Ask Dr. Potato

Q: I no longer live in Idaho, but I remember picking up a few plastic Idaho potato shaped pins to hand out when I went on a trip to Europe many many years ago. Does the Idaho Potato Commission still have these, how many do they distribute in a year and when was this wonderful idea originally thought of as a way to draw attention to the potato with a state named after it?

Q: In researching Yukon Gold Potatoes it says they are a large potato. If that is correct why are the Idaho Gold Potatoes I find in the grocery store so small and lumpy?

Q: For mashed potatoes I boiled potatoes with skins on when I usually peel & cut them before boiling. (I must have thought I was making potato salad instead of mashed potatoes.) When they were done I cooled them down so I could handle them. Then peeled them & tried to mash them with a hand masher difficult. Warmed milk & butter, added to potatoes & continued to mash. Potatoes were still stiff. They tasted fine, but I never got the fluffy consistency I usually get when I boil them without skins. Could I have done anything to get the fluffy consistency?

Q: I’m from Maine and I recall that my grandparents always told me our state produced more potatoes than any other. Can you shed some light on when we lost the crown as the largest potato state in the USA to Idaho?

Q: Potatoes must be cold in order to make amazing fries. True or false?

Q: For my mashed potato dish instead of using Idaho russets, can I substitute Yukon (yellow flesh) potatoes?

Q: I read a recent article in the Packer, where Technomic reports that food bowls are up 29.7% in the entrée category over a five-year time period. Another study, showed that the produce items measured were onions +27%, peppers +21%, tomatoes +20% followed closely by carrots, broccoli and corn according to United Fresh with new growth coming from kale, lemons, and spinach.

Q: How can I prevent shredded potatoes from darkening when I make Latkes or hash browns? And how do I get a nice crusty exterior?

Q: Does it matter what order you put the toppings on a baked potato after the butter?

Q: We are having a charity fundraiser selling 1000 baked Idaho Potatoes. In order to save time, we would like to wash, pierce, and wrap the raw potatoes the night before and store them in a cooler. They would be baked the next morning. Is this a safe process?