Potatoes are already incredibly versatile and well loved – where would we be without chips, mash or jacket potatoes!?  However, we are Love Potatoes wanted to give you some ideas of what you can do with your humble spud that you might not have thought of before…  Find 10 of the best ways to serve potatoes and use them for practical purposes below.

From Cooking to Cleaning: The Best Ways to Use Potatoes:

1. Make Your Own Homemade Crisps:

Make your own crisps by carefully using the large slice side of your cheese grater,  or your usual potato peeler.  Afterwards, place thin slices of the raw potatoes on a baking tray, and spray with cooking oil and an array of salt, pepper, and any herbs and spices you may have in your cupboard.

2. Save Your Mashed Potato for Bubble & Squeak

According to Love Food Hate Waste, we waste 748,000 whole potatoes every day in UK homes as we cook and serve too many! Cooked mashed potato will keep in the fridge for up to two days, so save it and make another meal such as Bubble & Squeak, a topping for a pie or fishcakes with any leftovers!

3. Make Your Own Gnocchi

If you are longing for linguine or fantasising about fusilli but don’t have any pasta, why not make your own gnocchi? It’s great for giving the kids their pesto hit, or any of their favourite pasta sauces for that matter, and once you’ve made a batch of your gnocchi you can freeze it and use it again next week.

4. Try Making Potato Pancakes

If you haven’t got much flour, why not make potato pancakes? They are a great way to pep up that lunch and while you can top it with anything you’ve got, you can’t go wrong with a poached egg.

5. Grow Your Own!

Thinking of things to try to keep the kids occupied? Why not have a go at growing your own potatoes? All you need to start is a sprouting potato, a container and some soil!

6. Freeze Cooked Potatoes For Later

You can easily freeze cooked potatoes. If you have a large bag, and want to avoid any going to waste, you can make a batch of mash potato, which can be frozen for another day. Roast potatoes (if you have any left!) can also be frozen once cooked. Simply cook them straight from the freezer with a little oil – delicious!

7. Don’t Be Fussy and Remove the Sprouts

Check to see if your potatoes are still ok to eat. Potatoes that have started to sprout should still be ok to eat – just check that it is still firm and not too wrinkly. Just remove any sprouts before cooking.  Throw away any potatoes that have gone green and if you have them, always go by the ‘use by date’.

8. Get Arty or Restore Old Leather

If you want to get arty, shape leftover potatoes into stamps and use some paints!  The kids will love it. You can even use leftovers for some practical cleaning, too.

If you have hoovered everywhere, redecorated that spare room and decluttered all your drawers and looking for something else to do – how about cleaning some leather? Treat that well-used sofa and nourish your favourite leather shoes using some potatoes. According to Top Tenz and other sources, you can par boil potatoes, then chop in half once cool and rub the exposed half over your leather to feed and polish it. Be careful not to get the leather overly wet. Buff with a clean dry cloth.

9. Use Them To Clean Up Glass

If the kids (or you adults) have a clumsy moment and accidently knock over and break some glass, no fear – the potato is here!  Sweep the area as you would usually, then take a raw potato, cut in half and gently press the exposed half onto the surface where the glass broke. Any small shards will be picked up and embedded in the potato (which you will put in the bin afterwards!)

10. Prevent Plastic Staining

Have unsightly stained plastic containers from leftover sauces? Avoid plastic staining by cutting a raw potato in half, then rub the raw potato around the inside of your food storage container before filling with your favourite dish. The sauce won’t stain your containers anymore.

Hungry For More?

If you’re hungry for more potato-filled goodness, dig into our full range of recipes. With some many to choose from, we doubt you’ll be wasting potatoes any time soon.