The right way to cook potatoes


The right way to cook potatoes
If you simply boil them (not steam them), or bake them in the oven, at some point you will have to ask yourself the question "are they well cooked?".
13 K 4.7/5 (19 reviews)
Grade this page:
Keywords for this post:PotatoesCookingTipsKnife
Last modified on: March 23th 2020
For this post: Comment Follow Send to a friend
The right way to cook potatoes
Your mum or dad may have taught you this when you were a child: You take a small sharp knife and try to get through the cooked potato, if you can do it easily, it's cooked. It always works of course, but it's a bit subjective, "easily" is not very easy to appreciate and then it depends on the variety of the potato, "Rattes" for example are much firmer than the "Belles de Fontenay".

cooking potaoes in water



Can you do any better than cutting through them with a knife?

Yes, and it's quite simple, let's imagine you want to make melting potatoes, and therefore be sure they are well cooked, then in that case, stick the famous knife in the potato, vertically, and lift the potato.
It comes with the knife? => undercooked, continue cooking
Does it fall off the knife by itself, or does the knife come out by itself? => they are cooked!

Are they cooked?



Obviously this only works with good sized potatoes, with grits or rattes it's wrong, the weight is too low for them to fall back...

In summary: To test the cooking of a potato, stick a knife vertically into it and lift it up, if the potato stays in place or falls back on its own after a few seconds, it is well cooked.

Lasts posts
Travel cakes
Travel cakes
You may have come across the term "travel cakes" ("gateaux de voyage" in french) for certain pastries, so let's take a look at what they're all about.
January 27th 20252,218
The aromatic power of sugar
The aromatic power of sugar
In the kitchen, sugar doesn't just sweeten, it also has an exceptional ability to capture flavors. Combined with aromatic ingredients, such as citrus zest, it acts as a veritable sponge for aromas. By taking the time to let the sugar soak up the flavors, you can transform your desserts, making...
December 25th 20242,5545
The little trap of thick cream
The little trap of thick cream
When you need to add cream to a recipe, you might be wondering: thick (heavy) cream or liquid cream? In most cases, there's no big difference: you can use either. But there is one exception, and that's when the cream needs to be cooked, for a sauce for example, and here the difference between...
December 13th 20243,1195
Sauce and salad: When and how to mix them?
Sauce and salad: When and how to mix them?
When dressing a salad, there's a kind of golden rule: add the dressing very shortly before serving, especially if your salad contains crunchy elements such as croutons or fresh vegetables, which will retain their crunchiness or crispiness. But, as is often the case in the kitchen, there are...
November 29th 20243,2825
No need to boil gelatin
No need to boil gelatin
Gelatin is a magical ingredient for making light, creamy, structured desserts, yet it's often misused in the kitchen. A common mistake in some recipes is the idea that it needs to be boiled for it to work properly, but this is a mistake indeed: gelatin melts at a much lower temperature, around...
November 21th 20243,1835
Other pages you may also like
Fruits which can ruin your jelly
Fruits which can ruin your jelly
There are many ways of making a fruit mousse, but one of the simplest is to prepare a fruit jelly (basically a fresh fruit coulis with gelatine) and then mix this jelly before it sets completely with whipped cream. The result is perfect for filling a charlotte, for example. But do beware;...
March 6th 201373 K4.0
What is the difference between bakery and patisserie?
What is the difference between bakery and patisserie?
This is a question that you may well have asked yourself and which I will attempt to answer. In France the two trades of "boulangerie" (bakery) and "pâtisserie" (patisserie and confectionery) have always been quite distinct, but where exactly do the boundaries lie? .
February 7th 2017126 K 14.1
The "pith" of the cauliflower
The "pith" of the cauliflower
When using cauliflower in a recipe, there is a lot of preparation work at the beginning: removing the leaves, taking the tops or florets, etc. It's a bit tedious, but in the end you're left with the best of the cauliflower, ready to be used in your recipe.
February 5th 202210 K4.9
Cream and sauces
Cream and sauces
Have you ever wondered why making beautiful tasty sauces is so easy when you use cream? .
October 15th 201219 K4.4
The green of leeks
The green of leeks
We are all, consciously or not, very sensitive to the colour of our food. That's why a red strawberry will always seem more appetizing than a pale one, even if it's not necessarily true. This is true for red, but it is also true for the green of certain vegetables.
March 30th 202017 K4.0
Post a comment or question
Posted by:
I am not a leaving thing
Follow this page
If you are interested in this page, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the page is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
I am not a leaving thing
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.

Back to top of page