin dish with thinly sliced potato. Beat a couple of eggs, add a bit of milk, season, pour over. Top with grated cheese and bake.

[Guadalupe]

Fried potatoes with goast cheese, red onion and thyme.

Boil some cubed potatoes until almost cooked. Fry loads of red onion, garlic and thyme in a pan then add potatoes and fry until crispy. Then add chunks of goats cheese, I use the small ones with a rind and stir it through on quite a high heat. It will look a mess for a minute and stick to the bottom but as you keep turning it through it makes a delicious crispy coating over the potatoes with gooey bits underneath.

Serve with crisp green salad and a big glass of red wine. Absolutely fattening delicious.

[JulesJules]

Oh and potato wedges! I never peel the potatoes, just cut into wedges, put in a roasting tin with olive oil, salt and pepper, smoked paprika and thyme. Bake 45 mins or so.

[TaffetasWnakyCoatheadJumpsuit]

For waxy salad/new potatoes

A good few handfuls of smallish, waxy potatoes
Salt for boiling

Cook potatoes in boiling salted water with skins on.
Peel skins off when still hot, then toss whilst steaming in:

Fresh dill, chopped
Fresh sorrel, chopped
Extra virgin olive oil
Splash of sherry vinegar
Handful of finely chopped shallots or spring onions
Salt flakes
Black pepper, freshly ground

THE freshest most delicious non claggy potato salad there is. Serve still warm or cold.

[jimswifein1964]

Not a culinary masterpiece, but here's a non-brainer that we love:

baked spuds
scoop out and mix with baked beans
put back in
top with half-fried bacon (quorn bacon in our case!)
grill till crispy
top with a fried egg and some mushrooms

Ta da

[prettybird]

Whenever boiling waxy/salad/new potatoes, always cook double what you need.

The following day, microwave the leftover potatoes for about a minute (half any larger potatoes before you do - the cut sides absorb the dressing nicely) in a bowl covered with a plate/cling film.

Pour on a slosh of olive oil and a splash of balsamic vinegar. Snip over some chives. Srinkle with some sea salt. Mix. Voila - a lovely easy annd tasty warm potato salad :)

[prettybird]

Taffet x-posted - but great minds etc etc :)

The only difference is that I wouldn't bother peeling them as I like the skin (or is it just that I'm lazy ?)

[TaffetasWnakyCoatheadJumpsuit]

pretty -

I like the skin too, but do find they suck up more of the oil/vinegar/other flavours without the skin. This only works if they are hot tho

[AlmaMartyr]

Wow, some yummy recipes on here already! I love potatoes, one of my favourite foods. I stopped eating them in my first trimesters during pregnancy so that I wouldn't go off them (happened with lots of other food!)

I make gnocchi too, but tend to add some pumpkin puree (either homemade or from a tin) to have pumpkin gnocchi which are also yummy.

I make all my own chips by cutting up potatoes, tossing them in a freezer bag with some olive oil and whatever seasoning I fancy and then roasting them in the oven. Delicious and they don't take much longer than oven chips.

I followed a Nigel Slater tip a while back and fried some leftover roasties in some mayonnaise. Obviously deeply unhealthy but very delicious.

[prettybird]

That's why I recommend halving the larger ones - so you have a cut side to absorb the flavours :) Actually, come to think of it, I cut even quite small potatoes in half (but not the tiddlers)

[Albrecht]

Had this for lunch the other day - lovely and warming but lots of tasty refreshing stuff too.

Stick some potatoes in the microwave - I use any ones I've got even if they aren't 'baking' potatoes.

Meanwhile chop some tomatoes, avocado, spring onion, fresh parsley, squeeze of lemon, whatever you've got hanging around...

Chop potatoes roughly and dump the other stuff on top. Mmmmmmmm.

[whomovedmychocolate]

Anya potatoes are the dogs wotsits. I boil them for six minutes (it's all the need they are quite small) in salted water, and then toss them with olive oil and caramelised onion chutney, then whack them in a hot oven for 20 minutes. The go achingly soft and luscious and make me drool.

Perfect cold too on summer picnics (as if there are every any left over!)

[BitterAndTwistedChoreDodger]

Bake potatoes for 1 hour on low heat

Remove flesh and mix with bacon, creme fraiche and grated mature cheddar

return mixture to potato skins and bung back in the oven for 10 - 20 minutes.

Simple is best.

[gingercat12]

Layered potato

Cook and then slice potatoes
Hardboil and then slice eggs
Get some chorizo and slice them too
Butter a nice big pyrex and put one layer of potatoes at the bottom. The next layer should be eggs, and then come the chorizo. Continue until pyrex is full.
Pour some sour cream on the top, and then cover with some breadcrumbs (it'll soak up the fat).
Cook for 3/4 of an hour, then grill the top.

Enjoy.

[Bicnod]

Leek and potato soup.

dab butter
1 tbsp olive oil
4 large leeks (chopped)
2 potatoes (peeled and chopped)
1 onion (chopped)
600ml stock
500ml milk

Melt butter and oil in saucepan. Add leeks, potato and onion. Stir, then cover with lid and let veg sweat on low heat until soft. Add stock and milk and bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20-25 mins until veg fully cooked. Blend, season and serve.

YUM

[paulaplumpbottom]

Loaded potato skins is one of our favourite family treats.

Jacket Potatos
Sour cream
Grated cheddar
Bacon

Bake your potatos until the skin is lovely and crispy. Scoop out most of the potato leaving about half and inch in the bottoms. Fry bacon and crumble into bits. Scatter skins with cheddar and bacon. Grill for 5 to ten minutes or until cheddar is melted. Top with a scoop of sour cream and serve hot!

[trice]

I like an egg in a baked potato.Cut - slightly hollow - bit of butter and a raw egg then back in the oven until the white is set.

I also love using left over baked potatoes as rösti the next day. Just discard skin grate and fry with a bit of butter pepper and salt. serve with egg and bacon and pickles and pretend that you are up a mountain.

And I love aligot - Tomme cheese melted into mashed potatoes, with garlic and beaten smooth.

[onadietcokebreak]

You can cook jacket potatoes in a slow cooker. Stab them through and leave in all day.

The taste really comes through although they do look a little odd.

[ilovemydogandMrObama]

Jersey Royals with a bit of olive oil, flat leaf parsley, sea salt, half a lemon plus rind and a whole red chilli.

[RedNoise]

stick them in the microwave for a few minutes.

Scoop out the middle from the jackets and put in a bowl. Add cheese, bacon, cream and butter and mash.

Put back in jackets then cover in foil.

Stick in the oven for an hour,

YUM