Potatoes, Boiled
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Peel the potatoes and remove the eyes.
Wash the potatoes in cold water.
Boil
Bring 1 pint of water to a boil and add 1 teaspoon of salt.
Add the potatoes to the boiling water, ensuring they are fully covered.
Cover the kettle and boil for 20 minutes, checking for doneness with a fork.
Once nearly done, pour off the water. Leave the lid slightly open.
Dry
Shake the potatoes gently a few times to release steam until they are dry.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Provide the starchy body of the dish, which softens evenly when fully submerged in boiling water.
- Salt
- Seasons the boiling water so the potatoes absorb a little flavour as they cook.
The step that matters
Pour off the water and let the potatoes steam dry. Leaving surface water on cooked potatoes makes them soggy and watery. Venting the lid lets steam escape, so the potatoes dry and hold their texture.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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