Types of potato

Answer 1

Potatoes are root vegetables, but that doesn't really tell you the whole story. When you visit the produce department of your local market, you'll probably see a variety of potatoes for sale. They'll likely be different sizes and different colors too. They'll go by different names, and each season there'll probably be a few you don't recognize.

For example, russet potatoes are the most popular potatoes consumed in the U.S., but they're sold as russets, russet potatoes and Idaho potatoes. Why? Originally Idaho was prime real estate for potato growers, so over time Idaho became synonymous with the russet potato. Nowadays great russet potatoes are grown around the world.

Sweet potatoes can create another problem with identification. Sweet potatoes aren't actually potatoes in the traditional sense. They can be any one of a variety of root vegetables with orange to a ruby red skin and yellow to orange flesh. They are distinguished by their elongated, lumpy, torpedo like shapes.

Potatoes Explained

The third component that can create confusion is the influx of new potato cultivars (varieties). Think of them as designer potatoes that can be purple, red, brown, yellow, gold, tiny, waxy, skinny -- well, potatoes have something new on offer every year. To unravel the potato mystery, you really only need to remember one key detail: potatoes are distinguished by how much (and what type of) starch they contain.

High Starch Potatoes

High starch potatoes are best for baking, mashing and frying. They include russet potatoes -- the king of the bakers. You may also see them advertised as:

• Gold rush (or Goldrush) Potatoes
• California White Potatoes
• California Long White Potatoes
• Norgold Russet
• Russet Burbank
• White Rose
• Russet Arcadia.

High starch potatoes are typically characterized by a brown, somewhat thick and mildly scaly skin.

Low Starch Potatoes

On the other end of the spectrum are the low starch or waxy potatoes. They include red or "new" potatoes. Low starch potatoes are best for boiling. They are available in a number of colors and sizes but are typically distinguished by a thin (rather than a thick) skin. These are dense potatoes that hold together well when cooked in liquid, so they're good in sauces, soups and stews. They're also superior salad potatoes. They are also the potato of choice for barbecuing, kabobs and roasting. Some common varieties and brands are:

• Red Potato
• Red Nordland
• Red La Rouge
• Australian Crescent
• Round White
• Petite Red Potatoes
• New Potato (often immature red potatoes)
• Salad Potato
• Round Red
• Red Bliss
• Yellow Potatoes
• La Soda
• Yellow Finnish
• Red Pontiac
• Ruby Crescent

Medium Starch Potatoes

If you're having trouble deciding what type of potato works best for you, there's a middle ground. Medium starch potatoes can be used for baking or boiling. They hold together well but are still moist and relatively tender. They're a good choice for just about everything but a classic baked potato that requires a fluffy cooked texture that almost always calls for a high starch russet potato. Here are some popular medium starch varieties:

• Yukon Gold (probably the most well known)
• Fingerling (matures at a small size)
• Kennebec
• Peruvian Blue
• Superior

Answer 2

I just got a job at a grocery store, so hopefully I can help you out with the kinds of potatoes we sell:

-White? (that's the simple name we give the typical white potatoes)

-Red (typical red-skinned potatoes)

-White grelot (small white potatoes, more expensive than above)

-Red grelot (small red potatoes, more expensive than above)

-Russet (these are used for baked potatoes)

-Yukon gold (yellowish in the middle)

There are quite a few varieties of potatoes, and while all of them are delicious, some are better for some uses than others.

For instance, the Russet potato makes yummy potato pancakes, and are fantastic for making french fries. They are also great for making mashed potatoes and they are wonderful baked. In fact, Russets are the very best baking potatoes out there.

The Yukon Gold potatoes are good for steaming, are perfect for soups and chowders, they MASH well, and also make good potato pancakes.

Red-skinned potatoes are great for pan-frying, terrific in soups and chowders, and are perfect for making potato salads, gratins and scalloped potatoes.

Another potato that makes a delicious potato salad is the Yellow Finn, which is also good in soups and chowders.

There are also the Purple potatoes. Purple potatoes make wonderful salads, gratins, and scalloped dishes as well as soups and chowders, french fries and are fantastic mashed.

White Round potatoes (the ones mentioned above) work well for potato salads, gratins, scalloped potatoes, pan-fried potatoes and soups and chowders.

The Bintje potatoes are good roasting potatoes, and make terrific french fries.

Fingerlings are good for purees and pan-frying, as well as make super french fries, and the Caribes are good for mashing.

Last but not least, although least in size, are the New Potatoes that are so good they work for just about everything except pureeing and french fries.

Answer 3

sweet potato, yam potato, red potato, Idaho and many many more.