Archive for April, 2012


Baking Potatoes for a Large Group

Thursday, April 26th, 2012

Q. Our church is planning a potato bar to be served after our Ash Wednesday service.  We are planning for 150 to 200 people. We do not have a commercial grade oven so we were wondering if we could put them in roasters.  Would this work?  Should they be wrapped in aluminum foil?  How long would they need to be in roasters?

A. Bake until the internal temperature of the potato is 210°F. It takes about 1 hour at 400°F in a conventional oven, so you will have to adjust as necessary if you use roasters. Don’t wrap in foil to bake the potatoes—this just steams the potato and makes the skin soggy. You can wrap them after baking if you want to keep the potatoes hot. 

Here are some more tips on baking potatoes effectively:

 

Tags: , ,
Posted in Consumer, Foodservice, Q & A

Using Plastic Wrap to Cook Potatoes?

Monday, April 23rd, 2012

Q. I have been purchasing baking potatoes wrapped in plastic at the grocery store.  The instructions say not to pierce the potatoes, but to cook them in the microwave for eight minutes in the plastic wrap. To save money I would like to do this myself, but what plastic wrap should I use?

A. A special plastic wrap is used that it breathes out, which allows some of the moisture to escape when baked in the microwave oven. Microwave bags for other vegetables would probably work fine, too. Trapping the moisture in just steams the potatoes, but some people prefer it this way. Try this some time: Buy the loose potatoes, and wash and pierce them with a fork a few times to keep them from bursting. Wrap a paper towel loosely around each potato and microwave. The towel absorbs some of the moisture when it bakes.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Consumer, Food Safety, Q & A

Salt on the Exterior of a Baked Potato

Thursday, April 19th, 2012

Q. Why is it common to salt the exterior of a baked potato?

A. Chefs started doing this years ago to allow the salt to absorb or draw out the moisture of the potato while baking, which results in a dry, fluffy potato. They used to do something similar with prime rib, sometimes baking it over rock salt. 

Check out these recipes on our website:

For a giant baked Idaho Potato as served at steak houses:

Salt Crusted Baked Idaho Potato

Salt Crusted Baked Idaho Potato

 

Encasing a baking Idaho Potato in a salt herb mixture:

Salt-Baked Potato

Salt-Baked Potato

A video of salt baked Idaho Potatoes from blogger Average Betty:

How to Make Salt Baked Potatoes

 

Tags: , ,
Posted in Consumer, Foodservice, Q & A

How Long Can Mashed Potatoes be Safely Regrigerated?

Monday, April 16th, 2012

Q. How long can mashed potatoes be safely refrigerated?

A. You can typically mash the potatoes and keep them refrigerated for about two to three days. Be sure to keep them in an airtight container because if you don’t, the pulp will oxidize and turn gray.

Tags: , ,
Posted in Consumer, Foodservice, Q & A

Line Flow vs. Extra-Long French Fries in Foodservice

Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012

Q. What percentage of foodservice sales are line flow French fries versus premium extra-long or long fancy French fries?  Also, what is the percentage of private label vs. branded frozen fries for foodservice?

A. Unfortunately, these are statistics that I do not know.  Each processor keeps their own records and as far as I know it is not accumulated anywhere that an association or board has access to.

Unsubstantiated opinion… line flow far exceeds the volume of premium extra-long and long fancy French fries.  I’d be surprised if the top of the line fries had more than 10-15% of the business.  There just are not that many big potatoes under each plant when harvested to create a lot of long fries.  Bear in mind, that by far the majority of fries end up in foodservice (used to be about 85% versus retail) and that the largest users of frozen fries are McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s.  Even Mc Donald’s specs don’t call for all long fries, even though they know that you can use the same amount of potatoes and long fries will look like a bigger portion.

And, I can’t really help with the private label versus branded.  However, the brands Simplot, McCain, and Lamb Weston dominate any fry production and the largest users of frozen fries are boxed under the labels of the operator companies… McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s.

The real issue operators need to be aware of when they try to cut costs and not use long or medium size fries is that the shorter pieces and often lower solids also mean more fry oil uptake.

Tags: , , , ,
Posted in Foodservice, Q & A