Natural form

Five whole raw potatoes showing skin texture, shallow eyes, and earthy surface coloration.

Shows the reader exactly what an unprocessed potato looks like — its oval form, tan-brown skin, and characteristic eyes — so it can be identified at a market or in storage.

Produce

Potato

Humble, hearty staple — roast, mash, fry, or boil

Endlessly comforting, the potato crisps into fries, melts into a mash, or holds its shape in a stew. Store it dark and cool, away from onions, to keep it from sprouting.

The potato is the kitchen's great shapeshifter — a humble starchy tuber that crisps into fries, melts into a mash, holds its shape in a gratin, or thickens a soup. Its flavor is mild and earthy, a blank canvas that takes on butter, salt, and fat beautifully. The single most important thing to know is starch type: floury potatoes go fluffy and absorbent, waxy ones stay firm and creamy, and matching the right kind to the dish is the difference between perfect and disappointing.

Measured in: piece
Storage: Dark Cool
Shelf life: 30 days

Find it in

Produce

Types & varieties

Russet (floury)

High starch; the best fries, bakers, and fluffy mash

Yukon Gold (all-purpose)

Medium starch, buttery; roasts, mashes, and holds

Red / new potato (waxy)

Low starch; stays firm — boil, roast, potato salad

Fingerling

Slim, waxy, nutty; roast or pan-fry

Agria / Kennebec

Floury Spanish frying potatoes — the classic choice for patatas fritas and tortilla

Monalisa / Spunta

All-purpose Spanish varieties; good boiled, stewed, or roasted

Red Potato

Thin-skinned waxy potato that holds its shape when boiled or roasted; ideal for potato salad, gratins, and skin-on roasties where starchy types fall apart.

Purple Potato

Dense, waxy purple-fleshed potato that holds its violet color when steamed or roasted but bleeds gray if boiled hard; great for vivid salads and gratins.

Starch type matters most

Floury (high-starch) potatoes like russets fall apart and drink up fat — ideal for fries, roasties, and fluffy mash. Waxy (low-starch) potatoes hold their shape and stay creamy — ideal for boiling, salads, and gratins. All-purpose types like Yukon Gold split the difference. Choose by dish, not just what's in the bag.

Floury: fries, roasties, fluffy mash
Waxy: salads, gratins, boiling
All-purpose: a safe everyday choice
Spanish bags are labelled by use (freír / cocer / asar), not cultivar

How to store

Keep potatoes in a cool, dark, dry, well-ventilated place — a paper or burlap bag in a cupboard, not the fridge (cold converts starch to sugar and causes dark fries). Keep them away from onions, whose gases hasten sprouting. Properly stored, they last weeks.

A note on green and sprouts

Green skin and sprouts signal solanine, a natural toxin that builds up with light exposure and age and can cause illness in quantity. Cut away green areas and sprouts generously; if a potato is heavily green, soft, or shriveled, discard it.

Green = solanine; trim it away
Sprouts: cut out, don't eat
Store in the dark to prevent it

Common uses

French fries and chipsMashed potatoesGratin dauphinoisRoast potatoesPotato saladGnocchi Hash brownsVichyssoise and chowder

Tips & pitfalls

For fluffy mash, use floury potatoes and a ricer — never a food processor, which turns them gluey
Parboil and rough up the edges before roasting for maximum crunch
Soak cut fries in cold water to rinse surface starch for crispier results
Salt the cooking water generously — potatoes are bland without it
Save peels: toss in oil and roast for crispy snacks

Nutrition

58kcal

Energy

243 kJ · per 100 g

Where the calories come from

Protein 17%Carbs 82%Fat 1%

Protein

2.6g

5% DV

Carbs

12.4g

5% DV

Fat

0.1g

0% DV

Fiber

2.5g

9% DV

Sodium

10mg

0% DV

Notable micronutrients

Iron18% DV

Vitamin B614% DV

Vitamin C13% DV

Potassium9% DV

Niacin (B3)6% DV

Magnesium5% DV

Source · USDA FoodData Central · Potatoes, raw, skin

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In the shops

Matched grocery products

Potato
210 g · Mercadona
€0.40
Potatoes
3 kg · Mercadona
€4.65
Potatoes
5 kg · Mercadona
€5.60
Red Potatoes
2 kg · Mercadona
€3.80
Potato 1 unit
Bonpreu
€0.45
Potato 1 unit
ud · Bonpreu
€0.70

Good to know

Peak season: Year-round (stored); new potatoes in spring/summer
Flavor: Mild, earthy, buttery; a neutral base
Origin: Andes of South America; domesticated ~8,000 years ago
Nutrition: ~77 kcal/100g; potassium, vitamin C, B6, fiber (skin on)
How to buy: Firm, smooth, dry; no green tint, sprouts, soft spots, or wrinkles

Substitutes