Page 119 - YC Cooking School

Mastering Meat 2

yuppiechef.com/cooking-school.htm

Mashed potato troubleshooting guide

Mashed potato too lumpy?
The cream and butter should be heated before they’re added to the potato
mixture. Cold cream and butter will slow down the cooking process and give you
lumpy mash - definitely not ideal.
Mashed potato undercooked?
A simple test to check for doneness when cooking potatoes is to pierce the

potato with a knife. If the potato slips off the knife easily, your potatoes are
ready. Here’s a helpful rule of thumb when cooking vegetables: If it grows
underground, start by cooking it in a pot of cold water. If it grows above the
ground, it’s best to cook it in a pot of water that’s already hot. By this rule then,
start cooking your potatoes in cold water – if you put them straight into a pot of
boiling water, they’ll cook unevenly.
Mashed potato too runny?
It’s important to work all the lumps out of your mash, but don’t overdo it. You
can mash it by hand with a masher or you can use a vegetable mill, but avoid a
food processor at all costs. This will overwork the starch and you’ll end up with

mash that has the consistency of sloppy wood glue.

Learn to cook online at learn.yuppiechef.com

1/1