Two-Ingredient Mashed Potatoes

Two-Ingredient Mashed Potatoes
Romulo Yanes for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Vivian Lui.
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(675)
Comments
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These weeknight mashed potatoes taste purely like potato. The secret? Starchy water. Save some of it after you boil the potatoes, and after mashing, stir it back in, a tablespoon at a time, until they come together. Then, add with a little sour cream for tang. It's that easy — and creamy and light. Take it from Ma Ingalls of “Little House on the Prairie” fame: “There was no milk, but Ma said, ‘Leave a very little of the boiling water in, and after you mash them beat them extra hard with the big spoon.’ The potatoes turned out white and fluffy.”

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings
  • 2pounds russet potatoes
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • ¼cup sour cream or full-fat Greek yogurt
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

209 calories; 3 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 0 grams polyunsaturated fat; 42 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 2 grams sugars; 5 grams protein; 563 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Peel the potatoes and cut them into 1-inch pieces. Put them in a large saucepan, add 2 tablespoons salt, and cover them by 1 inch of cold water.

  2. Step 2

    Bring to a boil over high heat, reduce to medium and let cook until piercing with a fork yields no resistance, about 10 minutes.

  3. Step 3

    Reserve 1 cup of the cooking water, then drain the potatoes and return them to the pot. Mash the potatoes over low heat using a potato masher or wooden spoon until completely mashed.

  4. Step 4

    Vigorously stir in the reserved potato water, adding 1 tablespoon at a time until the potatoes are smooth and come together (you will use about ½ cup). Stir in the sour cream, then season to taste with salt and pepper.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
675 user ratings
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Comments

I have long made mashed potatoes by cooking the potatoes in a minimal amount of water --after cutting them in reasonably small chunks. The overall cooking time is much shorter, and then the small amount of water remaining can be drained, the potatoes mashed, and then the water added back in with yogurt (or sometimes even just milk). Faster, fewer water-soluble nutrients dumped down the drain, and very easily done. Glad to see you are posting this approach!

Add granulated garlic to taste to the boiling water/potatoes for a more satisfying depth of flavor.

I've been doing something similar since the 1960s, when I took a Cooperative Extension class for beginning cooks. Before I drain the potato water, I measure out the amount I'll need and stir powdered dry milk into it, then mash the potatoes with that. That way you not only get nutrients from the milk but some of the nutrients that have cooked out of the potatoes and otherwise been thrown away. But I do add butter.....

Cooked recipe as written, even peeling the potatoes, which I almost never do. Had to cook the potatoes at least five minutes more than recipe. After I smashed the potatoes, added the full fat plain Greek yogurt, and added about 1/2 cup of the saved potato water, I had two responses: it had waaay too much salt! Ack! And the result of the yogurt and added potato water did not give me, as it gave others a "potato-y" taste, it just tasted thin, and too salty. I added unsalted butter - about 3 T - which gave it a little creaminess. I will not try this again.

Had no sour cream or full fat Greek yogurt, but 3 tablespoons nonfat Greek yogurt plus 1 tablespoon whipping cream worked perfectly.

What a pleasant surprise this is. Skeptics, give it a shot.

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