Our Restaurant Style Mashed Potatoes Recipe is straight from a “secret” family recipe. This mash can be served alongside any of your favorite meals. We serve them up with several comfort food meals, they pair perfectly with our recipe for Coq au Vin. An earthy balance of a true French Classic, these mashed potatoes are the perfect accompaniment.
The best Mashed Potatoes consist of a few ingredients, that result in a decadent creamy, rich mash that remains light and velvety. Our secret? We toss a little nutmeg into this batch, which imparts a deep flavor. Maybe not so much a secret anymore, but for good reason!
- Potato Selection: Choose starchy potatoes like Russets or Yukon Golds for the creamiest texture.
- Boiling Technique: Cook potatoes in well-salted water until fork-tender but not waterlogged, which can lead to soggy mashed potatoes.
- Dry Potatoes: Drain cooked potatoes thoroughly and return them to the pot over low heat to evaporate any excess moisture.
- Warm Ingredients: Use warm butter, milk, or cream to prevent the mashed potatoes from cooling too quickly.
- Butter and Cream: Don’t skimp on the butter and cream for rich, luxurious mashed potatoes. Adjust the amounts to your taste preference.
- Mashing Method: Use a potato masher, ricer, or food mill for smooth, lump-free mashed potatoes. Avoid over-mixing, which can result in gummy potatoes.
- Seasoning: Season generously with salt and pepper to enhance the flavor. Consider adding roasted garlic, herbs, or grated cheese for extra flavor.
- Texture Adjustment: If the mashed potatoes are too thick, add more warm milk or cream. If too thin, add additional mashed potatoes.
- Taste Test: Always taste and adjust the seasoning before serving. Remember, the key to great mashed potatoes is balance!
- Keep Warm: Keep mashed potatoes warm until serving by placing them in a heatproof dish over a pot of simmering water or in a low oven. Stir occasionally to prevent drying out.
Mastering the Boiling Process for Perfect Mashed Potatoes
Place medium-sized potatoes, unpeeled and uncut, into a sturdy, heavy-bottomed pot. Add enough cold water to cover the potatoes by about an inch, and generously sprinkle with Kosher sea salt. Keeping the potatoes whole ensures they absorb less water during boiling, preserving their flavor. Cook for approximately 15 minutes until a knife easily pierces through the potatoes when tested. If there’s resistance or crunchiness, continue cooking for a bit longer. Starting with cold water prevents uneven cooking, ensuring perfectly tender potatoes.
Warm the cream, butter, and nutmeg in a heavy-bottomed saucepan on low heat while the potatoes cook.
Drain the potatoes and peel, the skins will slip right off after boiling. Quarter and toss back into the pot they cooked in.
Optimal Techniques for Mashing Potatoes to Perfection
We use a potato ricer for the perfect velvety consistency in our mash, you can also use a potato masher of course.
Potato Masher: This classic tool allows you to easily mash potatoes to your desired consistency. It’s simple and effective for achieving a rustic texture.
Potato Ricer: A potato ricer produces incredibly smooth and fluffy mashed potatoes by pressing cooked potatoes through small holes. It’s ideal for achieving a restaurant-quality texture.
Food Mill: Similar to a potato ricer, a food mill also produces smooth mashed potatoes by forcing the potatoes through a perforated disk. It’s efficient for larger batches and results in a consistent texture.
Hand Mixer: Using a hand mixer can quickly whip cooked potatoes into creamy mashed potatoes. Be careful not to overmix, as it can lead to gummy potatoes.
Stand Mixer: If you have a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, you can use it to mashed potatoes efficiently. Start at a low speed to avoid overmixing.
Choose the method that best suits your preferences and equipment availability for delicious mashed potatoes every time!
Never, ever use a blender or food processor! And Mixers can also result in the same gluey mess. The science is uncomplicated: Boiled potatoes develop puffed starch cells. When ruptured during mashing, the cells release starch. The more cells are broken the gummier the mashed potatoes become.
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How to Make Restaurant Style-Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 pounds Idaho Russet Potatoes
- 1 cup (240 ml) cream can substitute half & half
- 1/2 cup (115 grams) butter
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- Kosher sea salt to taste
- freshly cracked black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Add unpeeled, uncut potatoes medium sized potatoes to a heavy-bottomed pot add cold water till the potatoes are covered by an inch, then add a generous hand of Kosher sea salt.
- Cook for about 15 minutes, you will be able to easily pierce the potatoes through with a knife, when they're done. If there's resistance and a crunch then let them cook a little bit longer.
- Warm the cream, butter, and nutmeg over low heat in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Add a little of the warmed creamed mixture and begin mashing the potatoes, continue to add the cream mixture until you have reached the desired consistency. Season with Kosher sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste.
Notes
- Prep time is approximate.
Creative Recipe Inspiration
Check out our other Side Dish Recipe Inspiration! Starting with our Steakhouse Potato Stacks, sliced thin and cooked in a garlic cream sauce.
If you want to step out of the everyday side dish routine then you’ll want to make note of our Minted Peas w Lemon, they go fabulously with so many mains!
Step Into My Kitchen!
Hey there, fellow food enthusiast! Welcome to Mean Green Chef, where every dish tells a story and every recipe is a labor of love. I’m thrilled to share a bit about myself and the journey that led me here, stirring pots and sprinkling spices for over three decades!
I LOVE mashed potatoes! I’ll try this recipe … possibly tonight! 🙂 My son loves them too!
Thank you, Brittany! Please be sure and tag us @meangreenchef or #meangreenchef ?
I love mashed potatoes, and I usually do red, but russet are my favorite! Its funny I chose red so I don’t have to peel them, but your recipe is the best!!
Thanks so much, Holly, red mash is great too! The beauty of boiling with the skins on is that they slip right off, so if you ever want to give this a try it works like a charm! ?
mashed potatoes… the reigning king of all comfort food! Yum!! Now I’m hungry.
So true, Jen, and a good mash goes with so many dishes! Thanks so much for checking out our recipe! ?
These look so good! Love mashed potatoes.
Thanks, Katie, we love mashed potatoes too! ?
Haha I do red like Holly does so I don’t have to peel them. But I do know no matter what the cream makes a huge difference. Love mashed potatoes with cream.
Hi Karie! Yes, totally agreed cram makes such a difference in consistency and flavor! If you do ever use Idaho Potatoes, boil with the skin on, it slips right off, super easy! ?
Great tip on boiling the potatoes whole! And nutmeg? Who knew! Will try it this week!
Hey Terri, nutmeg is an amazing component in so many dishes! My Italian Grandmother used it in at least a dozen dishes, it ups the flavor ante! Please be sure and tag us @meangreenchef or #meangreenchef ?
I use cream too. It is the only way to go!
Hi Tricia! Cream rocks, adding such a great flavor and consistency to so many dishes! ?
This looks yummy! I used the potato ricer every Sunday for my mom when I was a little girl, loved them that way!
Hey Lauri! I love hearing about memories in the kitchen, it’s the one thing that we all have in common for sure! ?
I only make mash potatoes at Thanksgiving – but we love them and the recipe sounds heavenly with the added nutmeg. I’ve used nutmeg on red potatoes and have loved it – so why not with mashed!? I appreciate the tips on why to choose the russet potatoes and also the mashing process. While I don’t remember my potatoes as being gummy when using a mixer, I love learning new and better techniques. Thank you!
Hi Susan! The nutmeg is really a great trick to adding depth of flavor, and it can be used in so many dishes. We’ve always used ricers in our kitchens, you’ll get a gummy mash with over beating and using a high starch potato such as the Russet or Idaho can produce a gluey product due to their high starch/low moisture ratio. Thanks so much for checking out our recipe! ?
Mashed potatoes are LIFE!!!!
Rock on Rachel, we totally agree!! ?
We love mashed potatoes (we are from Idaho so we kinda have to, right, haha)! I will be trying these for Christmas dinner this year. Thanks for the tips and recipe!
Thank you, Jocelyn! Please be sure and tag us @meangreenchef or #meangreenchef ?
This sounds yummy! Thanks for the recipe!
You bet Jo, thanks so much for checking out our recipe! ?
I love mashed potatoes. I love REAL mashed potatoes. I’m going to try this recipe!
Thank you, Nicki! Please be sure and tag us @meangreenchef or #meangreenchef ?
I’m salivating! YUMMY! Thank you for sharing.
Thank you, Shelly! ?
These sound so good. The pictures look so real. Thanks for sharing. I will have to try mashed potatoes this way.
Thank you, Kathy! Please be sure and tag us @meangreenchef or #meangreenchef ?
This looks so good! I’ve never cooked the potatoes with the skin on before. I may try it. I’d just read about putting whole potatoes in the air fryer to cook them and then peeling them, so clearly I will be experimenting with both ways soon. And nutmeg also ha my attention. Thanks!
Hi, Stacey! Please be sure and let me know how the air-fryer works (don’t have on in our cooking arsenal) boiling works like a charm and they fall right off! Nutmeg is a crazy good too, you can always try adding a pinch to a small bowl and tasting it first to make sure you like the flavor! Thanks so much for checking out our recipe, and do let me know about the air fryer! ?
These sound delicious! I love mashed potatoes for every meal of the day! 🙂
Thanks so much, Jennifer! A good mash can really pull a dish together! ?
I love mashed potatoes and the nutmeg secret….mmmm, I can’t wait to try it!
Hi Flor, thanks so much for checking out our recipe! Nutmeg is a great secret weapon, also good in an Alfredo sauce on occasion and all it takes is a pinch. ?
This made me hungry ! I love mashed potatoes !
Hey, Kelly! We love a great mash too, thanks so much for checking out our recipe! ?
This may change how I make potatoes since I grew up with the mixer! I’ve never used a potato ricer, what else could I use it for if I get one?
Hi Katie! ? Great question, ricers are a great and inexpensive tool to have on hand. You can, rice squash, tomatoes for sauce (the skins stay in the ricer so that’s nice and it speeds up the cooking process), make baby food, remove excess water from frozen spinach, and make applesauce too. Thanks so much for checking out our recipe! ?
Yum!!! These looks so great! Can’t wait to try this recipe! Thanks for sharing it!!!
Thank you, Laura, we really appreciate you! Please be sure and tag us @meangreenchef or #meangreenchef ?
Looks Good! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you, Rosanna!!?
Mashed potatoes??? Oh, my gosh!!! My absolute favorite side dish. I craved potatoes morning, noon and night with my oldest and don’t think I ever lost my love for them. Going to try the nutmeg with it next time.
Yes one of our faves to T.M! A great mash can really make dinner come together, just a pinch of nutmeg creates amazing flavor. Start by adding a pinch, taste and season from that point then serve! Thanks so much for checking out our recipe! ?