Knowing how to store potatoes correctly will mean that households can reap the rewards of perfect produce.
Unlike most other vegetables, potatoes can be stored for a matter of months, so not only do they taste great, they’re great value too.
Taking to his Instagram page @mindandsoil, gardening expert Jordan Mara has shared a way to store potatoes that’ll keep them fresh for long.
This method can be used with either home-grown potatoes or the ones you buy from the supermarket.
Jordan captioned the video which attracted over 250,000 views: “Store your potatoes like this and they will be good as new in three to four months.”
For those storing potatoes grown from their garden, Jordan instructed that they first have to harvest them before giving them a rinse and leave them to dry air dry for seven to 10 days.
This helps the potatoes develop a dry skin that helps them “store for longer”.
The next step is what you can start doing with your store-bought potatoes – store them in a box in a medium.
So what’s the best medium? The expert conducted an experiment last autumn where he tried storing potatoes in sand, garden soil, sawdust and found that the “absolute best option” was garden soil.
To store potatoes in garden soil, start by adding two inches of moist garden soil to a storage tote or cardboard box.
Then place a row of potatoes onto the soil, making sure none of them touch. Next, cover these potatoes in one to two inches of soil before adding your next layer of potatoes.
Repeat this process until all of your potatoes are stored and leave the box in a cool and dark area.
Jordan added: “Now, three to four months later when you pull them out they’ll still be good as new.”
Instagram users took to the comments section to share their thoughts on this potato storage method.
@mariclaireruttan said: “I’ve tried this and my potatoes lasted up to eight months.”
@_nicolepuskas wrote: “This is great info. I never knew what to do with them.”
@chapterette argued: “I don’t rinse my potatoes and I store them in a plastic tote on my kitchen counter. They usually last five to six months like that.”
