How do you stop potatoes sprouting?

badgermonkey

I've tried keeping them in the dark, in the light, in the bag, not in the bag, but they still sprout after a week or so. There are only two of us and I like to buy a 1.5kg bag and try and make it last a few weeks - it's incredibly cost-ineffective to buy a few at a time, especially as I never get home from work before the greengrocers shut. I'm not buying those silly trays of four from Tesco!

culpepper

The ones you buy which have mud on usually last longest. When we grew our own we just used to sack them up still muddy but dry and they lasted ages.

Curry_Queen

I know people say you shouldn't, but I find the only way I can keep potatoes for any length of time is in the fridge. I have two separate salad boxes and I use one of them for potatoes and other root veg, but I take them out of any plastic bags/wrapping and have a layer of kitchen roll in the bottom to absorb any "wetness". The other tray stores peppers, tomatoes, lemons/limes, soft vegies etc.

North-East_Quine

They need to be kept in a cool, dark place to stop them sprouting. I'm not sure about keeping the mud on them, but that will help keep them cool and dark. As a child (40 years ago!) we used to get loads of sack of potatoes from farming friends. My dad always kept them in a hessian sack in the shed.

Daisy

I store mine in the fridge in a paper bag and they last a bit longer than in the plastic bag they come in. My local tesco do not sell 'dirty' potatoes unfortunately and the ones from the market go soft after a couple of days so this is the best solution I can find for me.

squeaky

I'm in a similar predicament to badgermonkey. Bought more than I usually do, am keeping them in the dark and they're in a paper sack, not a sweaty plastic bag, and they're still starting to sprout.

They're not too bad yet, but I don't have room in the fridge. Mash seems to be the best way to keep potato in the freezer, so I might have to have a big boil 'em session

Curry_Queen

When I was a wee lass we lived in an old farm house which not only had an outhouse for storage but also a traditional stone cellar with the big stone slabs in it, so keeping food cold and fresh was easy.


Mind you, trying to convince my dad that the stables in the barn were meant for keeping horses in (and not to convert to living quarters) was a whole different ball game :rolleyes:

Ticklemouse

Remember that real dirty potatoes haven't actually been washed, unlike some of the ones you see in the shops nowadays, which have been washed and have a bit pf peaty substance thrown in to try and foil us. My dad always swears by real dirty spuds. We used to get a 56lb sack and keep them in the shed outside.

Queenie

I buy 56lb sacks from our local farm shop.

I keep them (still in their sack) in our Utility Room - they last weeks, but then we use a fair amount so I don't think they get much chance to sprout!

If dh gets any from the supermarket (he's a bit dim sometimes :rolleyes: ) I pop them in the veggie drawer in the fridge.

They really should be lasting you more than a week! :eek:

badgermonkey

Our Tesco doesn't sell dirty ones either and it's a faff going to the greengrocer's; I might have to try the fridge.

I can't even begin to work out how long it would take us to get through 56lb! We only use about 6 a week!

tom_and_barbara_good

Anyone tried the green veggie bags from Lakeland for spuds? I use them for carrots and cauli, I can keep a cut cauli for a week in them but I've never tried spuds, ours are in the fridge