Mashers

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown

Show: Good EatsEpisode: This Spud's for You

Rated: 4 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (21)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(21)

Cook Time:
30 min
Level:
Easy
Yield:
8 servings

Times:

Prep: 15 min
Inactive Prep: --
Cook: 30 min
Total:: 45 min

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Ingredients

4 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks
8 red potatoes, cut into chunks roughly the same size as the russet chunks
1 to 2 teaspoons kosher salt
3/4 cup low fat buttermilk (not skim)
1/4 cup heavy cream
6 to 8 cloves of garlic, peeled

Directions

Combine potatoes in a large pot and just cover with cold tap water. Place over high heat and season water with 1 to 2 teaspoons of salt, (it should taste like sea water). Cover the pot and bring to a boil.

Meanwhile, combine dairy and garlic in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Keep this mixture barely simmering until the potatoes are done.

As soon as the water comes to a boil, remove the lid and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes or until a potato chunk can easily be crushed with a pair of tongs. Drain, then return potatoes to the pan, return pot to heat and shake for 30 seconds so the surface water can evaporate. Remove pot and set on a towel or hot pads. Pour about half the garlic mixture into the potatoes and mash with an old-fashioned potato masher. Start tasting and looking at the consistency right away. If mashers seem dry or bland, add more of the garlic mixture. Avoid over mashing or you'll end up with gluey instead of fluffy.

Serve straight or garnish with any of the following: parsley, chopped scallions, crumbled bacon, sun dried tomatoes, (If you have the dry ones, make sure you re-hydrate them.) grated horseradish, horseradish sauce, pesto, more bacon, Sauteed mushrooms...use your imagination.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Mashers
Lavallee Verdun, QC 12-31-2008
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For "Alicia" ... about the garlic
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

The recipe, as transcribed here, seems to skip a few things. The answer to the confusion about the garlic seems to be in... reviewing the original episode (Season 1, Episode 2). One can see Mr. Brown pouring the buttermilk/heavy cream mixture into the potatoes slowly, leaving almost half of the mixture in the pot. He even says: "You don't want to go overboard on this stuff because before you know it, you could have potato soup which is nice but it's not really what we're after. ... I'm going to go with just a little more of the mixture. That is probably going to be enough. Every time you make this it's going to be a little different so it is always nice to have a little more of the mixture than you think you might need." Had he poured every bit of the mixture into the potatoes, the garlic would have fallen in in chunks. He would have probably mentioned something about it. My person use: let the garlic give the sauce a light flavor, but don't mix it into the potatoes unless you're REALLY into garlic.Read more
recipe Mashers
Alicia Stokesdale, NC 06-27-2008
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Very good - but...
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

My DBF made this recipe for the first time last night, but didn't remove the garlic from the milk mixture prior to mixing... with the potatoes. I wish the recipe had a little more instruction about what to do with the garlic. Simmering the mashed cloves in the milk doesn't cook them enough to make them palatable (and I'm a huge garlic fan!), and the recipe doesn't say to strain them out. The potatoes were good but very, very garlic-heavy, as they had random chunks of half-cooked garlic.Read more
recipe Mashers
Ani Minneapolis, MN 01-07-2008
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I have exploded buttermilk on my pants
Rated: 3 stars out of 5

Good flavor affinities- garlic, buttermilk, taters, but this whole simmering buttermilk and cream ordeal just broke the... buttermilk, made a huge mess and seems unnecessary. You can always just use garlic powder or garlic salt or roast the garlic, whatever- I wouldn't try this method unless you enjoy cleaning buttermilk off your vent hood.Read more
recipe Mashers
Jennifer Marietta, GA 12-05-2007
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Yum
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is now my standard mashed potatoes recipe. The acid from the buttermilk gives these potatoes so much flavor that I feel... they don't need all the butter and cream my husband usually adds. It's unfortunate that AB doesn't discuss buttermilk's tendency to curdle when heated. Preheating the buttermilk in the same pan with the cream should prevent this; folks who skip that step and pour cold buttermilk into hot potatoes will probably get curds. Slowly heating the b'milk with the cream is key.Read more
recipe Mashers
Silvana Woodbridge, CA 10-21-2007
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A little too bland
Rated: 3 stars out of 5

Very light, however I was expecting a creamy and more satisfying taste. They were too bland and lacked the buttery flavour. ... I served these potatoes on thanksgiving and I usually get compliments on my mashed potatoes, so I thounght I would venture to Alton's Masher, however I didn't get the normal rave about this recipe. Also, I had leftover mashers, which is very unusual for my family.Read more
recipe Mashers
Dawn Clearfield, UT 07-16-2007
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where's the butter?
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

These are good, but this needs butter.