04 Mar Wed 2009
Varieties of Potatoes
I've been updating the website and was looking over the Ark of Taste list. There are so many yummy things I've grown and will at least plant in the future that aren't mentioned. I'm going to post several different blogs in this category. Since I can't remember everything all at once, this will take a bit for me to get it all done. I figured I'd start some place simple-- potatoes.
I will plant 8 different varieties of potatoes this year. Of course, there will be red-skiined potatoes and Yukon Golds. Those are the easy "traditional" varieties. No Russets here!
But, the 6 others are absolute taste treats. They're listed here in the order they will ripen and be harvested.
All-Blue- These round potatoes are actually blue inside and out. There is some white flesh surrounding the deep blue center like a corona. They are a dry, mealy, flaky potato with a nutty, sweet taste. I always joke that out of all potatoes I grow, these are the most like Russet in taste and texture, just blue. They are good with just about any potato preparation but may crumble in salads.
All-Red aka Cranberry Red- This is one of my all time favorite potatoes ever. They aren't as red as the blues are blue. You'll only get a pale pink mashed potato. They're very sweet, flaky and moist. They're so moist, they're almost juicy. They actually seep a little when sliced raw. They make amazing baked potatoes. They are good mashed too. They don't hold up well with longer or harder cooking methods like frying or roasting. And, if you've never tried a raw potato, these are a great place to start. They have almost no starchy quality at all.
Banana Fingers aka Russian Banana Fingerling (they go by any variation of those words) These little, lumpy gems are very nutty and sweet. They're firm and waxy with a very thin skin. They have many of the same texture qualities as a Yukon Gold but a much denser flesh. They don't grow very large but pack a lot of flavor in a small package. They are best for roasting, frying or steaming. They make great potato salad especially when kept whole. Since they're small, hash browns and mashed potatoes are usually too much work.
Peruvian Purple Fingerling- These are also a lumpy, enlongated fingerling potato but get much bigger. I've have single ones weighing nearly a pound. They are deep purple fleshed and skinned potato. They are probably the sweetest, nuttiest tasting potato I've ever had. The flesh is very, very dry but creamy. Weird, huh? They aren't very versatile and make just awful mashed or baked potatoes. Roasting or frying makes something delightful. This variety does come from the mountains in Peru and is one of the most ancient varieties that can be found easily.
Yellow Finns- Alice Walker once wrote that these are her favorite potatoes. They are very dense and waxy. They have a pronounced potato flavor without nutty qualities. They're still pretty sweet, though. These are probably the most versitile potato I grow but they don't make good potato chips. They're so sweet that the sugar burns before they finish cooking.
German Butterballs- I keep thinking I should send some of these to Alice Walker to see if she finds a new favorite. I've only met one person who doesn't call these her favorite potato. (She prefers the Banana Finger because she likes waxy potatoes.) German Butterballs are considered the gold standard by every known potato aficionado. They are very sweet and creamy and definitely buttery. They taste like an all ready buttered, creamed, twice baked potato. The reason you can't find them easily is that they're hard to grow and have disease problems. My uncle, also an experienced vegetable grower, was once convinced to grow these. He loved them. He will never grow them again. The yield was poor and some of them rotted. Some of them dried out. We give him some for Thanksgiving every year. You can use them any way you want. Even though they don't roast well, they'll still taste so great that you can barely believe your tongue. They're a nearly miraculous treat mashed or baked.