So last week I told you why white potatoes should be on the menu, Whether baked, roasted, boiled or mashed, but not all potatoes are built the same, and different spuds do different jobs. White potatoes generally fall into 2 categories, WAXY or FLOURY. In general, waxy potatoes tend to be smaller in size and have a thinner skin.

WAXY

Lower in starch and tend to hold their shape and have a firm bite. These are best used for salads or boiled, or used in stews/casseroles where you want them to stay in pieces. They aren’t great for mash, they go gluey. Good examples are new potatoes, fingerling, Charlotte.

FLOURY

Contain high starch and low moisture, so they are great for fries, roasting, and baked potatoes. They’re also good for mash. They also fall apart when boiled, so they’re good for thickening soups/stews. Good examples are King Edward, Russet.

A good ALL-PURPOSE spud that’s a bit of an all rounder for recipes is Yukon Gold.

Happy Spudding!