Classic Mashed Potatoes

Classic mashed potatoes are creamy, buttery, and smooth, with no lumps and no gluey texture. The secret is boiling the potatoes until they break apart easily, then mashing them while they’re still hot with the right ratio of butter and milk.

Ingredients for Classic Mashed Potatoes

Russet potatoes are starchy and break down into a light, fluffy texture when mashed. Butter adds richness and creaminess. Whole milk loosens the potatoes without making them heavy, while salt and black pepper season them to taste.

Why This Classic Mashed Potatoes Works

Russet potatoes have high starch and low moisture, so they mash into a naturally fluffy base instead of becoming thick or pasty. Boiling them whole and unpeeled keeps them from absorbing too much water, which would make them watery or gluey.

Mashing the potatoes while they’re still hot means the butter and milk combine smoothly into the starch. If you wait until they cool down, the starch sets and the cream won’t blend in evenly, leaving you with a lumpy or grainy texture instead of something silky.

Adding butter first, before the milk, coats the starch granules and keeps them from absorbing all the liquid at once. This is why the potatoes stay creamy instead of turning into paste.

Mistakes To Avoid

Peeling potatoes before boiling them lets water in, making them waterlogged and mushy. They’ll mash into a gluey paste instead of staying light and fluffy. To fix this, always boil potatoes whole and unpeeled.

Adding cold milk or butter to hot potatoes makes the starch seize up into a thick, gluey mass. The potatoes turn out heavy and dense instead of creamy. Always use milk and butter straight from the counter or warm them first.

Overmixing mashed potatoes breaks down the starch and makes them turn into a gluey, paste-like texture that sticks to the roof of your mouth. Stir just until the butter and milk are blended in, then stop.

Boiling potatoes until they fall apart in the water means they absorb too much moisture and won’t mash into anything smooth. They’ll be soggy and bland. Test them at 15 minutes by poking one with a fork, and drain them as soon as they’re tender enough to break apart easily.

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Ingredients

• 2 pounds russet potatoes, unpeeled
• 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter (57 grams), cut into pieces
• 1/2 cup whole milk, warmed
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste

Step-by-step Instructions

1. Place whole, unpeeled potatoes in a large pot and cover them with cold water by 1 inch. Add 1 teaspoon of salt.
2. Bring the water to a boil over high heat, then reduce the heat to medium and simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes, until a fork easily pierces the thickest potato.
3. Drain the potatoes in a colander and let them sit for 1 minute to cool slightly.
4. Peel the potatoes while they’re still hot, using a kitchen towel to protect your hands.
5. Cut the peeled potatoes into 2-inch chunks and pass them through a ricer into a large bowl, or mash them with a potato masher until mostly smooth.
6. Add the butter pieces to the hot potatoes and stir until completely melted and blended, about 1 minute.
7. Pour in the warm milk a little at a time, stirring gently after each addition, until the potatoes reach the texture you want.
8. Taste and season with salt and black pepper as needed. Serve immediately or transfer to a buttered bowl and hold warm over simmering water.