Boiled Potatoes
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Scrape the new potatoes instead of peeling them to retain nutrients.
If using old potatoes, pare them and soak in cold water for 4-5 hours before cooking.
Boil and dry
In a pot, add water and a small handful of salt, then bring to a boil.
Add the potatoes and boil until tender.
Drain the water and let the potatoes stand uncovered near the fire to dry.
For steaming, cover the pot with a coarse cloth and return it to the fire.
Remove from heat as soon as they start to crack or a fork easily pierces them.
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
- New potatoes
- Form the dish itself; their starch softens into a tender, floury texture when boiled.
The step that matters
Removing the potatoes from heat. Potatoes keep cooking from residual heat after the pot leaves the fire. Once they begin to crack or a fork pierces them easily, the starch is cooked through, and further time risks breaking them apart and turning them mushy.
“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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