# Tell me why I'm wrong about mashed potatoes. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 11, 2019, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384 "2019-06-11T17:28:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/21 "2019-06-11T18:27:51Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > It took years for me to convince the wife that mashed potatoes didn’t have to be silky smooth and light. “Light potatoes” is an oxymoron if ever there was one! :mad: ---
**Author:** ![sitchensis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sitchensis/32/4892_2.png) [@sitchensis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sitchensis)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/22 "2019-06-11T18:28:22Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > More for me at Thanksgiving. I love mashed potatoes with lots of butter and S&P, but this is just a waste of valuable space. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/23 "2019-06-11T18:36:07Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > If a potato preparation exists that needs serious discussion it’s cold potato salad, especially of the German variety. Not to quibble, but German potato salad is properly eaten warm, with lots of crumbly bacon bits on top. And it should be served alongside an assortment of _Würste_. Yum-O! :o ---
**Author:** ![UnwittingAmericans](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/d9b06d/32.png) [@UnwittingAmericans](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UnwittingAmericans)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/24 "2019-06-11T18:40:01Z")
Let’s see what you say when all your teeth are gone. ---
**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/25 "2019-06-11T18:41:03Z")
There are plenty of ways to make bad mashed potatoes, just as there are plenty of ways to make bad any potato dish. But good mashed potatoes are great with a number of dishes. My biggest problem in the US has been getting the right potatoes, I know the qualities of the varieties sold in bulk in Norway, but appearance is not a good way to find equivalents in the US with similar qualities. And you need the right type of potato for your dish, or it will not go well. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/26 "2019-06-11T18:41:15Z")
I think good mashed potatoes taste good on their own. The way my mom or her mom made them was great. And when I make the fake kind (with potato flakes), I make them good with chicken broth and other seasonings. Never do I rely on gravy or some other food to make them good. Even if I do use that stuff, it’s an addition. Fried potatoes of any kind are a different dish, and rely on the browning aspect to taste good. And a good browning takes either more effort or a lot more oil (as you have to deep fry them). And the types of foods it goes best with are different. I don’t know how to convince anyone, other than to say that there is no reason you should not be adding other things to the potatoes to make them good. Butter, milk, buttermilk, mayonnaise, sour creme, yougurt, creme fraich, pepper, salt, oil, broths, garlic, seasoning mixes, even more butter–any of it is good. Though, if you get the right potato, even just plain can also be good. They can be lumpy or perfectly mashed or even whipped. But, however you do it, everything needs to be perfectly mixed in. There’s so much you can do that will make them the star, without needing the crispiness of a good browned fried potato, nor without needing to make them into a potato pancake–though those are also really good. It’s like telling me that you should always eat fried eggs instead of scrambled. They’re different dishes. ---
**Author:** ![Die\_Capacitrix](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/die_capacitrix/32/9_2.png) [@Die\_Capacitrix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Die_Capacitrix)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/27 "2019-06-11T18:44:30Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > If a potato preparation exists that needs serious discussion it’s cold potato salad, especially of the German variety. I submit that the further a potato preparation moves away from mashed potatoes, the worse it gets. Mashed is simply the apex. If it’s German potato salad, it has to be hot with lots of lovely bacon and mustard. Regarding mashed, I prefer smashed. Leave the skin on. Wash ‘em, cube em’ and cook 'em. Add some warm milk and butter with some real garlic - not of that dried stuff. Smash it altogether and serve with meat loaf. Or, if someone else is cooking it, chicken-fried steak. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/28 "2019-06-11T18:45:32Z")
> [@Alpha\_Twit](#): > > And I’d be much happier with just the pre-mashed, boiled potato cubes. Toss with a bit of butter, salt, pepper and parsley, maybe a bit of parm and serve. Actually, I prefer the simple boiled cubes myself when eating things like roasted chicken. Don’t know why, I just do. But if I’m having fried chicken like Popeye or the Colonel makes, it’s mashed with gravy, all the way! ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/29 "2019-06-11T18:45:47Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Not to quibble, but German potato salad is properly eaten warm, with lots of crumbly bacon bits on top. And it should be served alongside an assortment of _Würste_. Yum-O! :o Tell that to the deli counter at the grocery store. At the brauhaus I’m ordering spaetzle 100% of the time, so it’s neither here or there for me. ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/30 "2019-06-11T19:09:54Z")
You are wrong. Mashed potatoes because they are creamy, buttery starchy love. Also, Europe is not a continent. Prove me wrong on either! ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/31 "2019-06-11T19:22:02Z")
My fave mashed potato recipe contains riced potatoes, a ton of butter, cream, goat cheese, lemon zest, and rosemary. Plus kosher salt. Food coma! [sub]ricing them before mashing them is key for creamy mashed potatoes[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![WildaBeast](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wildabeast/32/6_2.png) [@WildaBeast](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WildaBeast)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/32 "2019-06-11T19:30:42Z")
> [@Gus\_Gusterson](#): > > The beauty of well-made mashed potatoes, for me, is that every bite is consistent. Which reminds me of this exchange from _Frasier_, ep 7.9, “[The Apparent Trap](http://www.kacl780.net/frasier/transcripts/season_7/episode_9/the_apparent_trap.html)”: Martin: Wait, wait, what are you doing?! Daphne: I’m mashing the potatoes. Martin: By hand? You’re supposed to whip potatoes, therefore every bite tastes the same. Daphne: Isn’t that a bit bland? Martin: Hello? Welcome to potatoes! ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/33 "2019-06-11T20:01:45Z")
> [@WildaBeast](#): > > Martin: Wait, wait, what are you doing?! > Daphne: I’m mashing the potatoes. > Martin: By hand? You’re supposed to whip potatoes, therefore every bite tastes the same. > Daphne: Isn’t that a bit bland? > Martin: Hello? Welcome to potatoes! A Brit complaining about bland food? That \*is _hilarious!_😛 \*Just kidding. To borrow a line from WC Fields, I \*love \*British cuisine … so long as it’s properly prepared! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/34 "2019-06-11T20:05:04Z")
> [@UnwittingAmericans](#): > > Let’s see what you say when all your teeth are gone. Hate to have to tell you this, but… ☹ ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/35 "2019-06-11T20:10:24Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > At the brauhaus I’m ordering spaetzle 100% of the time, so it’s neither here or there for me. So long as you pronounce it correctly. (There’s no “-lee” at the end.) 😛😉 ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/36 "2019-06-11T20:13:31Z")
> [@Omniscient](#): > > Bad mashed potatoes exist, but like bad pizza, they are almost invariably salvageable through liberal application of butter, salt, gravy and heat. I’m not inviting you over for pizza if you’re just going to put butter and gravy on it. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/37 "2019-06-11T20:26:44Z")
I’ve never met a method of potato preparation I didn’t like, therefore, OP is disproven. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/38 "2019-06-11T20:28:47Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > I’ve never met a method of potato preparation I didn’t like I have: forgetting you have them and leaving them in a bag in the back of the cupboard until they putrefy. ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/39 "2019-06-11T20:53:44Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > I have: forgetting you have them and leaving them in a bag in the back of the cupboard until they putrefy. Well, sure, if you’re including failed experiments, but my use of the term _method_ clearly excluded individual samples. ---
**Author:** ![Omniscient](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omniscient/32/3290_2.png) [@Omniscient](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omniscient)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2019, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384/40 "2019-06-11T21:04:40Z")
> [@Jophiel](#): > > I’m not inviting you over for pizza if you’re just going to put butter and gravy on it. Are you [suuuuurrre](https://www.google.com/search?q=italian+gravy&rlz=1C1CHBD_enUS844US844&oq=italian+gravy&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l7.2793j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8)? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/tell-me-why-im-wrong-about-mashed-potatoes/835384.md?page=3)