Ask Dr. Potato

Q: I own a restaurant and we serve stuffed baked potatoes. I need to be able to cook a good bit of potatoes and then hold them until ordered. What is the best way to do this without them getting dry?

Q: Can I use red potatoes for au gratin potatoes?

Q: I remember my grandparents storing fresh potatoes at home in a root cellar. I want to take advantage of the pricing and availability of having a ten pound bag of spuds at home for last minute menu choices but don’t know where to store the potatoes once I buy them. Any recommendations

Q: Why does oil come out of potato salad? Is it the type of mayo you use or is it because of the temperature of the potatoes?

Q: I Rinsed, Peeled, soaked, cut, and boiled my potatoes. Then drained, sprinkled sparingly with apple cider vinegar (for potato salad), cooled 15 minutes, covered with large plate over bowl and refrigerated them. One hour later, removed from fridge to assemble potato salad and all the potatoes were showing dark, blackish shadows. Can they still be made into potato salad?

Q: I read your article about cooking large quantities of baked potatoes and putting them in a cooler to keep them hot. We do a fish dinner every year during Lent and cook about 250 potatoes a week for 6 weeks.  Do you have any data on how long it takes for the baked potatoes to reach 185 degrees F? We wrap (I know, I know) the potatoes and put about 30-35 potatoes on a full size sheet pan. We put in two racks per oven. Normally we set the commercial gas oven to 500 degrees F. Is it better to cook them at 400 degrees F?

Q: I want to bake a bunch of russet potatoes, let them cool and then cut into chunks and freeze for hash browns. Would this work?

Q: What is the difference between a potato that is best suited for French fries and a potato that is best for making potato chips? Is it the kind of potato? The way they are grown?

Q: We have a restaurant located in Mountain Home, Arkansas. We buy all of our restaurant needs from Performance Foodservice.  We are currently buying your potatoes (approximately 15 to 20 cases per week).  When our delivery comes (twice a week), our potatoes come in off the truck and appear to be in good condition, wet and cool from the humidity from a refrigerated truck.  The potatoes temp between 50-55 degrees.  It has been a very hot and humid summer here.  Today, for instance, our heat index are in the triple digits.  The potatoes appear to be solid and in good shape.  We bring them into the restaurant, we have a stored area under a window with a window air conditioner blowing right on them.  We immediately foil wrap about 3/4 of them and put them back under the window until the potatoes are used.  The air conditioner is set as low as it can go, but at times, it seems blows out warm-ish air.  We use the potatoes within a week.  When we take the potatoes over to start wrapping them, some of the potatoes have black spots on them (pictures attached).  Some that appear to be good are wrapped and stored but when cooked they turn to mush and stink.  We do cook them in foil.  We tried cooking them without foil but customers complained about them getting cold.  It does get very hot in the kitchen.  We have had to complain to our vendor on a weekly basis for the past 6-8 weeks.  Do you feel it is something on the vendor’s side or are we doing something wrong in our restaurant? Any information and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Q: I eat a baked potato every night and would like to prepare ahead of time. Can I bake 3 at a time and keep them in the refrigerator? Will they still have the same nutrition as baked daily?