According to Tesco Real Food there is a simple method to stop potatoes from sprouting for half of the year. With the cost of living eating into people’s pockets, throwing away sprouting spuds is a no-no.
While sprouting potatoes aren’t harmful to eat (unless they have turned green), if you lob off the tubers, the flavour does deplete.
How to store potatoes
First, the potatoes need to have thick skin, no large puncture marks, no soft spots, mould or blemishes before you attempt the food storage hack.
Only healthy-looking brown potatoes can be “cured” with success, which must not be washed as added moisture encourages the potatoes to sprout.
Instead, any dirt must be brushed off before storing the potatoes on a sheet of newspaper in a dark space, such as a cupboard outside.
“It’s important they don’t touch, as air needs to circulate between the spuds,” Tesco Real Food noted.
Stored in a well-ventilated, cool, and dry place – below 10C – improves the likelihood of long-lasting potatoes that don’t sprout, which is why the kitchen may not be the most ideal room.
If you do notice any sprouting potatoes, get rid of the sprouted lumps as soon as possible, or else they could spoil the whole batch.
By following the food storage hack – placing the spuds on newspapers – you have a higher chance of non-sprouting potatoes in the next six months.
Hasselback potatoes recipe
There is no point in having non-sprouting potatoes unless you make a delicious recipe out of the spuds. Here, The Dinner Bite have put together a mouthwatering side dish of garlic butter potatoes.
Ingredients:
Potatoes
Butter
Garlic paste
Vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
Method
Preheat the oven to 200C. Wash the potatoes clean under running water. Prepare the baking tray by spraying it with cooking spray.
Carefully slice the potatoes vertically on a chopping board at 4mm interval, making sure not to cut all the way through. Mix together olive oil, melted butter, garlic paste, and seasoning.
Place the sliced potatoes on a baking tray and slather on some of the mixture, then bake for 40 minutes. Remove from the oven, add more mixture, then continue to bake for 15 to 20 minutes.
Top with chopped parsely and serve with the mains of your choice.
