To Boil Potatoes
Ingredients
Directions
Boil
Select medium-sized potatoes of equal size and do not peel or cut them.
Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover them with cold water by about 1 inch.
Bring the water to a boil over moderate heat, then reduce to a simmer.
Cook until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a fork, about 15 minutes.
Dry and serve
Drain the water and let the saucepan sit by the fire with the lid off.
Cover the potatoes with a folded cloth or coarse flannel for a few minutes.
Optionally, sprinkle salt over the potatoes, cover them, and then squeeze them lightly in a dry cloth before peeling and serving.
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; keeping them whole in their skins helps them stay moist while cooking.
- Coarse sea salt
- Optional seasoning sprinkled on the potatoes to add flavour after cooking.
The step that matters
Simmer rather than boil hard. A vigorous boil can break the skins and split the potatoes before the centres are cooked. A gentle simmer cooks them evenly and keeps them intact.
“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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