HAFM Spotlights
the
Spectacular
SPUD!
"Only two things
in this world are too serious to be jested on,
potatoes and matrimony."
~ Irish saying
~
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Russet, Yukon Gold, Purple Peruvian, White Rose, Red Rose, Baby Red Rose. |
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Red Rose, White Rose, Yukon Gold, Russet, Fingerling, Purple. |
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French Fingerling, La Ratte, Rose Finn Apple (Rose Fir), Russian Banana, Purple Peruvian (Peruvian Blue), Santina, Huckleberry. |
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WEISER Farm offer the following specifics about these specialty varieties:
FINGERLINGS -- among the more distinctive groups you're likely to see. The informal term has come to describe narrow little tubers, whether finger-like, crescent-shaped, or just wiggly and small. (Although "fingerling" describes anything tiny, this word of German origin commonly refers to fish, not potatoes.) Generally speaking, fingerlings are predictable, petite, and uncommonly tasty and firm - ideal for steaming, boiling, baking, roasting and salads.
French Fingerling -- smooth, plump, uniform oblong, thin rosy skin and yellow or pink-splashed flesh. When steamed or boiled, the skin is pink-gold and flesh satiny, waxy, and moist with a buttery balanced flavor. Baked, it has a sweet-dough scent, the flesh is less silky but has a creamy, flaky texture and similar flavor.BLUE-to-PURPLE-SKINNED -- these most novel of the specialty types vary considerably. Although commercial sources tend to lump purple and blue potatoes together as if there were only one, there are many, each with its own idiosyncracies. Some are mealy, some moist; in cooking, some fade, others intensify in color. A baby blue chosen to brighten a salad, for example, may turn cement gray when boiled, while a lavender potato may deepen to violet.La Ratte -- tapered, elongated French favorite, satiny pale gold skin, very fine-textured yellow flesh. Steamed, it is sweet, mild, waxy, silky, and creamy, it has a rich flavor, between earthy and sweet. Bakes equally well, with full flavor, light creamy flesh, and nice vanilla aroma. Cook all ways.
Rose Finn Apple (Rose Fir) -- long, narrow, knobby oblong, pink-buff satiny, thin skin, yellow flesh. An elegant, versatile, rewarding potato. The flavorful flesh is both waxy and creamy. Rarely requires peeling. Cook all ways.
Russian Banana -- narrow, tapering, quite smooth, tan-cream skin, butter cream flesh. Rich, refined old-fashioned potato flavor. Firm, fine-textured when steamed, baked, or boiled, good in salad. Steamed has silkier texture, baked is sweeter. Color remains close to same as raw. Available in medium and peewee sizes.
Purple Peruvian (Peruvian Blue) -- one of the first specialty potatoes to arrive in the United States, in the 1970's. Knobbed, deep purple-navy, irregular rounds and teardrops, flesh is pale at perimeter, deepest purple in center. Cooked, the flesh turns violet to indigo, skin remains dark. Starchy-creamy texture balance, flavor bland to earthy. Bake for a pleasant mealy texture, or boil or steam. Peel for salads. Available in large, medium and peewee sizes.GOLDEN-to-TAN-SKINNED -- with yellow flesh, whether starchy or waxy in texture, frequently offer superior flavor. Their firm consistency, pronounced flavor, and sweetness make them best bets.
Santina -- like Yukon Gold, medium-large, round, yellow-tan skin, yellow flesh. Baked is best, a good replacement for the usual "round whites." Have an attractive balance of starchiness and waxiness, rich yellow flesh, a warm aroma, and sweet even flavor (and skin, too). The color is buttery, but the flavor is not - although it is often described as such. Make great mashed potatoes. Available in large, medium, small and peewee sizes.ROSE-to-RED-SKINNED -- also highly variable, although they are generally more moist.
Huckleberry -- oval, rosy skin, pink-streaked white flesh. Cooked, the skin stays rose and the flesh pinkens. Steam or bake. Available in large, medium, small and peewee sizes.
BASIC USE:
Most
petite potatoes are at their best prepared whole and simply: steam, boil,
or roast. A finish of crisp salt grains and a gloss of the best
butter is perfect. Complex flavors, complicated cooking techniques, or
too many accompaniments hide the charms of sweet little spuds. To discover
each variety's characteristics, it helps to adopt an experimental attitude.
Steam little potatoes that look like bakers; bake purples that look like
boilers; roast pink-skinned potatoes that are typecast as steamers.
Cooking techniques
affect a potato's color and texture as well as its flavor. The trade-offs
are up to you. While steaming maintains good color, the skin tastes more
acrid steamed than baked. Boiling bleaches color more than steaming, for
the most part. When boiling potatoes it is best to start cooking in cold
- not boiling - salted water for a more creamy, uniform texture. With few
exceptions, potato skins are sweeter and tastier when baked or roasted.
Little potatoes
of almost all varieties excel in salad: steam, slip off skins, then toss
with a little wine and/or vinegar, salt, and olive or nut oil and optional
herbs. Serve warm or at room temperature, not chilled. Varieties with pink,
blue, purple and yellow flesh are particularly pretty, as the acid in dressing
usually heightens their coloring.
SELECTION:
In most potatoes,
flaking skin, uneven color, and "dirtiness" are signs of freshness, not
inferiority. Choose rock-hard potatoes, with no softening
or sprouts. Avoid potatoes with holes or cuts, which hasten
spoilage by letting bacteria penetrate. Stay clear of green-tinged potatoes:
these may contain solanine, a bitter alkaloid poisonous to some people
and good for none.
STORAGE:
Unless you have
a root cellar, do not stock up. Small, thin-skinned potatoes are more delicate
than generally understood, and they sprout fairly quickly. Keep
potatoes in a cool, dark place - but not in the refrigerator, where they
will darken and develop a high sugar content. If potatoes are
in good shape, they'll last for a few weeks at room temperature in brown
paper bags with plenty of breathing room.
PREPARATION:
Small potatoes are
generally cooked whole, with the peel. They need no more than a thorough
brushing and scrubbing under running water. A soft toothbrush works well
on small knobby tubers such as fingerlings.
You may read that
vinegar in the cooking water holds the color, but it does not. It slows
cooking, produces an uneven texture, reddens blue hues, and merely concentrates
pink on cut surfaces.
THE POTATO IS THE SECOND-MOST-CONSUMED FOOD (after dairy).
United
States Potato Board -- the most comprehensive and informative site
imaginable!
In fact, it's SO GOOD, that we
insist on highlighting several of its many pages:
Recipes
Nutrition
Carbohydrate Confusion
The
FEDS' Skinny on Buying Potatoes
Another
Brief History
(but
with interesting sidebar links)
A
Faire Folk Fable -- Forsooth!
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