Made a bunch of mashed potatoes yesterday and it was fucking delicious

Saved half for today and it had that distinct fridge potato taste :sadness:

I always end up tossing leftover boiled potatoes for this reason

  • BeriaInocenceProject [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Starch retrogradation. Cooled potatoes shed water and form starch crystals that have to be heated to ~150F to fully break down.
    You pretty much have to recook them, but they'll never be the same. There's a few recipes that take advantage of the drying and firming that happens in leftover potatoes (potato pancakes, potatoes romanoff, twice-baked potatoes), but I usually just: cut into small pieces, fry in skillet, eat with breakfast.

    • doublepepperoni [none/use name]
      hexagon
      ·
      edit-2
      2 years ago

      When it comes to boiled potatoes I only boil what I think I'll eat in a single meal, but when you're making mashed potatoes there's an impulse to make a bigger batch to save time. I guess the solution would be to make smaller batches but that just doubles the time and energy needed. Not that mashed potatoes are incredibly labour intensive but it's significantly more effort than sticking spuds into a pot with some water and fucking off until they're done

      • FloridaBoi [he/him]
        ·
        2 years ago

        Just microwave them if you want even less effort. There’s usually even a potato button. I’ve noticed that if you have too much leftover cooked potatoes just mash them or dice and fry them or roast them. Parboiling them is a good technique anyway.

          • FloridaBoi [he/him]
            ·
            2 years ago

            What kind of potatoes were they? I’ve noticed that russet potatoes can have a weird acidic taste especially if overcooked (I think)

            • doublepepperoni [none/use name]
              hexagon
              ·
              2 years ago

              I just get whatever's sold as "starchy" potatoes at the supermarket at any given moment. The specific breed changes depending on which supplier or farm they're from

    • D61 [any]
      ·
      2 years ago

      :party-parrot-science: Science, yeah!

  • sammer510 [none/use name]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Is this a thing? I have been eating left over potatoes for my entire life and never experienced this ever

  • pimpsandchuds [des/pair]
    ·
    edit-2
    2 years ago

    my new fridge has a shitty replaceable carbon filter (looks kinda like a car air filter but 2x3") that actually does do a great job of keeping fridge funk smells away. as long as you actually replace the filter every few months

    furthermore, get tight sealing pyrex. costco has a great set of multisizes in the $20-30 range, I think. Glass > plastic.

  • ComradeGuts [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Tbh no idea what you're talking about, I regularly have potatoes in my meal prep

  • GrouchyGrouse [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Getting an airtight seal on leftover potatoes can be a big help but yeah the problems outlined by @BeriaInocenceProject are gonna be there regardless. I recommend some pyrex container with an airtight lid and seal up the leftovers as soon as they are cool enough to pop in the fridge.

  • D61 [any]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Sounds like it needs more gravy

  • medium_adult_son [he/him]
    ·
    edit-2
    2 years ago

    I usually add nutritional yeast and some extra vegan butter and spices when I reheat mashed taters. I agree they don't taste as well leftover for whatever reason.

    You could also use them to make something else entirely, like lefsa, potato bread/biscuits, potato soup, pancakes, or waffles. Or even a shepherd's pie! They're pretty versatile.

  • Weedian [he/him]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Maybe something in your fridge is making them taste bad?

    • doublepepperoni [none/use name]
      hexagon
      ·
      edit-2
      2 years ago

      This is a problem I've had my entire life across many different houses and fridges :thinkin-lenin:

          • StewartCopelandsDad [he/him]
            ·
            2 years ago

            plastic ice cube trays also absorb smells even if fridge has been cleaned, so one thing you can do to test if fridge or trays is to put a glass of water in the fridge for a bit. If glass of water (or ice cubes in metal tray) smell, a deep clean of fridge can help. I feel like your fridge is probably making stuff smell a certain way, but it's not apparent in the cold air.

  • captcha [any]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Make perogies. Mix half with flour to make a dough. Make dumplings stuffed with the rest of the mashpo. Fry with butter and onions.

  • Comp4 [she/her]
    ·
    2 years ago

    Never had that problem with potatoe salad.

  • NephewAlphaBravo [he/him]
    ·
    edit-2
    2 years ago

    Are they maybe just dry? Like I totally understand what you mean by a lot of potato dishes never storing/reheating well, fried potatoes might as well go straight in the trash if they don't get finished that night. But I've always had a good time with stuff like the potatoes from a pot roast, or fancy mashed potatoes with a bunch of extra dairy shit in em.

  • hypercube [she/her]
    ·
    2 years ago

    guess I'm a freak because I love a cold roast potato out of the fridge. like, maybe more than a regular roast potato

    • sgtlion [any]
      ·
      2 years ago

      Cold / just warm roast potatoes are made of black magic because they turn into addictive deliciousness.

    • doublepepperoni [none/use name]
      hexagon
      ·
      2 years ago

      This time I heated my leftover mash on the stove, usually microwave

      Though even cold potatoes from the fridge have the weird bitter(?) taste

      • dat_math [they/them]
        ·
        2 years ago

        hmm. Please describe in more detail how you store the potatoes. Do they (or their container) exchange air with the fridge?

        • doublepepperoni [none/use name]
          hexagon
          ·
          2 years ago

          This time I just stuck the pot I made the mashed potatoes in in the fridge. It wasn't airtight. I have used airtight containers before on different forms of potatoes so maybe it's the cold doing something weird with the sugar in the potatoes or something