The Only Mashed Potatoes You’ll Ever Make

FASTER

VEGETARIAN

GLUTEN-FREE

Makes 4 servings

Believe it or not, the microwave makes the creamiest mashed potatoes. The secret is not to poke or prod the potatoes before or even as they cook. The skin will seal in all the moisture—which will super-heat and cook the potatoes to perfection from the inside. Sure, there’ll be skins in the mash, but they just add to the texture in the dish.

1½ pounds small yellow-fleshed potatoes (probably 16), such as Yukon Golds

2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter

½ cup whole, low-fat, or fat-free milk

⅓ cup regular or low-fat sour cream

2 tablespoons minced chives or the green part of a scallion

Up to 1 teaspoon table salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

1. Wash the potatoes of any surface dirt, then place them, still damp, in a large, deep, microwave-safe bowl with a lid. Tightly cover the bowl with its lid and open the vent slit. Or tightly cover the top of the bowl with microwave-safe plastic wrap and make one 3-inch slit in the wrap.

2. Microwave on high for 8 minutes. Set aside, still covered, for 2 minutes.

3. Unseal the bowl, add the butter, and use a potato masher or electric mixer to mash it into the potatoes.

4. Add the milk, sour cream, chives, salt, and pepper. Continue mashing until either somewhat creamy with a little chunky texture or very smooth and creamy, depending on your taste.

Test Kitchen Notes

• This technique only works with yellow-fleshed potatoes like Yukon Golds.

• Pick out your potatoes from the bulk bin. Start with 16 small ones and weigh them, then add more as necessary to make 1½ pounds.

• Use only microwave-safe cookware and plastic wrap.

• Adding the butter before the other ingredients produces more buttery-tasting mashed potatoes. It’s a complex, chemical issue of how the fat is absorbed and held by the starches. But it works.

• For a richer flavor, instead of butter, try cream cheese.

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Voilà! Make baked potatoes in a slow cooker: Use 12-ounce russet potatoes, as many as will fit in your cooker with each one touching the bottom. (The potatoes can stand up on their ends like silent soldiers.) Rub each potato with a little olive oil and sprinkle with kosher salt, then wrap each in aluminum foil. Snuggle in the slow cooker, cover, and cook on high for 5 hours or low for 9 hours.