I love mashed potatoes. Actually, I love all potatoes; but I’m talking about mashed here. I find that I make mashed potatoes most often when I’m serving meat; consequently, I don’t add butter, milk or cream to the potatoes. Olive oil is my “go to” for a little healthy fat content. After that, I add some of the starchy water in which I boiled the potatoes and/or some non-dairy unflavored soy milk, oat milk or even coconut milk if you want a creamier, slightly coconut flavor. Flavoring is a matter of personal taste. Besides salt and pepper, I like to add fresh chives and/or parsley. I like the added flavor and the pop of green in the potatoes.
One more thing! People always ask if they should hand mash or put the potatoes in an electric blender. I choose hand mashing every time. An electric blender just turns the potatoes into glue. You’ll get the lightest mashed potatoes possible if you press the boiled potatoes through a ricer before mashing them. That process takes a little more time. I usually do my preliminary mash with a potato masher. It covers more area than a fork. After that, I use a fork to mash in the remaining ingredients. Enjoy!
For another potato recipe, click the link: Potato-Apple Galette
Note: I prefer Russet Potatoes for baking and stuffing and Yukon Golds for boiling and mashing. Also- there is the question of potato skin. My preference is to peel the potatoes before I boil them. Many people prefer to scrub the potato skin, boil the potatoes in the skin and then mash everything together. It’s up to you.
Prep time: 15 minutes after potatoes are boiled
Mashed Potatoes
By Published: February 27, 2017
Yield:
- 8-10 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 pounds Yukon Gold Potatoes peeled and quartered
- 1/4 cup olive oil add more if needed
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- bunch of fresh chives
Equipment
- saucepan
- slotted spoon
- mixing bowl
- potato masher
Directions
- Snip about 1/4 -1/3 cup of chives. In a pinch, you can use a fresh bottle of freeze-dried chives.
- Place potatoes in saucepan and cover with water. Add about 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil. Continue a low boil (not a simmer) until potatoes are soft. This should take about 20 minutes. Do not drain potatoes.
- Remove potatoes from water with a slotted spoon and place them in mixing bowl. Break them up with a potato masher. Add about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid to the potatoes and continue to mash. Pour in about 1/4 cup of olive oil. Mash again. Continue to add more cooking liquid /olive oil until you have reached the consistency you like. If you add soy/coconut/oat milk instead of cooking liquid, the potatoes will be richer and creamier. Taste potatoes. Add salt and freshly ground black pepper if desired. Mix well. Add the snipped chives and mix well. At this point, I like to use a fork so I'm sure all the ingredients are well blended. Keep tasting until you have the texture and flavor you want. Enjoy
