HOW TO STOP PEELED POTATOES FROM BROWNING
How to stop peeled potatoes from browning
As soon as you cut or slice the potatoes, the flesh will start to brown. It’s a completely natural process, but it doesn’t look too much! If you’re making roast potatoes, potato salad, or chips, you’ll want them to stay clean, white. This is a simple and easy solution to prevent potatoes from turning brown.
Why do potatoes turn brown when they are peeled or cut?
The skin of the potato protects the skin from contact with the air. Once this covering layer is removed, the starch in the potato begins to oxidize, causing a brown or gray color. Potatoes are still good to eat if they oxidize, but avoiding this will help them maintain their freshness and flavor.
How to keep potatoes from browning
Here are some easy, proven ways to make your mashed potatoes look their best! They work with white, red and sweet potato varieties.
1 – Prepare the final potatoes
The less air your potatoes absorb, the better. So, try to always prepare your potatoes before you start cooking with them. Other vegetables do not brown, so prepare them first. Then, as soon as you are ready to start boiling, frying, eating or cooking your potatoes, quickly cut them and start cooking.
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2 – Put the cut potatoes in water
As you peel and cut your potatoes, place them in a large bowl of clean, cool water. This greatly reduces the oxidation process, which is very useful if you want to prepare a lot of potatoes or prepare your dishes in advance. You can store your potatoes this way for up to 24 hours with little change. The key is to put them in water right after you cut them, because every minute counts. Make sure the water covers them well and put a bowl with potatoes in the refrigerator if you want to use them more than an hour later. When you’re ready to use them, rinse them under running water to remove any starch (which helps make the baked potatoes crispier) and dry them before adding them to the oil to avoid dangerous spitting.
3 – Add edible acid
Although water slows down oxidation, it does not stop it completely. Therefore, if you want to prepare your potatoes and keep them for 6 hours or more, it is recommended to add a little acidity to the water. This lowers the pH of the water and stops the chemical process. Of course, you can sprinkle any potato with a little lemon juice or white wine, but if you don’t want to heat your potatoes, just add about 1 teaspoon of lemon juice or white wine to the ingredients. to two liters of water.
4- Add vitamin C
If you are mashing potatoes, making potato pancakes, potato kugels, or making hard potato preparations that will last a long time while you work, add a little ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and your combination. You can crush a small vitamin C tablet, dissolve it in water and add it to your mixture, or add lemon juice. It’s also a great way to get rid of brown potatoes!
5 – Use glass or ceramic to make dishes
Oxidation is a chemical process and certain substances can speed up or slow down this process. As we said, lemon juice and vitamin C can reduce or even reverse oxidation, but iron plates can accelerate. Instead of using cast iron, aluminum or other metal containers for your potatoes, cook or serve them in a glass or ceramic dish.
6 – Vacuum packaging
Since contact with air is a trigger for starch oxidation, you can use preventive measures such as soaking potatoes in water or covering them. Just peel and dice your potatoes, put them in a plastic bag and use a vacuum to remove all the air. You can store potatoes in the refrigerator for a few days or even a week before you use them and they should be fresh and white.
7 – Keep the skin – Go rusty!
Protect your potatoes and prevent them from browning by keeping the skin on as much as possible. The good thing is that this is a good way to eat potatoes because the skin is where most of the nutrients, fiber, vitamins and minerals are found. The peel is also rich in potassium and iron, which support metabolism and blood supply. This method is perfect for new potatoes, but any kind can be cooked with the skin on. It adds a nice flavor and texture to jacket/baked potatoes, chips, potato chips and salads.
Are cooked potatoes brown?
No. Once the starch is cooked, the potatoes will not brown even if they are exposed to the air for some time. If you have a lot of potatoes to use, the best option is to cut them into cubes, then boil them and fry them on the side. Mashed potatoes and baked potatoes do well in the freezer, but you can freeze chips and baked potatoes.
Don’t forget to label the freezer with the date
