Buck Reed, The Supermarket Gourmet
So, it seems to some that we have a football team in Washington, D.C., that has a team name that offends some people, therefore I am compelled to not mention it here.
Whether it is offensive or not, there is a simple solution: Stop calling them that name, and rename them The Washington Redskin Potatoes. You don’t have to peel them, they are delicious, and everybody loves them. I predict the potato mascot will dominate the sport franchise industry.
Looking at the history of the potato, one might think that there is no problem it cannot solve. It all started during the Incan empire, where they used it as a primary food source to build their realm. They found that potatoes grew well in the high mountainous regions they dominated, and they were able to preserve them in such a way that it retained its nutritional value. Think of it as an early form of Birdseye.
When the potato was brought back to Europe, it became a mainstay in the many countries it was introduced to. In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, occupying armies were required to provide their own food sources, and pillaging stored grain from helpless farmers was considered a noble endeavor, but digging for potatoes was beneath their dignity. Thus, growing potatoes was used as a form of insurance in those days against starvation in the wake of foreign military occupation.
In the mid-1800s, the great potato famine had a profound impact on the United States. Searching for something to eat, millions of Irish workers flooded our country and, through their hard work, helped build the infrastructure of our nation.
Potatoes give us French fries, potato chips, and vodka, which makes all the other vegetables look like slackers. As far as nutrition, it is easier to mention what they do not provide. They are inherently low in fat, cholesterol, vitamin D, and sodium.
Potatoes are such a mainstay of our diet that the odds of you having them tonight for dinner are about the same as seeing Samuel L. Jackson in the next movie you will go see. But with so many varieties of potatoes available to consumers, picking the right potato can be a bit daunting. Look for a potato that feels firm in your hand, has an intact skin, and is free of green blemishes and those buds called “eyes.” Potato varieties are broken down into three categories: high starch, all purpose, and low starch or waxy. Each category has its own methods of cooking for which they are best suited. See the chart above for a better understanding.
If you have a problem in the kitchen, see if maybe a potato can get you out of it. And maybe, someday, we may be able to vote a potato into the Oval Office (couldn’t be any worse than the choices we have now).
Need a recipe or idea for your table or you have an idea for an article feel free to drop me an email at rguyinthekitchen@aol.com
