The Best Instant Mashed Potato Recipe (2024)

FAQs

How do you make instant mashed potatoes taste better? ›

Mix in shredded cheddar or Parmesan cheese for an easy way to make instant mashed potatoes better, or go beyond the basics with blue cheese, Manchego, Gruyere, goat cheese or even cream cheese. They all bring something delicious to the table and add a new spin on basic boxed potatoes.

Milk: Milk adds to the richness of the potatoes. Use at least 2% milk, but preferably whole milk. Chicken broth: This adds a richer flavor than if you would just use water. Butter: Butter is always a good idea.

Betty Crocker Potatoes Betty Crocker Mashed Potatoes

With a consistency so smooth, it could rival real mashed potatoes, and people loved its "deliciously buttery flavor." But, be careful: tasters thought it could be a tad salty, so we highly recommend using unsalted butter (instead of salted).

Herbs, like chives, green onions and Italian parsley are also good. Try stirring green peas into your mash as well. Truth be told, you only need salt, pepper, lots of butter and cream to make mashed potatoes delicious. Fat and salt baby, fat and salt.

Whereas most home cooks will use a pinch of butter, a couple of shakes of salt, and a bit of milk, steakhouse chefs aren't afraid to go all out with the dairy. There's no room for 2% or even whole milk in their mashed potatoes -- the thinness of plain milk just isn't creamy enough to cut it. And creaminess is key!

Garlic – For savory depth of flavor. Unsalted butter – For richness and buttery flavor. Milk – It smooths the starchy potatoes into an incredibly creamy mash. Use whole milk for the creamiest results.

You can use what you have on hand: Flour, cornstarch, or powdered milk are all solid options that are probably already in your pantry. Potato flour and potato starch would work as well. Stir in the thickening agent gradually, about a tablespoon at a time, until the potatoes have reached your desired consistency.

Then, prepare the potatoes: Bring 1¼ cups water to boil in a small saucepan. Once bubbling away, remove from heat, add 1 cup instant mashed potatoes (2 oz.), and gently fluff with a fork.

Nutritionally speaking, instant mashed potatoes offer roughly the same vitamins and minerals as the real mashed potatoes with the exception of Vitamin C. To please palates, they tend to be higher in sodium, significantly higher than the amount of salt home cooks would add when making them at home from scratch.

When potatoes are mashed, starch is released. The more you work the potatoes, the more starch gets released. When too much starch gets released, the potatoes become gummy, gluey, and unappetizing.

How many instant potatoes equal one potato? ›

Yes, you can easily use instant potatoes in a recipe that calls for fresh potatoes. One cup of prepared Idahoan Mashed Potatoes = one medium fresh potato. Five pounds of fresh potatoes = approximately 1 pound of dry Idahoan flakes (or approximately 10 medium fresh potatoes).

Though it may sound simple, adding a dash or two of your favorite salt to a pot of instant mashed potatoes is a really easy way to bump up the flavor factor. Some of our favorites include truffle salt, matcha salt, and citrus salt. Just be sure to add a bit of salt at a time.

Sour cream adds a little bit of tangy flavor and a boost of richness to mashed potatoes. It's a fun change from the standard milk or cream and butter combo usually flavoring mashed taters. You can even try your hand at making homemade sour cream from heavy cream!

For additional flavor, add some fresh herbs, such as chives, parsley, thyme or rosemary to the mashed potatoes after mashing them. You can also add some buttermilk, cream cheese or sour cream for a bit of a tangy, creamy flavor. Another great addition to mashed potatoes is to use flavored butter.

Folding chives or scallions into mashed potatoes is a classic technique for a reason, but roasted garlic (garlic is also an allium), caramelized onions, or even a packet of Lipton's French Onion Dip, can all add unbeatable flavor to mashed potatoes.

Oils such as canola oil and olive oil are lower in saturated fat and higher in the better-for-you unsaturated oils that are good for the heart, according to the AHA. Drizzling in a little of either oil in makes a great substitute for butter in mashed potatoes.

When potatoes are mashed, starch is released. The more you work the potatoes, the more starch gets released. When too much starch gets released, the potatoes become gummy, gluey, and unappetizing.