# Novel Way to Make Smashed Spuds



## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 21, 2015)

I have a unique way of making mashed potatoes that leaves me with richer flavor. 
Background: when mashed potatoes are made from boiled potatoes, you lose some of flavor as the skin is removed, and the water leeches away some of the potato flesh flavor.  Plus, nutrients are lost.  So, I was in search of a better mashed potato.

I know what you're thinking, just mash them with the skins on.  But here's the problem with that, I like my mashed potato creamy smooth, and buttery.  Mashed potatoes with the skins on just doesn't seem liek the best method to me.

Here's my solution, and it helps with portion control too:
Bake, or microwave one medium potato for each person.  Cut the cooked potato in half, sideways.  Hold hot spud half with a clean pot holder.  Stab little holes through the flesh, but not through the skin.  Lightly salt the potato flesh if you must, but you don't really need to.  Now put a tsp. of real butter on the flesh and stab into the potato until it's absorbed.  Slowly place a tbs. of milk on top of the potato flesh until it sinks in.  Carefully mix inside the skin with the fork.  Add a little more milk if required.  REpeat with the 2nd half of the potato.

This mashed potato technique gives you silky-smooth mashed potato with rich flavor, plus you get to eat the yummy and nutritions potato skin afterward, or remove the potato flesh and fill the skin with something good and enjoy.

This technique seems like a lot of work.  However, once you try it, you will find that the end result is worth it, and the time you spend would have taken even more time peeling, boiling, draining, and mashing, and won't be as tasty or as nutritious.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Andy M. (May 21, 2015)

Chief, you have too much time on your hands.


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## Dawgluver (May 21, 2015)

This sounds delish, Chief, however, there's a whole lotta stabbing going on.  Must be your military or martial arts training!


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 21, 2015)

Dawgluver said:


> This sounds delish, Chief, however, there's a whole lotta stabbing going on.  Must be your military or martial arts training!




It first surfaced as a child at my Grandpa's home.  Grandpa was the head cook there and boiled spuds was part of almost every meal.  On day I wanted smashed spuds and so put butter on my potatoes and mashed it in.  Then I poured a little milk on them and turned them into mashed potatoes on my plate.  I think I was about ten years old then.

The smashed spuds in the skin was something similar, a baked potato, skin on, a hunger for mashed potatoes, a little butter (ok, a significant amount of butter), a bit of milk, and voila, I had my mashed potatoes.  And yes, you're right, people looked at me funny.  But my mashed potatoes were some of the tastiest I'd ever eaten.  And so a new technique was born, in a cafeteria break room.

Who says you can't get good food in a cafeteria, if you're willing to think outside the box, maybe outside the planet?

And yes, I know I'm a bit off, and very proud of it.  While others are satisfied with ho-hum, I want excellence whenever I can get it.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 21, 2015)

Andy M. said:


> Chief, you have too much time on your hands.



In my cookbook, right on the cover, I state "Turn ordinary into extraordinary."
Never settle, my friend.  Life is too short to settle.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Addie (May 22, 2015)

I just happen to be one of the folks who like lumpy potatoes. There is a divey diner in Boston near South Station. They serve nice lumpy potatoes. They have plenty of butter and cream. And plenty of lumps. Gee, if they ever served perfect mashed potatoes, folks would think that they had sold the diner and r ise up in protest!


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## creative (May 22, 2015)

Addie said:


> I just happen to be one of the folks who like lumpy potatoes. There is a divey diner in Boston near South Station. They serve nice lumpy potatoes. They have plenty of butter and cream. And plenty of lumps. Gee, if they ever served perfect mashed potatoes, folks would think that they had sold the diner and r ise up in protest!


Ah...and now, of course, there are "crushed potatoes"!


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 22, 2015)

creative said:


> Ah...and now, of course, there are "crushed potatoes"!



Isn't that what a potato masher, and a ricer, and a fork all do to a potato?

I like smashed spuds because it's such an informal, and efficient name, only two syllables.  Somehow, it conjures the idea of a wild spirit, unwilling to bend to every little societal rule, someone who isn't snobbish, and just wants to call it what it is.  It's like something a couple of teenage boys would say when camping on a little island, away from everyone.  It makes me think of someone who is a little rough around the edges, but a good guy or gal.

In other words, I like Huck Fin better than I like Tom Sawyer.  Tom is cool, but Huck is cooler.  Just MHO.  I bet Huck would have made smashed spuds in the skin, like I do.

The only people Huck didn't like were snobs, charlatans, and bullies.  He was a great guy.

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## creative (May 22, 2015)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> Isn't that what a potato masher, and a ricer, and a fork all do to a potato?


Well it's a question of degree.  I am sure you are familiar with lightly crushed potato, i.e. done with a fork, still retaining its lumpy appearance (more than mush).  A ricer is for _seriously_ smooth mash!


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (May 23, 2015)

I have found that if you boil or bake potatoes whole, then press them through a potato ricer, the potato comes out the bottom and the skin is left in the ricer. Just remove the skin to the compost container and continue to march.


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## msmofet (May 23, 2015)

I scrub my potatoes, cut in half long ways, bake till tator is soft inside and cut side is nice and crispy. Peel off the crisp crunchy top "potato chip" then using fork "mash" soft flesh with ground sea salt and pepper, butter and sour cream. If thin pick up and eat smooth mashed tators in crispy skin "cup". If thick eat mashed out then eat crispy skin.​


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## Addie (May 23, 2015)

Sir_Loin_of_Beef said:


> I have found that if you boil or bake potatoes whole, then press them through a potato ricer, the potato comes out the bottom and the skin is left in the ricer. Just remove the skin to the compost container and continue to march.



If I bake that potato, and then put the potato through the ricer, the last thing I am going to do is toss the skin into the compost pile. I am going to cover that baby with salt, pepper and butter. Then it goes into my tummy! Plenty of favor and nutrients left in that baby.


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## taxlady (May 23, 2015)

Addie said:


> If I bake that potato, and then put the potato through the ricer, the last thing I am going to do is toss the skin into the compost pile. I am going to cover that baby with salt, pepper and butter. Then it goes into my tummy! Plenty of favor and nutrients left in that baby.


Addie, the skin mostly just stays at the bottom of the ricer, with almost no potato left on it. I can't imagine scraping that out of the bottom of the ricer to eat.


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## Caslon (May 24, 2015)

Sir_Loin_of_Beef said:


> I have found that if you boil or bake potatoes whole, then press them through a potato ricer, the potato comes out the bottom and the skin is left in the ricer. Just remove the skin to the compost container and continue to march.



Yes, I use that method when, after boiling potatoes, I discover there's no milk in the fridge.


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## taxlady (May 24, 2015)

If the potatoes were peeled or well scrubbed when you boiled them, you can use the potato cooking water to make your mashed potatoes.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 24, 2015)

taxlady said:


> If the potatoes were peeled or well scrubbed when you boiled them, you can use the potato cooking water to make your mashed potatoes.



"Your Majesty, they have no milk to make their mashed potatoes."

"Then let them use potato cooking water!"

Taxlady was taken to the infamous tower to be beheaded.  But she had other ideas.  The guards wondered why she walked so stiff-legged up the stairwell.  When locked in her damp and dank quarters to await her execution, she pulled from her left pantleg a bow, complete with a string.  From the other pantleg she removed a cable and arrow.  After securing the cable to the arrow, she loosed the feathered and tethered shaft straight and true through the fist sized window to a sturdy lads left thigh, and used the improvised zip-line to escape to a new and amazing place, way up in the Great White North, where you just don't eat that yellow snow.

Lest you wonder how Taxy fit through the fist sized window, I can't tell you.  You have to ask Taxy.  It's her story.  Ahhhahahaha.

Thank you, thank you.  Just throw money.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Cooking Goddess (May 24, 2015)

Chief Longwind Of The North said:


> Isn't that what a potato masher, and a ricer, and a fork all do to a potato?...


Crushed, or crashed, potatoes are not a mashed potato. The whole potato is par-boiled, crushed using something heavy (think of your CI skillet), and then seasoned and baked. And eaten. And delicious.


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## Caslon (May 24, 2015)

I've learned recently to keep powdered forms of milk in the cabinet for just such a "doh!".


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## taxlady (May 24, 2015)

Caslon said:


> I've learned recently to keep powdered forms of milk in the cabinet for just such a "doh!".


That's a good idea. I checked out powdered milk at the grocery store a while back. It's not easy to find anymore. It's also expensive. I couldn't make myself spend that much on powdered milk. I remember when skim milk powder was the cheap way to have milk. I should get over that. It's convenient stuff.


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## Addie (May 24, 2015)

taxlady said:


> That's a good idea. I checked out powdered milk at the grocery store a while back. It's not easy to find anymore. It's also expensive. I couldn't make myself spend that much on powdered milk. I remember when skim milk powder was the cheap way to have milk. I should get over that. It's convenient stuff.



When the kids were small, going through milk was very easy to do in just one meal. So unbeknownst to them, I started to cut the milk with powdered milk. They were still getting their full allotment of milk, just more of it. Before I started to do that, they would want to grab a glass of milk and I would have to tell them just a small glass. Once I started to add the powdered, they could have all they wanted. To this day, they still do not know. And I am not telling them. And of course it did help cut down on the grocery bill. I also kept a half gallon glass pitcher of it for mashed taters, white sauce, mac and cheese, and other dishes that called for milk. I talk the kids that was skim milk. And it was the truth. Heaven help if they ever wanted any of that.


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## Sir_Loin_of_Beef (May 24, 2015)

Caslon said:


> Yes, I use that method when, after boiling potatoes, I discover there's no milk in the fridge.


 
Mashed potatoes without butter and milk:

* Garlic Mashed Potatoes*​*Ingredients:*

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]2 pounds of new potatoes[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]¼ cup pecorino cheese, grated [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]2 tsp garlic, minced[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]4 Tbs Extra Virgin olive oil [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif][/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]2 Tbs vegetable broth[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Salt and ground black pepper[/FONT]
*Instructions:*

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Place the potatoes in a large pot and add enough water to cover them by 2 inches. Boil the potatoes for about 15 minutes, until a paring knife inserted into a potato meets no resistance. Drain the potatoes, then squeeze them through a potato ricer into a bowl, discarding the skin.[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Add the garlic, grated cheese, olive oil and broth to the potatoes and stir until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste.[/FONT]


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## Addie (May 24, 2015)

Sir_Loin_of_Beef said:


> Mashed potatoes without butter and milk:
> 
> * Garlic Mashed Potatoes*​*Ingredients:*
> 
> ...



One of the things I do when boiling potatoes or even pasta, is toss an unpeel clove of garlic (or even two or more, depends on size) into the cooking water. It flavors the potatoes or pasta without that raw taste of garlic. I also will toss a couple of cloves into the micro to kill that raw taste when I am using them to flavor olive oil for dipping. The cloves stay in the heated warm oil. 

Every so often I will get a bulb of garlic that is very strong. Eating raw garlic is not my favorite dish.


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## Caslon (May 24, 2015)

I have my big container of buttermilk powder.  It's good for another year according to the label. So what if I keep it a year after the date code.

Experts in the field (?) are now saying we can keep our foods way after the expiration date.  I've got containers of salad dressing that I should throw away according to the "Use by" date.  I'm ignoring that lately.


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## Dawgluver (May 24, 2015)

I found out too late that after I opened my buttermilk powder, it needs to be kept in the fridge! Mine was on top of the fridge in a basket for several years, along with the dried beans.  Who knew?


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## Caslon (May 24, 2015)

Dawgluver said:


> I found out too late that after I opened my buttermilk powder, it needs to be kept in the fridge!



 In ya go, plastic container of buttermilk powder.

Speaking of powdered procucts, I recently bought a container of Argo Corn Starch.  There was no expiration date on the label.  The label was falling off so I removed it.  Only then could I read the expiration date underneath that label!  I found out it was about expired.  How dare Argo print the expiration date on the container underneath  the paper label which happened to come loose!


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## Cheryl J (May 24, 2015)

Well that would be irritating, Caslon. Grrrr....

I just wrote powdered buttermilk on my shopping list.  I used to buy it all the time years ago, but somewhere along the line I forgot about it.  I know about the mixing of an acid into milk, but the powdered canister mix is easier.  I liked the flavor, too.


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## Chief Longwind Of The North (May 24, 2015)

Methinks this is no longer about different ways of smashing spuds.  Oh how guilty I am of hijacking threads.  Glad to see I'm not the only one.  I'm in very good company it seems.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North


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## Addie (May 24, 2015)

Caslon said:


> I have my big container of buttermilk powder.  It's good for another year according to the label. So what if I keep it a year after the date code.
> 
> Experts in the field (?) are now saying we can keep our foods way after the expiration date.  I've got containers of salad dressing that I should throw away according to the "Use by" date.  I'm ignoring that lately.



Caslon, many years ago housewives were raising a stink about some products going bad. They wanted a system of knowing when a food was about to turn on them. So the food industry came up with the system now in place. "Oh boy! We can increase our sales by giving them a short expiration date!" They got carried away when they started to expire date detergent. By then America's housewives were on to the game plan. They extended the expiration dates to a more reasonable date. And the expiration date for detergent came off the packages. Not all products require an expiration date. But they are there anyway. We as purchasers now don't trust any food product that doesn't have one. The only time you have to be really, really concerned is when you buy a canned good where the top of the can is swollen. If you find one on the shelf at your favorite store, turn it in to the manager immediately. And if you find one in your pantry, don't open it. Just get rid of it as fast as you can. 

Use your own judgment when it comes to expiration dates. With a little amount of intelligence, anyone can tell when a product has gone bad when   opened and takes a close look.


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## Caslon (May 24, 2015)

Printing the expiration date on the ARGO corn starch plastic container... under the label, there's something unfair/illegal about that. Only after the label peeled off was I able to see the date code printed on the container, and it was out of date...newly bought.


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