I agreed to bring the mashed potatoes to Thanksgiving this year, and because of the amount of people, I want to double the recipe. Easy enough right? However, there's been a schedule change, and I won't be able to boil the potatoes normally before heading to the family gathering. To save on time, I'm planning on prepping the potatoes in my slow cooker while I'm out and about and doing the actual mashing and mixing right before I leave.
While I have done mashed potatoes in a slow cooker before, I'm not super familiar with them. Since I'm doing a bit more than double the amount of potatoes, will there be a significant change in the amount of time they need to cook? I looked online and the answers either assumed a single item double in size (i.e. slow cooking a 4 lb. ham hock instead of a 2 lb. one) and were worried about internal temperature or were incredibly vague and unhelpful (basically amounting it 'dunno lol').
But Anon: you're also being vague and unhelpful.
Saying
>hurr durr ah needz dubble portables!
doesn't help anyone figure out anything for you if you're unable to tell us what that amount might actually be, dickface.
>>7110171
After the water reaches the desired temp, it wont take THAT much longer. Definitely not double time.
Never done them in a slow cooker, but I would imagine that they are going to have a lot of time to absorb excess water. I'd suggest putting them on a pan in a the oven for a few minutes to let some of the excess water steam out of the potatoes. Watery potatoes = watery mashed potatoes.
What just boil them in a pot like usual in the usual time are you kidding me.
When do you need to cook these mashed potato up anyways? It doesn't take THAT long to make them.
>>7110205
Twelve minutes is a helluvalongtime for retarded "people." Have you ever tried to get a retard to do anything, even sitting still, for just five minutes, never mind twelve? It's impossible.
I mean... two minutes washing and/or peeling, eight minutes nuking it in the microwave and another two minutes thereafter mashing and mixing?! Who has time for that!
>>7110181
From two pounds cubed red potatoes to four pounds. Sorry, I didn't think the final values were important; I figured if I needed an increase it would be proportional (double amount = +X% cooking time, whether going form 2:4 or 3:6 or 5:10 or whatever).
>>7110191
>>7110199
>>7110205
I won't have time to do that. I'm being dragged to my girlfriend's family for thanksgiving lunch. Right now the best I can manage is to weasel out early, give myself five minutes to do the mashing and mixing, and speed to my parents' place and arrive a couple minutes before *their* meal starts. I won't have to time get the water boiling and boil the potatoes.
If I could just boil them in a pot like normal why the fuck wouldn't I?
>>7110243
wait nigga
red taters for mash? Are you serious?
>>7110243
No, you need to know how much water to put, really. See, the amount of potatoes will alter how much water you'll need and how much water you'll need will alter how long it takes to boil. For example, it takes a lot less time to boil a cup of water in a 20cm pan than it would four litres of water in a stock pot, ya dig?
Four pounds, huh? I'm guessing you're American, and I'm not saying that disparagingly. How big is your microwave, if you have one? Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't most Americans have microwaves and, if they do, aren't they generally fuckhugic? If that's the case, >>7110223, would work well for you for that amount of potatoes.
I do something similar to that, but as 99% of the time I use my microwave, it's for reheating food and blanching vegetables, mine is really, really small so I can't put so many potatoes into a container large enough for them all at once.
Instead, I set the water to the boil while I peel and cut the potatoes then drop'em into the water, loosely lid the container and microwave for 5 minutes before draining, lidding the container and letting the potatoes stand in their own residual heat for a few minutes to finish. This prevents waterlogged potatoes, as >>7110191 fears and lets them finish perfectly.
Then I run through my press and whip with other ingredients.
>>7110223's method is good because you can steam all of the potatoes at once if you have a large enough microwave and microwaveable container.
Would that work for you?
>>7110243
When is thanksgiving?
If it's tomorrow, can't you just make it today and re heat it tomorrow?
dude just dice them up, they take 15 mins to cook
>>7110290
Americans believe some myth that mashed potatoes don't reheat well. Ironically, many of them regularly re-heat frozen pierogi.
OP, why not just make the mashed potatoes in advance the standard way, then put the finished potatoes into the slow cooker to keep them warm?
>>7110282
Slow cooking potatoes, at least they way I've done them, don't take any water. It's just the heat breaking the potatoes down, I think.
I have an old microwave but it should be large enough. The last time I tried doing potatoes in the microwave, though, they never seemed to come out soft, so I'm not sure about them. I will look into it though.
>>7110290
I didn't want the food snobs of my family (i.e. my brother) bitching about the texture or whatever. Also the first time I've been trusted to bring something beyond rolls to Thanksgiving and I guess I wanted to show off. I figured go fresh or go home and all that. If there's not a huge difference between fresh mashed potatoes and nuked ones, though, yeah that'd be a hundred times easier.
Mashed potatoes never lasted more than I day in my house, so I'm embarrassed to admit I have no idea how well they reheat. Even if they reheat fine though, I have a feeling that if some of my family finds out they'll gripe anyway.
>>7110328
So.. don't nuke them.
You can, contrary to every American's belief, use your stove to reheat food.
Put them in a pan with some extra water or milk, and just bring them back up to a boil. Watch the pot, add a little more water or milk if it gets too thick. With 4 lbs, I would suggest that you break the batch into 2 smaller batches in order to reheat them.
If you are dead set on using your slow cooker, than just cook them tonight, while you're home, and put them on warm tomorrow during the day, adding a little extra water to keep them from drying out.
>>7110328
Get a large nukesafe baking dish, put the potatoes in it with a bit of water, top with nukesafe clingfilm and poke holes in it to allow steam to vent out. Then nuke it for eight minutes as >>7110223 suggests. I've seen others do it this way but, as I said, I don't have a microwave large enough to do that many myself, so I don't have any first hand experience. Works fine when I've seen it done, though.
>>7110321
Thread over guys, I'm 100% retarded, this should be fine. Best of all worlds. Jesus Christ, why the fuck didn't I think of that?
Thanks for the help /ck/! Sorry for the whining, you guys are great.
Happy Thanksgiving!
–Some fa/tg/uy
>>7110328
Reheat it in a pot (i dont know if microwaving can affect taste, i don't think it will but do it in a pot just in case) and tell them it's fresh.
cook now, mash later
just throw them in the fridge for a few days until you need them
>>7110328
>Slow cooking potatoes, at least they way I've done them, don't take any water. It's just the heat breaking the potatoes down, I think.
Oh, that's interesting. So basically they're steaming in their own h2o. That is the best way to not get water logged potatoes. That's how we make them at work, in a steamer. Fool proof.
>>7110349
If you check back here for some reason, don't use red potatoes if you can. They will be glue-y.
Russet or Yukon are better.
AAannnnd... You could cook them off now.
Re-heat in an oven tomorrow, add the milk and butter... like >>7110434 said.
I always re-heat mashers in the oven. Can be done on stovetop as well. Just add some milk to the pan.
>>7110171
boil them the day before, microwave them, mash
i have done it before and it works just don't let the potatos sit in the water
My grandma makes the best mashed potatoes. Gotta get the recipe from her before she croaks
Anyone else like their mashed potatoes to be a little bit lumpy?
I hate getting white paste.
>>7110582
I like them smooooothe,
but I worked for an owner who wanted them lumpy. Not a chef owner, just an owner who thought I should make them lumpy because. Just because.
>>7110606
It's just nice having a bit of texture to it.
I can't stand it when it has the texture of mr whippy
>>7110637
I hear ya, i just like it pureed.
I don't think it's weird, I just think most people prefer it pureed.
I DO think that the worst thing you can do is undercook the potatoes, which creates lumps of undercooked potatoes. But simply not whipping them for an extended period to make is smoothe is fine.
>>7110582
I like mine lumpy. Grandma always makes em lumpy. Mom makes the fake boxed powder potatoes. Those are the fucking worst.
>>7110582
I rough mash mine and use mayo, butter and milk to smooth them. It's the perfect medium
