Anyone can cook potatoes! Perhaps. But there are always new tips and tricks that should not be withheld.
Peel the potatoes, cut them in half and put them in the pot - that's pretty much how everyone cooks their potatoes. But have you ever thought about which potatoes are particularly suitable for which dishes?
A basic distinction is made between boiled potatoes and boiled potatoes, depending on the type of preparation. The preparation ultimately also determines how many vitamins are retained in the potatoes (see nutritional values). The preparation of jacket potatoes is the most vitamin-friendly, the vitamin C is almost completely retained. With boiled potatoes, the loss is up to 30 percent.
There are different ways of cooking potatoes in supermarkets, for example waxy or floury. Potato dishes always turn out better if you choose the potatoes that are best suited for the preparation.
For mashed potatoes, soups or dumplings, floury varieties would be better, while waxy varieties would be more suitable for salads, fried potatoes or gratins.
Prepare boiled potatoes
Unlike boiled potatoes, boiled potatoes are peeled before cooking. Above all, the beginnings of germs, the so-called eyes and green areas must be thoroughly removed, because they contain the toxic substance solanine. You should always peel them shortly before preparation so that valuable ingredients are not unnecessarily lost. Then cut the peeled potatoes in half. If the potatoes are very large, you can quarter them.
The right cooking
» Tip 1:
Most people fill the pot with enough water so that all the potatoes are completely covered. But you don't have to. If you keep the lid closed while cooking, the tubers will also cook due to the steam produced. It is enough if the water in the empty saucepan is about two fingers high. If you're worried about burning the potatoes, you can add a little more water.
»Tip 2:
However, cooking with less water is much gentler because important vitamins are not lost as quickly. You can also buy a sieve insert and hang it in the pot. This also prevents the potatoes from burning.
» Tip 3:
As far as the amount of s alt is concerned, you should approach it very slowly. If something is overs alted, it can hardly be saved, but you can always spice it up. The potatoes are placed in the s alted water, which you then briefly boil. You can then turn the temperature down, the water should then just simmer.
After 20 minutes, pierce the potatoes with a kitchen knife to check if they are done. Typically, boiled potatoes take 20 to 30 minutes to cook.
Prepare jacket potatoes
Jacket potatoes are prepared with the skin on, so you have to wash the potatoes thoroughly under cold water. To remove stubborn dirt, we recommend using a vegetable brush. Green spots and eyes should also be cut away with this type of preparation.
The right cooking
Cooking the jacket potatoes is hardly any different from preparing the boiled potatoes. Again, only put a little water in the saucepan, provided you keep the lid closed while cooking. You should use a little more s alt with jacket potatoes, as they cook with their skins on. Otherwise proceed as with the boiled potatoes.