I Cure Potatoes For 4 Days At 93°F And I Notice That They Taste Better. Why Is This?

Q:

I cure potatoes for 4 days at 93f and I notice that they taste better. Why is this? They also look more golden brown.

A:

This is an uncommon (but not unheard of)  storage method, sometimes requested of distributors from the occasional operator that does hand-cut fries. The reasoning for this request?

By storing the potatoes in a warmer area (usually an ambient temperature zone of a distributor’s warehouse), after a few days or up to a week has passed, any possibility of the potatoes being subjected to cold storage (below 41°F tor too long) will help the potatoes burn off excess sugars and ‘recondition’ the potato to a more favorable cooking condition. However, this warehouse dry storage ambient temperature is typically around 55°F. This may also work short-term at slightly higher ambient temperature storage.  But storing potatoes any warmer than this is not recommended as the potatoes will quickly dehydrate, reduce recipe yields, and hasten decay. Ideal potato storage temperature is 45-55°F. Here are links to two handy infographics on the topic:

https://idahopotato.comhttps://cdn.idahopotato.com/uploads/media/Testing%20Idaho%20Potatoes%20for%20Sugar%20Content.pdf

https://idahopotato.comhttps://cdn.idahopotato.com/uploads/media/idaho-potato-best-practices_storage.pdf