Fresh potatoes
Potato types
Different potato varieties have a different chemical make up, making them more suited to different methods of cookery.
Waxy potatoes
These are the new season potatoes. They have a waxy texture that prevent them absorbing water and breaking up, as such they are great for boiling.
They tend to have more of a sweet taste. The sweetness comes from the fact they are dug up while young and small, this prevents the natural sugars converting to starch.
These natural sugars will also cause them to brown unevenly if fried, the unevenness is because the sugars on the surface will caramelise or dextrinise before any of the minimum starch will.
Floury potatoes
These tend to be the larger, later season potatoes. Most of the natural sugars have converted to starch, thus giving them their starchiness and flour type texture. They will absorb water easier as they cook and the more floury they are the more likely they are to swell and burst when boiled. They are best used for mashing or deep frying.
General purpose potatoes
These are mid way between a waxy and floury potato. They have a more even balance of natural sugars and converted starch. They will hold for boiling, mash well and retain their shape and do not break up when roasted, fried and also sautéed.
DETAILS QUALITY FRESH CONSUMPTION
In Supermarkets
More potato varieties: The first reaction from the potato sector to the increasing demand for variation is, to develop and market new and more varieties, that differ in cooking quality, size and taste. Today, an average greengrocer or supermarket sells more than 5 potato varieties.
More different cooking types: Until some years ago the main type of potato that was eaten in Holland was the mealy type. Meanwhile, the popularity of this type of potato has decreased, especially with the younger consumers.
Nowadays more consumers prefer a firm cooking potato because of a better taste. Also the visual appearance of firm cooking potatoes is more attractive.
Firm cooking potato
Washed potatoes: Most potatoes are nowadays washed before packing. This makes the peeling less of a dirty operation and is much appreciated by the consumer.
Packaging: At this moment we find 5 kilogramme, 3, 2.5 and 2 kilogramme but also 1.5 kilogramme packs in the shops. For the consumer, plastic foil, coloured for protection against light and perforated for ventilation, is mostly used for the packing of potatoes. Retailers use the plastic foil for printing relevant consumer information on.
Potatoes in supermarket-------Special selected poatoes