Simple cooking tip: Mashing potatoes

Everyone will have their own way of mashing potatoes.  This is mine – and it's simple to do. You don't need any special equipment other than a good old fashioned potato masher.

Cook your potatoes by boiling them in salted water.  I always start them in cold water rather than putting them into boiling.  I don't think it really matters but I put root vegetables into cold water and vegetables that grow above ground into boiling water.

I pop a few cloves of garlic (unpeeled) into the water with the potatoes.  This cooks the garlic and lets you flavour your mash with it.  You could peel the garlic first.  If you don't you simply pick out the cloves of garlic and squish them with the flat of a knife and the garlic will ooze out.

I mash the potatoes in the pot they were cooked in because it is still hot and helps to melt the butter.  I put in a few cubes of butter, lashings of ground white pepper, salt to taste, the smushed garlic and sometimes some mustard.  Then just mash it up with your masher.  You won't get a smooth consistency unless you also add cream, milk or sour cream – but that just adds calories and I don't mind the mash being rustic looking.  Purists will tell you to add pre-warmed milk.