How do you avoid potatoes sticking or disintegrating?

npsmama

Once you've par-boiled them and are frying them..

I guess they disintegrate if they've been par-boiled too long - is this right?

As for the sticking...wometimes they do and sometimes they don't...why?

thriftlady_2

It'll be the type of potato I expect. I was thinking about this when dishing up my roasts just now. A lot had stuck to the tin but last week when I did them I was using a different variety and they didn't stick.

spaghetti_monster

I think that's right.. tried to make a potato salad once out of ones meant for mashing and it turned out a right mess!

In my local supermarket (in Holland) they label bags of potatoes with what they cook like ("crumbly", "fast-cooking" - these stay hard).

In the UK I've heard foody people talk about which type is best for what (baking, mashing, roasties) - maybe you could look it up????

....or I'm sure someone here will know!!!

Alex x

npsmama

Thanks, these were Desiree I think.

npsmama

Here are some answers:

Waxy spuds hold their shape, floury ones break up easily.

So from what I can gather...

For pan-frying: use waxy spuds eg. King Edward or Wilja
For mashing use: floury eg. Estima, King Edward (especially good for gnocchi )
For chipping: floury eg Maris Piper
For baking: floury eg Cara, Estima
for oven roasting: waxy eg. King Edward (akthough this seems to be classed as a floury ) or Wilja

odds-n-sods

you want a floury potato for roasting, not a waxy one. A waxy one won't be fluffy in the middle.

If the pots fall apart for pan-frying, you've overcooked them a bit. If they stick, overcooked or not enough fat in the pan, or you've tried to flip them too soon. They need to brown and get a crust before flipping them. You can use either floury or waxy for pan-frying.

Penelope_Penguin

npsmama wrote: »

Thanks, these were Desiree I think.

Desiree (or Maris Piper) are what I use for roasting. Sounds like they were overcooked.

HTH, Penny. x

lil_me

why do potatoes have to be so technical? Says the person who needs to remove the ones that 'stuck' last night which are now soaking!