Smooth buttery mashed potatoes: creamy, for cutlets, meatloaf, and roasts

Tip: tap a step to mark it as done.

1. Boil the potatoes in their skins

   30 min

   Wash the potatoes thoroughly and place them, unpeeled, in a pot. Cover with cold water and add salt. Boil for 25–30 minutes, until a knife slides easily into the center. Keeping the skins on prevents the potatoes from absorbing water, so the mash will not be watery.

2. Peel and rice

   10 min

   Drain the potatoes and let them steam dry for 2 minutes. While still hot, hold them with a kitchen towel to peel them, then pass them through a potato ricer back into the pot. If you do not have a ricer, use a potato masher; the texture will be slightly coarser.

3. Stir in the butter

   5 min

   Place the pot over low heat and stir the potatoes with a wooden spoon for 1–2 minutes to evaporate any remaining water. Remove from the heat and stir in the cold butter one cube at a time, adding each cube only after the previous one has melted. Add the butter before the milk so the fat coats the starch and keeps the potatoes from becoming gluey.

4. Pour in the milk

   5 min

   Heat the milk until nearly boiling, then gradually pour it into the potatoes, stirring constantly, until smooth and creamy. Season with salt and a pinch of nutmeg.

5. Press through a sieve and serve

   5 min

   For completely smooth mashed potatoes, use a spatula to press them through a fine-mesh sieve. Serve immediately while warm.

Tip: Do not use an immersion blender or food processor, as this will make the potatoes gluey. If they thicken as they sit, stir in a tablespoon of hot milk; keep them warm in a bowl set over a pot of hot water.

This recipe was translated from the Slovak original: Hladké zemiakové pyré s maslom: jemné ako krém, k rezňu, sekanej aj pečenému mäsu