Potatoes come in different types, waxy or floury, the starch content of which matters depending on which kind of recipe you have. — HAUKE-CHRISTIAN DITTRICH/dpa
Whether you like them boiled, roasted or mashed, potatoes are an important part of many people’s diet. Supermarkets offer a range of varieties, often with descriptions using words like “floury”, “waxy” or “mainly waxy”. You will also find “white” and “red” potatoes in Britain and Ireland. So which should you choose? That depends on your preference, but above all on the recipe, since certain dishes are associated with certain types of potatoes.
Floury potatoes are popular for mashed potatoes, soups or for thickening sauces. They are also cooked and mashed and added to sweet and savoury pastries and bread, and can be served as boiled potatoes. The fact that they tend to be dry and floury and fall apart easily is due to their high starch content of around 16.5%.
Waxy potatoes contain only 14% starch. They retain their shape and consistency after cooking and their skin does not split. This makes them particularly suitable for jacket and roast potatoes, in potato salad, or as crisps or croutons.
In between, there are the all-purpose or mainly waxy potatoes with about 15% starch – the all-purpose potato, so to speak. Chefs tend to use them for anything that involves roasting and frying. Incidentally, the lowest starch content, at 12%, is found in new potatoes (smaller potatoes which are harvested early).
However, there is no right or wrong when it comes to choosing potatoes and you should follow your personal preference. The experts say some people swear by mashed potatoes made from waxy potatoes, while others prepare fried potatoes from floury potatoes.
It’s best to try out different things – and if you’ve had something particularly tasty at a friend’s house or in a restaurant, just ask the cook which type of potato they used. – dpa
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